About

I’m Camille. Hello. : )

Two years ago, I read Zero Waste Home by Bea Johnson and The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo in the same month. (It was a big month for me.) I was smitten with the curated simplicity of these two women’s lives, and I wanted it for myself. So I did what I always do when inspired: I made some half-assed attempts at self-betterment, and then found reasons to quit almost as quickly as I began. I tried decluttering and de-plasticizing my life, but then I became pregnant with my second child and I rationalized away even those minor efforts. “When the baby’s born” became “when the baby sleeps better” and then “when the baby’s weaned.” Well guess what? My baby is born, he doesn’t sleep worth a damn, and I still haven’t weaned the kid.

Then November 2016 rolled around and shit got real. I had a month-long politically-induced panic attack. My heart would start racing at the most random times. I had anxiety about the smallest things, and also about the biggest. I felt helpless and terrified, and all I wanted to do was curl up in a ball and hug my babies.

Finally, after Christmas, I realized that my fear and anxiety would help no one. Actually doing something, however, might help someone. I figured out that even though the stars would never align as perfectly as I wanted them, at least taking action was better than sitting around in a state of constant panic. So I set a goal to go Zero Waste in 2017.

I quickly became hooked. Zero Waste was something I could do. It was a goal with measurable results, trackable progress, and meaningful outcomes. For the first time in months, I was not only regaining control of my life and anxieties, but also making a change in the world—a change for the better. I wanted to share those insights with my local community, so I started a Facebook page for Zero Waste in Southern Alberta and have been amazed at its growth in just a few months.

Since then, I’ve discovered some fascinating connections between Zero Waste and my other hippie proclivities: minimalism, self-sufficiency (i.e. prepping), screenlessness, gardening—hell, even yoga and barefoot living are connected in their own unique ways. Everything’s linked, and I’m finally fitting the puzzle pieces of my life into their proper places. (Okay, now I really do sound like a hippie.)

Thank you for joining me on this quest.