021 - How Garbage is Killing the Urban Metabolism

If we think of a city as a living organism, energy and waste are essential parts of the urban metabolism. Join us for an enlightening conversation with zero waste consultant, Alisa Shargorodsky as we explore the challenges of recycling programs, and the impact of recyclables, compostables and single-use packaging on the urban ecosystem. While they may seem a responsible and sustainable alternative to plastic, you’ll discover the shocking and disappointing truth about compostable single-use items as they currently exist and the threat they pose to both health and environment. This is an eye-opening and myth-busting interview, exposing some uncomfortable truths and challenging us to better solutions. A deeper understanding of the single use product life-cycle makes it clear that sustainability can’t happen until we dispose of disposables and our “convenience-driven” lifestyles to embrace reusables and renewables. In other words, the path to sustainability starts with conscious consumption, voting with our dollars and making a cultural shift to products that sacrifice single-use and serving-size convenience in service to the social good.