the trash tour
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"because there is no such thing as AWAY..." - Ari Derfel (the trash guy) |
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share the mindfulness $25 student / senior
"When the Age of Wisdom finally dawns, then the only way to be wealthy will be to sell products that nurture the ecosystem and improve people's lives." - Dr. Deepak Chopra
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read on to find out about the fundraiser |
press & related sites
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Ari (the original trash guy) and his trash |
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The inspiration came from our friend Ari Derfel who saved his trash for an entire year and found that it was actually a spiritual discipline, and the story has now been picked up world wide. AcroYoga founders Jenny and Jason thought it would be an interesting concept if all AcroYoga teachers considered touring for at least a month, teaching classes and bringing their trash with them to educate students about consumption. The idea instantly clicked in my head and I have never been so inspired (and terrified) to travel with my trash to help raise money for my commitment to The Mindfulness Challenge. It struck me as ironic, that the donations from The Mindfulness Challenge are going to the Cambodian Children's Fund, an amazing non-profit trying to get children out of the Trash dumps and back into schools and here I am willingly commiting to carry my trash with me as I embark on the largest fundraiser of my lifetime. Needless to say this will prove to be an interesting adventure and you can hear all of my trash tales HERE where I will blog about the joys of trash. > adi's trash tales This is part of my fundraiser to educate about what we can do to be more mindful of eachother and the planet. "99% of the stuff that we consume is trashed (thrown away) within 6 months" - the story of stuff (www.storyofstuff.com) more trash facts In addition to traveling with my trash and educating on sustainability at a variety of locations, I have also vowed not to purchase any clothing, shoes or accessories for all of 2008 in order to see if I really do need "the stuff". Below is the description of the project that was put together by some of my friends. Feel free to copy and paste it into e-mails and pass along the idea. With Many Thanks, -adi PRESS RELEASE for imediate release everywhere: Adi Carter is a yoga teacher who is traveling and educating about her fundraiser, The Mindfulness Challenge, to raise money for children living in trash dumps in Cambodia. the Mindfulness Challenge is intended to raise money while also educating about eco-conscious and mindful ways of life and businesses associated with these philosophies and the desire to create eco-conscious and sustainable products. As part of this fundraiser, Adi will not be purchasing any clothing, shoes or accessories for all of 2008 as well as traveling with all of her trash (not garbage, which is composed of living matter so it smells...Adi’s trash WILL NOT CONSIST OF ANYTHING THAT SMELLS OR IS COMPOSTABLE). She will be speaking about the “trash tour” at workshops that she teaches across the country as part of the Mindfulness Challenge outreach program to educate about sustainability and practical consumerism.
June
for those who are wondering...the brilliant poster in the background says: "Weapons of Mass Destruction soon to be Deactivated" June 27th- After a final trash tour photo shoot yesterday I could not believe it was all over. 3 months of lugging my trash to over 9 cities including flying in 2 airplanes where I actually checked a bag filled with trash. The fondest memories are definitely of the time spent talking to students about the project and answering questions as to how I actually created so little trash. The answer was simple - Mindfulness. Thinking ahead and preparing in advance for meals was probably the biggest task and my diet drasticly improved as a result of the trash tour. With most ingredients being bought within a day or two of when I would eat them, I frequented farmer's markets as well as produce aisles of health food stores for fruits and vegetables that came in their own naturally trash free packaging. Taking clear plastic bags with me everywhere, I loaded up on foods like oats, nuts, trail mix, rice, spices, pasta and legumes from the bulk bins of health food stores. My local pizza spot and falafel joint are used to giving me food on a real plate (or no plate at all) instead of paper, and they no longer even offer me paper napkins. One guy even commented that he expects me to save the world as a result of this, I told him I'd try my best. All in all, this experience did change my life and I encourage others to try it even for a week just so that you are aware of your tendencies....mine apparently are cravings for potato chips and larabars (the larabars were free though, in my defense). It's easy to forget what we do when we are not faced with it on a daily basis (like our trash) and we could all practice a bit of Mindfulness and reduce our trash by cutting back on the typical trash items- like beverage containers and bottles as well as overly packaged foods. Taking a good look at a public trash bin sometime is a perfect indication of the typical type of trash that we are excessively producing on a daily basis. Often times the most commonly thrown out item is a plastic (or glass) beverage container, usually bottled water which, in a country that produces perfectly drinkable tap water, is a complete waste financially and environmentally and we could all do our part to try and carry our own beverage and food containers. So thanks for taking the time to read this far and I hope you will scroll down and observe the pictures and tales of how this pile came to be...please check back for updates and the progress of The Mindfulness Challenge as I inch closer to $20,000 by the end of the year.
June 27th- the aftermath = 3 months of trash including junk mail
June 10th- there is nothing more bizarre than realizing that you have to check a bag on the plane in order to transport your trash with you to your destination. As someone who rarely even checks luggage and can live out of a backpack for months, the irony of now having to carry an extra bag for my trash when I travel is something I have had to come to terms with (I also took over 15 slacklines with me on the journey so I can't blame the checked baggage factor completely on the trash). The trip with the YogaSlackers to Colorado was a blast. We covered 6 towns/cities in 5 days while also somehow managing to go climbing, teach 2 workshops, demo at the prAna store in Boulder and at the Teva Mountain games, do a slackline photo shoot and eat more pizza than I care to admit to. The hardest thing about being on the road is not knowing where your next meal is comming from. These are the times when food "to-go" seems like such an easy sollution- and it is- until you calculate the "trash factor". Despite our name, the slackers did quite well on the no trash front. Thanks to the generosity of our friends we were taken out to meals several times (something we probably wouldn't splurge on, because, well, we're slackers afterall), and we also made several grocery store runs stocking up on fruits and vegetables...including sweet potatoes for the staple of the YogaSlackers- sweet potato fries (so easy to make and trash free!). I guess it all comes down to who you are with when you travel as we all get hungry and it is quite easy to "splurge" for fast food out of convenience. But when you are with other like minded eco-individuals, great minds think alike in terms of finding healthy, affordable, and low trash options...it's always just a matter of choice and mindfulness. june 1st - the home stretch- well this is it, the start of the last month of the trash tour. And perhaps it has something to do with all those prenatal yoga classes that I am taking (for the record- I am not pregnant- just want to learn modifications for my pregnant students), but I am starting to get kinda attached to my trash pile. It still fits somewhat conveniently in a handbag or backpack and weighs about 3 lbs. I read the other day that the average American makes 4.6 lbs of trash a day and I thought it would be interesting to try and keep the weight of my trash under 5 lbs for the entire tour. No guarantees though, as I made the mistake of ordering a coconut water at a Thai restaurant without confirming that it actually came in the coconut...I ended up getting a ridiculously heavy can of coconut "juice" with the can weighing probably half a pound - empty! (no joke)...it was somewhat authentic as it came from Thailand and I can only imagine the shipping costs for a full case of these things. Well live and learn I guess...it's a great souvenir of the trash tour and I loved every sip of the juice as my beverage intake has been primarily water, raw juice and almond milk based for the duration of the tour. But I will definitely be doing some research before ordering coconut water at a restaurant in the future. Here are some of the most recent pics of the trash as I am flying to Colorado in a couple days and fearful that airport security might try to take my trash because it resembles some sort of a hazard (or they just can't figure out why anyone would do this!)...hopefully it survives the journey.
may may 19th - *HALF WAY THROUGH* (day 50)- my apologies for not writing in a while...but I'm a YogaSlacker...what did you expect? It's actually been a crazy past couple of weeks with SLACRO FEST being a huge success and a whole lot of slackers crashing my apartment. The trash continues to slowly collect and as this is the half way point, I thought it would be great to show some images. Thanks to Esther Bell for the photo shoot and video footage...hopefully we'll have something on the web soon! itemized trash (really not so much except for the junk mail...it's the heaviest partl)
slightly more impressive when it's spread out
cause why not?
april April 23 - "This bag is not plastic" was the green cursive writing on a very cute canvas bag that I saw a girl carrying on the subway today. After an amazing Earth Day yesterday, teaching about sustainability and talking about my trash, seeing this anti-plastic message the day after was inspiring. I was about to talk to the girl and tell her how cool her bag was when I noticed she had 2 plastic bags in her other hand. Suddenly my heart sank...oh...maybe it wasn't as inspiring as I had previously thought...perhaps, she is trying to make an anti-eco statement about how silly we are for trying to carrying our own bags...or maybe being green is hip now and she was jumping on the trend. My mind quickly jumped through all of these possible scenarios and then I started to take a closer look at her plastic bags. They were slightly worn and the corners had holes in them. In fact, they resembled the bundle of plastic bags the I had in my backpack at that very moment to purchase fruits and vegetables with so as not to take new ones. And then I thought...perhaps this girl is just like me. I never did talk to her as my stop came up quickly and I had to jump off the train, however I was reminded of a valuable lesson in those couple moments: every time we point the finger there are 3 fingers pointing back at us...we can not assume anyone is doing more or less for the planet, we can just spread the word and hope others are inspired to follow our lead. April 20 - HAPPY HERBALISM DAY! After returning from an amazing trip to Fredonia University to teach AcroYoga workshops...I realized that the future of the planet is in good hands. These college seniors and juniors were so inspiring and loved learning about the trash tour and what can be done to be more mindful in the reduction of trash and recycling. One of the highlights of the trash tour so far was getting on an airplane at 6am the other morning with my trash. I hardly travel with anything to begin with and now I was carrying a clear plastic bag with itemized trash inside...security did not know what to do with me. Fortunately the pope was scheduled to arrive 2 hours after my departure from JFK so they had bigger things to worry about. Once they decided that clearly my trash could not be explosive in anyway and that it was only potentially harmful to myself and my mental state, the lady laughed at me and sent me on my way with a "you go girl...save the planet"...and at least I will try my best. April 14 - I am totally inspired by what amazing friends I have! People go out of their way to provide me with glasses and ceramic dishes (so that I don't have to use disposable ones) at parties, and someone even offered to unwrap a green bar for me so that the trash wouldn't be "officially" mine. I laughed and declined the offer as I somehow felt responsible, even if someone else was producing the trash for me. It was so cute when my friend actually apologized for throwing something away in front of me and all I could express was gratitude that she was inspired to think twice about what she was throwing away. My goal is never to shame anyone for the decisions they make- especially the one to produce trash as it is practically encouraged in this disposable culture that we live in. My objective is to lead by example, offer sollutions, and educate until the word spreads. And for everyone who has thought twice about what they throw out I know that the seeds are planted and they are starting to cultivate a mindfulness about this practice of trash. And with mindfulness and a desire to create change, I truely believe anything is possible. I encountered a really brilliant quote the other day, given by Al Gore in his lecture New thinking on the climate crisis: "if you want to go quickly...go alone, if you want to go far...go together. We have to go far quickly. So we have to have a change in consciousness, a change in commitment a new sense of urgency, a new appreciation of the priviledge that we have in undertaking this challenge (dealing with climate change)" view the entire talk on TED. For me, hearing this has made all the difference. April 7 - just when you think you have gone an entire day without producing any trash (it is possible!)...you come home, open your mail box and there is a ton of junk mail awaiting you. Most people would say this is not their problem, but I feel somewhat responsible since these businesses got my name and address and decided that I really do need more credit cards. I guess it is all part of the practice - eating foods that don't come in packaging, re-using plastic bags and food containers, not purchasing goods on-line (which requires packaging to ship)...and now...calling every credit card company and mail order catalog shipping department to ask to be kindly removed from the mailing list. It is not a difficult thing to do, but to do it without getting angry at these people for contributing to "my trash mobile" is truely a practice in patience and acceptance that our actions as individuals are always influenced by others and our surroundings. April 3 - it's amazing what a difference 3 days can make in the way you live your life. Grabbing a quick meal on the run now takes intricate planning so as to not create any trash. And just when you think you can pat yourself on the back for going an entire day without creating any trash, you grab a delicious mushroom skewer appetizer at a cocktail party and realize that the lovely bamboo skewer that you just ate off of, will ultimately become trash. Or, in my case, you pocket the skewer as it has now become something that you use to hold your hair up with. I guess what it all comes down to is thinking before you act. Or simply put, mindfulness. We often times act out of habit and this is where we tend to slip- the daily rituals and routines that we take for granted- disposable plastic drinking containers, plastic utensils and plastic bags all are readily made available for us and we rarely ask at what cost? What I have learned most during these past 3 days is to ask the questions: why? from where did it come? and where is it going? before I decide to consume something. Often times this is enough to make me reconsider and chose a more sustainable option for meals, transportation and evening activities. April 1 - let the rules of the trash tour be defined as such: 1) I will not be carrying any garbage- garbage is compostable material such as food scraps, toilet paper, dental floss, q-tips...you know, any of the really gross stuff. These items biodegrate in the earth and often times provide additional nutrients to soil. 2) Should I decide that a trash item is a potential bio-hazard, i.e. contains bacteria or a non-solid substance that could potentially leak, spill, spread or contaminate, I assure I will not be carrying this either as the purpose of this project is to educate not endanger in any way. 3) I will not carry trash from packages that are sent to me from other people especially for work/fundraising related reasons (such as boxes from sponsors with product donations and the like). Cardboard is very heavy and the packing materials are primarily paper which is extremely bulky and will take up too much space in the trash mobile. I prefer to reserve this space for trash that I produce through my personal consumption and that I can use to educate about the food, beverages and products we as individuals chose to consume on a daily basis. So sorry to anyone who had the brilliant idea of sending me a "care package" filled with their trash to see what I'd do with it...cute...but I ain't carrying it. march March 29 - Nothing like the impending threat of traveling with your trash for 3 months to make you get a jump start on your spring cleaning to remove anything that could potentially become trash (and extra weight to carry). I found a thrown out suitcase on the street which I had the distinct pleasure of tearing apart today (to the soundtrack of Nirvana) so as to have a frame with wheels to transport the bag with all my trash...aka the trash mobile. Below are some before and after shots.
take one discarded suitcase that you find on the street...tear it to shreads and you might just find a frame inside suitable to provide the wheels for the trash mobile. The plastic bags were sewn together to create the actual bag which will travel on the frame...images to come when it starts getting full of trash.
March 1, 2008 - the fun starts in just one month...to prepare for this madness I am already starting to switch to unpackaged food and trying to remove my name from all credit card mailing lists as well as catalog subscriptions. Wondering how to make my own soy, almond or hemp milk as I seem to go through at least a carton of the stuff a week...if anyone knows how please let me know. The "trash mobile" a clear plastic wheelie bag that I will be traveling with that has the contents of my trash inside and is labeled with the catch phrase "ASK ME ABOUT MY JUNK" is in the works...I intend to make it myself by sewing together used clear plastic bags and somehow attaching it to a wheelie frame from a discarded roll on bag or something of that sort. again, if you have any ideas- please give a shout out.
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click below to hear about the junk
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fact: Halfway between California & Hawaii there is approximately 3.5 million tons of plastic trash, roughly twice the size of Texas. Known as the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre, this 10 million-square-mile vortex of water bottles, plastic bags and Styrofoam has grown tenfold every decade since the post-WWII plastic boom. Since plastic doesn't biodegrade, tiny plastic pellets called nurdies wind up in the ocean and absorb DDT, PCBs, and nonylphenols-oily toxins that won't dissolve in seawater. These carcinogenic, hormone-disrupting plastic particles are inevitably eaten by birds and fish. click here for images of the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre and ways to cut back on plastic fact: of the roughly 60 billion tons of plastic produced annually in the US, only 3 to 5% gets recycled fact: the average American tosses 185 pounds of plastic each year - Nicole Duncan for natural solutions www.naturalsolutionsmag.com fact: 99% of the stuff that we consume is trashed (thrown away) within 6 months" - the story of stuff (www.storyofstuff.com)
ways to reduce your trash - click link to learn more - learn about what's really going on with plastic - carry a reusable non-plastic water bottle - drink tea that you brew yourself instead of other bottled beverages - 10 things for under $10 to live more eco-consciously
share the mindfulness $25 student / senior
credit card- there are 3 simple steps to donating securely and paper free online. Please visit the Engage Network site by clicking the link below. Enter your desired amount to donate making sure to select (1) Off the Mat Into the World then (2) Seva Challenge Cambodian Children's fund entering (3) my name (Adi Carter) from the scroll down. Please see the image below for reference. *green donation option- after you donate using a credit card, you may e-mail your response to the Mindfulness Challenge: "what’s one little thing that you do in your daily life that’s mindful, that reminds you to be present, and that you would love for more of your friends to do?" (please also include your hometown and occupation(s) ) I will type up your response and print it out on my end to save you the envelope & stamp as well as excess paper from printing. This is a great way to add a logo next to your name if you are a sponsor and you will recieve an e-mailed .jpg of your response for your records. all donations are tax deductible and all postage saved by not using letters and evelopes will be donated at the end of the year ($ .41 for ever donor).
click here for credit card donations check- please print out the pdf of the donation letter and mail it with your check (address listed below) all donations are tax deductible and all postage saved by not using letters and evelopes will be donated at the end of the year ($ .41 for ever donor). |
