The results of an annual lake shore clean-up last spring Enter any elementary math classroom, and you’ll hear kids talking at some point about the concept of zero. The idea that we would pair the concept of nothingness with waste sounds a little silly in today’s consumer-driven economy. If you search the internet for Zero Waste inspiration, you’re likely to find pictures of people holding single canning jars crammed full of a year’s worth of waste for an entire family. This just isn’t a realistic goal for most of us. Somewhere between the idealized version of Zero Waste and the expensive and wasteful disposable culture sits a middle ground where waste can be sensibly and ethically minimized by people like you and me — people who live, work, and maybe raise children in America today. Here are some affordable and realistic tips to get you started, because as the adage goes, the world doesn’t need a handful of people doing Zero Waste perfectly. We need millions of people doing