What is one thing common between cookie boxes, old notebooks and clothing?
The answer most likely lies in your immediate surroundings- reusability!
Most of us desis would have witnessed our family reuse at least one of these three things. Almost all of us have fallen victim to the cookie box trap: we opened an attractive-looking cookie box in anticipation of cookies, only to find needles and thread, or other items, instead of a crumbly, round, delicious piece of goodness. And has a new academic year ever started without using a notebook from previous years? Also, lets not forget all the attractive t-shirts and dresses from the past which have now been reduced to a mere cleaning rag. There are so many more things- plastic bags, meal leftovers, old suitcases and many more- that our family insists on using instead of disposing. For instance, an old almond box from an airline houses my router with a Post-It containing its password.
The tendency of our families, and of Indian culture at large, to reuse everything as much as possible, might come off amusing, embarrassing and unnecessary sometimes. But there is actually a deeper cause that fuels this behaviour: a challenging people-to-resources ratio. Historically, India has always had a high population, which has put pressure on its resources to sustain such a large number of people. Thus, throughout the ages, our ancestors have been persevering to secure themselves enough resources for sustenance, out of the limited resources available. This survival instinct, repeated over and over the years, has made its way down the lineage and now become innate to us.
Another cause of the behaviour is political issues. India has been governed by various rulers over the course of history; and we do know that some incompetent rulers, thanks to their poor administration, had caused situations of resource scarcity. For instance, Winston Churchill’s policies have been proven to cause the Bengal famine of 1943. The memory of such life-threatening scarcity lives on in the minds of the generations who have lived through it. Accordingly, the scarcity paradigm developed in their minds spill onto us to a greater or lesser extent. Now you know why in an Indian household, the grandparents usually ‘nag’ the younger generations about not wasting something or not spending too much on something.
What does all this hold for us?
Positivity, positivity and positivity. Here’s how:
1) A better community:
In a lot of Indian households, items that are no longer needed, are not thrown away; but instead, given to people like domestic help, drivers and other low-income servicepeople. I, for one, live in a household where stationery, dresses and bags that we do not need, are given to our domestic help, cook and driver. The smiles on their faces, when they accept these items, are priceless, to say the least. It makes them immensely happy that they could bring to their family some new goodies, apart from what they buy with their own money. For those of you who have never witnessed this joy of theirs, I highly recommend you to do so- the joy is contagious and heart-touching. With every item given, the goodwill created between the household and the serviceperson increases tremendously. The ease at which you can avoid wasting items by disposing of them too soon, while at the same time making the lower-income people happier, tackles the problem of socio-economic divide in the community whilst saving the earth through more reuse of products. Increased space in the house to store more items, is another plus point.
2) Reduced waste issues:
Would you like if we generated more waste than we already do? The obvious answer is no, and at this point I’d like you to think about how much reusable ‘waste’ a typical Indian household has avoided from generating. For instance, if a nightgown was repurposed into a cleaning rag, one less piece of reusable clothing made it to a landfill. One less piece of actual waste in the landfill means reduced energy spent in disposing of the waste. One nightgown repurposed means more economic value being utilised from the initial expenditure on the nightgown. One less nightgown has transformed into one more cleaning instrument, hence one less cleaning sponge or cleaning wipe, was purchased. One less purchase from millions of Indian households reusing a nightgown each, means a lesser demand, which results in lesser output from the manufacturer of cleaning sponges or wipes. With lesser output, lesser waste is generated by the manufacturer. Now, if ONE NIGHTGOWN can have so much of a positive impact, one can only imagine the impact that Indian households, reusing dozens of items can have on the environment. So the next time you reuse something, don’t ever think that it will barely make a difference to the planet- the difference being made is way more than you know.
On this note lies an ode to all the food packaging containers that become a member of the household with their continued reuse, even if their original product is over.
3) Zero-waste inspiration:
Zero-waste living is one of the latest trends in lifestyle, and Indian household culture aligns with it to a greater or lesser extent. The most common example of the same is when milkshake and ice-cream joints sell their offerings in glass containers. A considerable number of us can admit that the very next day after buying something in a glass container from these joints, we have found the container standing atop the food cabinet. Voila! Now the container is designated as the new box for holding some lentil or spice. My own household fascinates me in terms of zero-waste living: cushion covers turn into bathroom mats, Pringles cans turn into agarbatti containers, and a plastic bottle with holes pricked on its cap, turns into an improvised spray for watering plants. Presented below are some examples of my own household going zero-waste. The first picture is a saree that my loving grandma modified and stitched into a blanket for me, whilst the second picture is a jewellery container which now holds a pack of playing cards.
Zero-waste in terms of fashion is also witnessed in Indian culture- often a lot of girls resize their mother’s clothes for themselves instead of buying new clothes. Sharing accessories and clothes is also common in an Indian household -both result in less waste compared to each person buying separate clothing and accessories. Speaking from personal experience of modifying my mother's saree as a chaniya choli for myself, I can vouch for zero-waste fashion being cost-effective. Instead of buying a new outfit worth thousands of rupees, I got the saree resized and altered for under a thousand rupees. And if you modify old clothes the right way, they can amp up the fashion quotient too, for those of us who love being fashionable and stylish.
As an Indian myself I find it very heartening to know that my culture is actually accustoming me to creating a better future for myself and the world, through its sustainable practices. I also feel that Indian culture is very under-appreciated in terms of how its functioning is conducive to the environment. I opine that a greater understanding of the how and why of Indian culture will go a long way in helping us rethink our lifestyles in favour of the environment.
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