Are you one of those people who feels bad every time you pick up a plastic bag at the supermarket? Or guilty when you find yourself throwing trash in the rubbish bin?

We are pretty good at recycling, but there is still so much waste in the UK. The entire Royal Albert Hall in London could be filled with trash in under two hours.

Can you do something about it? Well, this woman thinks you can.

Meet Lauren Singer. She’s a 23 year old New Yorker who decided to live a ‘zero waste’ lifestyle. The result? She can fit two years worth of her personal rubbish in a Mason jar.

This is everything she couldn’t compost, recycle or work out what to do with. In two years. You are probably thinking, what? how?

It all started when Lauren was studying Environmental Studies at New York University. She noticed just how much her and her fellow students were using (and discarding) unnecessary plastic.

“This was the first time in my life that I felt like I was able to look at myself and say, “YOU HYPOCRITE.” It was in that moment I made the decision to eliminate all plastic from my life,” she wrote on Mind Body Green.

Taking away plastic meant she had to stop buying packaged products and start bringing her own bags/jars to the supermarket.

She’s stopped buying clothes and now only shops second-hand. She makes all her own toiletries and only buys organic vegan beauty products.

“I started planning potentially wasteful situations; I began saying “NO” to things like straws in my cocktails at a bars, to plastic or paper bags at stores, and to receipts.”

What’s the outcome? Lauren believes she saves more money, eats better and is truly happier. She’s now eliminated 80 per cent of her waste. If everyone did this, can you imagine the impact on the environment?

You can read more about Lauren’s amazing eco lifestyle on her blog, Trash Is For Tossers (great name).

How can you reduce your waste?

Use bamboo toothbrushes instead of plastic ones

Swap shampoo for organic castile soap (you can buy it in bulk)

Forget make-up wipes and multiple cotton pads. Use organic coconut oil and reusable cotton rounds instead.

What about make up? Just use vegan products in recyclable packaging instead

And for when it’s that time of the month, you can get mooncups instead of tampons.

What do you think? Could you live a zero waste lifestyle?