The story about sustainability starts very early in the life of Veerle. Her parents taught her from childhood that you had to ‘take care of creation’. At home, for example, something was repaired rather than immediately buying something new, the only toilet that could not be connected to the rainwater was flushed with the water that was still in the bath, and sorting waste was always a habit. In her teenage years she became a vegetarian, because she had no answer to the question ‘why she wasn’t it yet’.
The ‘Zero Waste’ story starts in 2014, when Veerle is out of the house and realizes how much waste can actually be avoided. Step by step she starts investigating how you can avoid waste by, among other things, going shopping with your own jars. Together with the citizens’ initiative ‘Mij Pak je Niet In’ she became responsible for the card that will be placed on all shops where you can shop with low waste.
Veerle started sharing ‘Zero Waste tips’ tips on her Facebook page where she originally shared her illustrations and her Instagram account. Later also via a podcast: E!Colle. There she and her brother start looking for answers. Zero Waste means ‘no waste’. So Veerle isn’t just talking about the visible waste and the single use plastic. Veerle’s story goes further than that, because the invisible mountain of waste and emissions is bigger and more important to reduce. This invisible mountain of waste is also found in clothing. That is why Veerle finds it necessary to inform people about this as well. By following COSH! and putting it in the spotlight, she hopes to help people make a sustainable and fair choice.
At the end of 2019 Veerle published her book ‘the Zero Waste Calendar’. In this way Veerle wants to make a ‘Zero Waste lifestyle’ accessible to everyone with a daily tip. Sometimes a tip with a big impact, other times a nice DIY!
Veerle Colle
writer-zero waste lifestyle