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PODCAST

Sustainable in the Suburbs | Reduce Waste, Sustainable Habits & Intentional Living

Sarah Robertson-Barnes | Sustainable Living Expert, Low Waste Educator

Want to waste less, save money, and build a more sustainable home life?Do you care about sustainable living but feel overwhelmed by all the advice, products, pressure, and endless lists of things you are supposed to change?If that sounds like you, you’re in the right place. Sustainable in the Suburbs helps you reduce waste, build sustainable habits, and make intentional living feel more doable at home — in a way that works for real people, real families, real budgets, real routines, and real

leisure home & garden

All Episodes

62:37

59: Intentional Living, Yoga, and Enoughness with...

Sustainable in the Suburbs | Reduce Waste,... ·

2026/09/29

What if intentional living really begins with examining what we already have, what we consume, and how we relate to the world around us?This episode is a different lens on many of the questions at the heart of sustainability: Why do we always want more? How do we know when we have enough? And what might change if we slowed down long enough to ask ourselves why?This week, I’m joined by my yoga teacher, Aarti Inamdar, for a conversation about the connections between yoga and sustainable living. Aarti

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19:54

58: How to Quit Amazon, Buy Less, and Break the Cycle...

Sustainable in the Suburbs | Reduce Waste,... ·

2026/09/15

Overconsumption is built into the way we shop and Amazon makes buying more, faster, almost frictionless.This episode of Sustainable in the Suburbs originally aired in August 2025, but I wanted to bring it back now because the conversation feels even more relevant today.I’m talking about how to quit Amazon (or at least drastically reduce your reliance on it) in a way that’s actually doable.We look at the real cost of convenience, from plastic waste and overconsumption to the pressure Amazon’s

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40:33

57: Connecting With Nature — Everyday Ecosystem...

Sustainable in the Suburbs | Reduce Waste,... ·

2026/09/01

Connecting with nature starts with understanding that we aren’t separate from the natural world — we are part of it.This week, I’m joined by Tim Christophersen, author of Generation Restoration and a leading global voice on ecosystem restoration, to talk about ecological literacy, our relationship with nature, and what it means to restore that relationship in our everyday lives.We talk about what it actually means to be ecologically literate — knowing where our food and water come from,

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55:07

56: Food Preservation for Beginners — How to Save...

Sustainable in the Suburbs | Reduce Waste,... ·

2026/08/18

If you want to reduce food waste, save money on groceries, and learn about easy and practical food preservation, this conversation with Kris Bordessa is a great place to start.In this episode, I’m joined by Kris Bordessa, author of Attainable Sustainable and Attainable Sustainable Pantry, to talk about ‘old-fashioned’ kitchen skills that are still incredibly useful in modern life. We talk about using what you already have before heading back to the grocery store, stocking a more useful pantry,

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23:30

55: Use What You Have — A Simple Way to Reduce Waste

Sustainable in the Suburbs | Reduce Waste,... ·

2026/08/04

Sustainable living is increasingly being marketed as something we need to shop for. We are constantly being shown greener products, better materials, and more sustainable versions of things we already own—but for most of us, the best place to start is by using what is already in our homes more fully. In this episode, I’m talking about why waste begins long before something reaches the landfill and why using what we already own is one of the most practical sustainable habits we can build. Take...

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37:30

54: Litter Prevention and Community Action — What the...

Sustainable in the Suburbs | Reduce Waste,... ·

2026/07/21

Litter is one of the most visible forms of waste in our communities. It shows up along roads, in parks, on trails, near schools, and in the places we move through every day. But it is also a clue — about our habits, our infrastructure, our systems, and how we care for where we live.In this episode, I’m joined by Jenny Lawson, President and CEO of Keep America Beautiful, for a conversation about the 2026 National Litter Study, what it reveals about litter in communities across the United States, and

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21:32

53: What to Do With the Plastic You Already Have —...

Sustainable in the Suburbs | Reduce Waste,... ·

2026/07/07

If you are trying to reduce plastic waste at home, you might be wondering what to do with the plastic you already have. The answer is not to throw it all away and buy a new set of eco-friendly swaps. It is to use what you have, rethink the plastic that moves through your home, and start noticing where single-use plastic shows up in your daily routines.In this episode of Sustainable in the Suburbs, Sarah talks about reducing single-use plastic in real life: using the containers, bags, bins, and

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47:42

52: Building a Sustainable Kitchen — What Actually...

Sustainable in the Suburbs | Reduce Waste,... ·

2026/06/23

Climate action begins at the kitchen table — and a more sustainable kitchen starts with knowing where to focus.In this episode of Sustainable in the Suburbs, Sarah talks with Naomi Hansen, author of Building a Sustainable Kitchen: A Practical Guide to Prioritizing the Planet from the Heart of Your Home, about what actually matters when it comes to food, waste, and climate action at home.Together, they explore why the kitchen is such a powerful place to begin, how food waste connects to bigger

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28:15

51: Can You Be Sustainable in the Suburbs?

Sustainable in the Suburbs | Reduce Waste,... ·

2026/06/09

Can you be sustainable in the suburbs? Well, yes and no.Suburban life can make sustainable living complicated — especially when communities are built around cars, convenience, private space, and consumption. But the suburbs are also where so many of us live, raise families, volunteer, vote, garden, organize, and build community.So what does climate action actually look like here?This episode looks at sustainable living in the suburbs beyond eco swaps and bigger purchases, and asks what becomes

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49:40

50: Practical(ly) Zero Waste with Elsbeth Callaghan

Sustainable in the Suburbs | Reduce Waste,... ·

2026/05/26

Back in 2020, I was a guest on the now inactive podcast Practical(ly) Zero Waste, hosted by Elsbeth Callaghan. At the time, my kids were little, the zero waste movement online was deep in its “trash jar” era, and many of us were trying to figure out what sustainable living looked like outside of perfectly curated Instagram squares.Six years later, a lot has changed.Kids are older, life looks different, and both of us have let go of a lot of the pressure and aesthetics that surrounded zero waste in

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24:19

Ep. 49: Less Stuff, Less Stress — Sustainable Living...

Sustainable in the Suburbs | Reduce Waste,... ·

2026/05/12

In this episode, I’m talking about what sustainable living with kids actually looks like in real life. Not the Instagram version — the real version. The conversations, the habits, the overwhelm, the convenience culture, and the small shifts that slowly become part of how your family moves through the world.TakeawaysKids learn consumption habits by watching usSustainable living with kids is about buying less, not buying “eco” productsConvenience culture is deeply connected to overwhelm and mental

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60:23

48: Overwhelmed by Sustainable Living Advice? Start...

Sustainable in the Suburbs | Reduce Waste,... ·

2026/04/28

Sustainability advice is everywhere — and even when you care, even when you’re trying to pay attention, it can be hard to know what actually matters.In this episode, I’m joined by Alexa Pavan of Go Green With Alexa, a climate communicator and copywriter who’s focused on making sustainability more understandable, more approachable, and a lot more connected to real life.We talk about what it looks like to move through all of that information — how to figure out what’s credible, what’s actually

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24:15

47: Eco-Friendly Bathroom Swaps That Save You Money...

Sustainable in the Suburbs | Reduce Waste,... ·

2026/04/21

Bathroom swaps are one of the most common entry points into sustainable living — but they can also be one of the most overwhelming.There are so many products, so many recommendations, and so much pressure to replace everything all at once.In this episode of Sustainable in the Suburbs, I’m talking about what it actually looks like to approach sustainable bathroom swaps in a way that’s doable, practical, and budget-friendly. The focus is on using what you already have, reducing repeat purchases, and

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64:28

46: How to Understand Climate Change (and Talk About...

Sustainable in the Suburbs | Reduce Waste,... ·

2026/04/14

We spend a lot of time talking about climate change — but not nearly enough time understanding it.Most of us were never really taught how to understand it, especially in a way that connects it to history, systems, power, and the everyday decisions we’re making.This week, I’m joined by Brittany Jefferson, an educator and founder of EJ EDU, to talk about climate literacy — what it means, why it matters, and how it shapes the way we think about everything from education to environmental justice.We talk

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67:30

45: Food Waste Is Costing You — How to Spend Less on...

Sustainable in the Suburbs | Reduce Waste,... ·

2026/04/07

You’re not just wasting food — you’re throwing money in the trash.This week I’m joined by returning guest Chelsey Schmuland, and we’re digging into one of the most overlooked ways to save money on groceries: reducing food waste.Chelsey is the maker behind Hive to Home, where she creates handmade beeswax wraps as a reusable alternative to plastic food storage. She’s also a grocery budgeting queen and food rescue enthusiast.We talk about how much food we’re actually wasting (and what that costs), how

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27:01

44: How to Start Birding in Your Backyard (and Help...

Sustainable in the Suburbs | Reduce Waste,... ·

2026/03/31

Spring is when the birds get loud again. You hear them before you see them — in the morning, in the trees, and in the background of your day.If you’ve ever thought about getting into birding, this is a really natural place to start — right outside your door.In this episode, we’re talking about how to start birding in your own backyard, how to identify common birds by sight and sound, what’s happening during nesting season, and how to support birds in ways that genuinely help.There’s a lot of advice

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47:16

43: Making Sustainable Living Accessible in the...

Sustainable in the Suburbs | Reduce Waste,... ·

2026/03/24

What does sustainable living actually look like in the suburbs — in places designed around cars, convenience, and big box shopping?Laura Newton is the founder of The Kind Matter Company, a Canadian eco-boutique and refill store focused on low waste living, eco friendly products, and non-toxic household essentials. What began as a personal search for safer products after her daughter developed severe allergies has grown into a retail business built around making sustainable living more accessible for

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21:40

42: RECYCLED - Overwhelmed by Climate Change? Start...

Sustainable in the Suburbs | Reduce Waste,... ·

2026/03/17

This episode originally aired in the very first month of Sustainable in the Suburbs. I’m revisiting it now because this idea remains one of the clearest ways to find your place in climate action — and sometimes returning to the foundation is exactly what helps us feel re-energized.Climate change feels HUGE — and it is. The problem is urgent and complex. And when you start looking for solutions, it can seem like there’s an endless list of things you should be doing. All of them are important, and

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61:56

41: Behind the Scenes — Sustainability on Film Sets...

Sustainable in the Suburbs | Reduce Waste,... ·

2026/03/10

What does sustainability look like in a fast-moving industry like film and television?In this episode, Canadian actress Erin Karpluk shares how growing up in Jasper shaped her connection to nature, how the 2024 wildfires impacted her community, and how those experiences inform the way she approaches sustainability — both personally and professionally.We talk about eco-friendly habits, secondhand fashion, sustainable travel, and what waste and sustainability look like behind the scenes on film sets

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24:25

40: How to Host a Zero Waste Birthday Party for Kids...

Sustainable in the Suburbs | Reduce Waste,... ·

2026/03/03

I can’t be the only one who has complicated feelings about goody bags… right?Kids' birthday parties have quietly escalated. The venues. The décor. The goody bags. The expectation that every year has to be a little bigger than the last.But most kids don’t actually need all of that.In this episode, I’m sharing how we’ve kept birthday parties simple, low waste, and still genuinely fun — from smaller guest lists to reusable decorations, bulk food, experience gifts, and activities that don’t end up

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