The total amount of waste Lauren Singer has produced still fits in a single 16-ounce Mason jar.

(Erwin Caluya)

On average, the EPA says Americans produce 4.4 pounds of trash per day, but Lauren Singer has managed to fit all her trash from the past three years into a single 16-ounce Mason jar.

Singer, an NYU Environmental Studies graduate and former Sustainability Manager at the New York City Department of Environmental Protection, committed to a zero-waste lifestyle and, in turn, has created next to no trash since.

“One day after class I went home to make dinner and opened my refrigerator and saw that everything in there was packaged in plastic and I felt like a total hypocrite,” Singer told the Huffington Post.

Lauren Singer, founder of The Simply Co., ships her all-natural detergent in reusable glass containers.

(Lauren Singer)

Most of the space in the jar is taken up by a hot-chocolate wrapper, two macaroni and cheese wrappers and a Band-Aid, she told New York Magazine.

Singer admitted the only time she truly created waste during the last few years is when she got a bad case of poison ivy, something she’s highly allergic to.

“I tried natural remedies and they didn’t work. Went to the dermatologist, and they gave me topical steroids that come in a tube. I ended up being able to recycle the cap, but I wasn’t sure about the actual medicine itself,” she said.

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Since starting her new lifestyle, Singer has started a successful Kickstarter for The Simply Co., a company producing safe sanitation products, including a three ingredient laundry detergent.

Singer also provides tips to those who are looking to adopt a more sustainable lifestyle on her blog Trash is for Tossers.

“I would like people to take away that we can all, regardless of our background, our beliefs, where we live or our socioeconomic status, take simple steps to reduce our environmental impact,” she said. “It is simple to say no to a plastic straw or carry a reusable bag.”

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