Anna Sacks Finds Treasure in New York City’s Garbage
Anna Sacks, formerly working at an investment bank in New York City in the mid-2010s, found herself leading a life that lacked fulfillment and purpose. Seeking a more meaningful existence, she embarked on a transformative journey by participating in Adamah, a Jewish farming program focused on sustainable living.
Upon her return to the city, Anna was determined to address the problem of waste and its impact on the environment. Thus, she began her mission as a climate change activist and soon became an influential figure on social media platforms for her sustainable lifestyle and educational content.
Under the moniker “The Trash Walker,” Anna documents her trash walks, during which she scours through garbage to find reusable items, highlighting the issues of consumerism and promoting a more sustainable way of living.
The Awakening: Discovering Solutions Through Composting
Anna Sacks’s eye-opening experience at the Adamah program exposed her to the harmful consequences of consumer culture and inspired her to find solutions to combat waste.
In 2016, she enrolled in a master composting course and started collaborating with a food rescue program.
This experience ignited her passion for trash walking, during which she explores her neighborhood, corporate dumpsters, and residential trash to salvage reusable items, such as clothing, designer accessories, dinnerware, and food.
Through engaging and informative videos on Instagram and TikTok, Anna shares her findings and highlights the root issue of waste generation – overproduction leading to overconsumption.
The Harsh Reality of Waste: Fast Fashion and Food Waste
Anna Sacks brings attention to the environmental consequences of fast fashion through her TikTok videos. She exposes the mountain of discarded clothing in thrift stores, showcasing the excessive production and disposal of clothing in society.
Her discoveries extend beyond fashion waste, with numerous drugstores and party stores discarding perfectly good items such as candy, unopened tampons, flowers, and decorations.
Additionally, New York public schools contribute to food waste by discarding large quantities of items like mini carrots. Anna emphasizes that this wasteful practice is partly attributed to current tax laws, which incentivize companies to destroy merchandise rather than donating it.
Barriers and Solutions: Corporations, Donations, and Policy Change
Anna Sacks highlights the challenges in persuading corporations to change their wasteful practices. She reveals how employees are often prohibited from taking discarded items home or donating them due to the fear of being fired for theft.
To address this issue, Anna calls for bipartisan “Donate, Don’t Dump” legislation that prevents corporations from disposing of items that could otherwise benefit those in need.
She encourages companies to donate unsold items to “free stores” or directly to the needy instead of throwing them away.
Anna’s influential videos have successfully driven change in some companies’ policies, such as Coach’s decision to stop destroying in-store returns after one of her viral TikTok videos exposed the practice.
Finding Treasure in Trash: Anna’s Unexpected Discoveries
Throughout her trash walks, Anna Sacks has stumbled upon a variety of surprising treasures hidden among New York City’s garbage bags.
Her discoveries include valuable items like antique punch bowl sets, expensive Tiffany necklaces, a beautiful urn filled with pet ashes, and various other vintage and brand-new items.
Anna repurposes some of the finds for herself and distributes the rest to family, friends, shelters, and free stores to benefit others in her community.
Promoting Sustainable Living: Anna’s Suggestions for Wasting Less
To promote waste reduction, Anna offers several suggestions for individuals to adopt a more sustainable lifestyle.
These include composting food scraps, learning sustainable food production at home, repairing items instead of immediately buying new ones, storing and reusing seasonal items, purchasing secondhand goods, participating in local swap or free groups, donating unwanted but still valuable items, and recycling correctly.
Trash Walking Tips: Joining the Movement
Anna encourages others to embrace trash walking as an eco-friendly and rewarding activity. She advises carrying reusable tote bags or grocery bags to collect discovered treasures, wearing puncture-proof gloves for safety, and avoiding locked containers or restricted trash areas.
Responsible disposal and cleaning the area after the search are also emphasized. For those who lack space in their homes, Anna suggests offering items to loved ones, donating to free stores and shelters, or participating in local freecycling or trading groups to exchange with others.
Bottom Line
Anna Sacks, known as The Trash Walker, has become an influential figure in the fight against waste and consumerism. Her trash walks and engaging social media content have inspired others to adopt more sustainable lifestyles and hold corporations accountable for their wasteful practices.
Through her actions, Anna continues to find treasure in New York City’s garbage and encourages others to join her in the mission to create a more environmentally conscious world.
Source: Anna Sacks, Recycling activist
