The Hu$tle Culture Consumption: "The New York Minute" and its affect on Sustainability

In the relentless pulse of New York City, where burnt-out individuals hustle through life, the impact on our planet becomes evident. This article explores the intricate connection between time scarcity and the prevalence of unsustainable habits, focusing on takeaways, on-the-go drinks, and their ripple effects on waste and overconsumption.

Hu$tle Culture and Caffeine: In the race against time, New York's hustle culture generates substantial waste. I once counted on a 15 minute walk at 8am, over 200 coffee cups from commuters looking for their quick caffeine fix before the real grind began. But their momentary utility is misleading: These items stick around a really long time. According to data from the New York City Department of Sanitation (2023), an estimated 9.3 million disposable coffee cups are used in the city each day. This means that, on average, there are more than 30,000 coffee cups used every hour in NYC. This environmental impact is staggering, as it is estimated that over 50% of these cups will not be recycled* and will end up in landfills.

"Wow, you brought your own lunch in! You're so well prepared!": A genuine comment from someone co-working with me for the day. I came to realise it is almost unheard of to bring your own lunch into the office and instead it is the norm to pop out to get a quick fix from one of the 23,650 establishments. Yes you read that right! There is no other city best placed for eating out, according to data from Open Table, you can eat at a different spot once a day for 22.7 years and never go to the same place twice. But takeaway food, typically, brings with it considerable amounts of waste. The problem with takeout packaging:

orders burrito

Let me wrap that in foil for you.

Here are plastic utensils and paper napkins wrapped in plastic.

Oh, and three packs of ketchup + hot sauce. And a paper bag was placed in a plastic bag.?Salt and pepper packets no one’s eaten since the 90s? Take it.

eats with hand

The hustle to save time inadvertently results in a surge of disposable packaging. Takeaway containers, plastic cutlery, and single-use wrappers become the hallmark of hurried meals. Because of the way plastic is designed, “its afterlife is much longer than its useful lifespan,” said Rolf Halden, director of the Biodesign Institute's Center for Environmental Health Engineering at Arizona State University. Plastic that we use for just a moment “has the potential to pollute for decades, centuries or millennia.”

In the race against time, the unintended consequences on sustainable living practices are evident. Time-scarce individuals, while navigating the demands of a fast-paced life, inadvertently contribute to environmental challenges through their on-the-go habits. Recognising this intricate link is the first step towards fostering a culture that values both efficiency and sustainability. How long can we continue with this current way? Are there any new solutions out there to help practically deal with the waste or better, reduce consumption?

*Your disposable coffee cup might seem like it can be recycled, but most single-use cups are lined with a fine film of polyethylene, which makes the cups liquid-proof but also difficult and expensive to reprocess (because the materials have to be separated). Most waste management facilities will treat the cups as trash.