JACKSON, BETH & WALKER, ELI– How does one set off on a multi week wilderness adventure and return with zero plastic waste? Beth Jackson has spent 15 years working as a wilderness instructor and got tired of throwing away hundreds of plastic bags at each expedition’s end. Food bags, plastic pack liners, and ziplocks seemed the only sure way to keep gear and food both dry and safe. Eli Walker’s 10 years as a wilderness instructor led him to become a food planning extraordinaire. Beth and Eli, together with the two other members of the Canoe Ungava team, sought out big adventure, big challenge, and minimal waste by striving to use zero single use plastic. They planned and executed a 46 day traverse of the Ungava Peninsula, traveling 931km from Umiujaq to Kangirsuk via the Richard, Leaf, Vizien, and Payne watersheds. At times the kilometers melted away, while at others up river travel and portaging seemed endless. While cold misty weather kept them in dry suits, their homemade reusable food bags, reusable pack liners, and food packing scheme kept the essentials dry. Intentional food planning and a hyper organized system reduced their post-expedition landfill contributions to a soccer-ball sized wad of non-recyclable items. In the future Jackson hopes to make reusable food bags available to others who aim to minimize their environmental impact.