[nihonde]

In many (most?) parts of Japan, people are trained to separate plastics before they’re discarded. I remember thinking how crazy it was to wash and air dry plastic trash like juice bottles or meat packaging before tossing it. In my city, there were something like ten separate trash collection types and every household was tasked with maintaining separation along a complex set of rules assigned to them when they move in. These rules are enforced by a system of fines, of course, but more importantly there are a cadre of old folks who will shame the hell out of you if you try to bend the rules.