I've always cared about the environment, but also knowing others needed things they couldn't afford, as did I. Those things I learned threw my own eyes, the rest was hammered in.
I grew up in a hoarding situation surrounded by slowly decomposing stuff, but allowed very little. I was also taught to never throw anything out until every last thread of it was used and there really was no further possible use, and especially that food could never ever go to waste. What the item represented was another message that went in deep too.
But it has all totally damaged my life and I internalized the idea that absolutely everything was more important than me. It was just more acceptable.
So I’m going to say my advice to everyone is all things in moderation. Don't end up like I have. It's not a good place to be.
At this point I've had to learn to say 'for the moment, I will do what I can, as best as I reasonably can, but right now I need to put my own needs first.'
It's hard, takes practice, and I'm dealing with lots of guilt over it, but if I don't deal with the situation, eventually someone else will have to instead, and they'll just chuck the lot any old how, and won’t be considering the environment etc, so...
Dustmen did take the tree cuttings but eyebrows were raised.
Yesterday was half a sack of cut up tree, and half a sack of more crushed greenhouse detritus. I'm physically struggling.
Got the detritus out in the public bin, but only just, they’re piled up and entirely full! I’m hopeful that it’s one person doing a house clearance/clean up, going of what I saw happening but had to take the half sack of tree back with me.