Minimal Waste Initiative at 2025 Asian Fair

Months have passed since the Twin Cities West Metro Asian Fair was held on May 31, yet the event’s impact seems only to have grown. Even after a few months, people are still talking about the event and are looking forward to the next one!

ZIRAN was proud to be a part of this event, working to ensure that the celebration could be as positive for the environment as it was for the businesses and attendees.

Growing the Fair, Growing Responsibility

The Asian Fair has grown tremendously—from roughly 7,000 attendees in 2023 to 10,000 in 2024 and more than 13,000 visitors in 2025! It has become a signature cultural celebration, drawing people from across the Twin Cities to enjoy the richness of Asian traditions, performances, food, and community connections.

At the same time, with such growth comes challenges. An event of this scale naturally generates significant amounts of waste. ZIRAN recognized this as an opportunityto keep the fairgrounds clean while raising public awareness about environmental stewardship and providing hands-on education for waste reduction.

Preparation & Volunteer Power

Cleaning up after an event of the Asian Fair’s magnitude requires significant planning. ZIRAN staff aimed their preparation at two goals: reducing the amount of landfill the event would generate and empowering attendees to better clean up after themselves and their local environments.

At the fair, ZIRAN set up five large Minimal Waste Stations across the fairgrounds. These stations feature separate bins for compostable Organics, Recycling, and Landfill, plus two specialty bins for plastic bags and paper. It is important to collect paper separately to avoid contaminating it with food and drink, keeping it truly recyclable. Meanwhile, signs help attendees identify which bins to use for their waste, and volunteers stand by, ready to answer any questions.

Results & Impact

How much of an impact did ZIRAN and the volunteers have on waste reduction? Together, they successfully kept nearly 3,000 gallons of recyclable materials from entering local landfills:

• 2,080 gallons of mixed recycling

• 960 gallons of organics

Altogether, there were 4,805 gallons of waste from the Asian Fair, a 22.6% increase in waste volume compared to 2024. But the majority did not go into landfill. ZIRAN and volunteers helped the fair’s businesses and attendees achieve a 63.3% diversion rate, sending only 1,765 gallons to landfills, diverting nearly twice as much. Moreover, the 63.3% diversion rate increased from the 60.6% diversion rate in 2024. While the percentage increase may seem modest, the sheer volume prevented from going to landfill is remarkable.

ZIRAN’s Minimal Waste Stations also introduced new, step-by-step signage for boba tea disposal. ZIRAN’s co-founders had identified the proper disposal of boba tea containers as a recurring challenge during the January Lunar New Year Celebration at Asia Mall. This event’s innovative new signage allowed volunteers to quickly guide visitors and reduce sorting errors.

In total, about 50 volunteers assisted ZIRAN’s efforts over four shifts. They guided fairgoers at the stations while ZIRAN’s core team circulated throughout the grounds to provide additional support.

At the end of the day, ZIRAN’s volunteers learned that some food vendors had placed all their waste into black trash bags due to time constraints. Fortunately, these dedicated volunteers stepped in to sort through the trash. They learned that much of the material had been mistakenly treated as landfill. This misdirected waste included compostable items like sugarcane scraps and recyclable items like plastic bottles.

Thanks to the volunteers’ extra effort, many of these misdirected waste items were recovered as organics and recyclables. Even after the fair ended, ZIRAN and volunteers continued sorting into the next day to ensure as much waste as possible was properly diverted.

Building Community Through Sustainability

The Minimal Waste Initiative is more than bins and signage—it’s about building shared values. ZIRAN and their volunteers encouraged many fairgoers to think more carefully about their waste. Many people engaged in meaningful conversations with volunteers, learned how to recycle properly, and even earned “Responsible Recycler” stickers as recognition for their efforts.

ZIRAN also introduced the first-ever Eco Street at the Asian Fair, featuring:

• A solar trailer from the Minnesota Renewable Energy Society

• A Fix-It Clinic

• A mugwort sachet workshop for the Dragon Boat Festival, paired with a talk on herbs by Dr. Yin, a local Chinese medicine doctor from Zero Distance

• Two youth eco-entrepreneur groups, Eartha and Rebound

This interactive space gave visitors a chance to explore sustainability from multiple angles: energy, repair, entrepreneurship, cultural tradition, and wellness.

Looking Ahead

With some hard work and creative engagement, ZIRAN kept the fairgrounds cleaner and planted the seeds of environmental awareness in thousands of hearts. Many people expressed their respect and support, and the event allowed ZIRAN and others to foster friendships and collaborations across the fair’s diverse communities.

Ultimately, the numbers from the 2025 Asian Fair prove that celebration and sustainability can go hand in hand. Big events provide opportunities to make a big impact on waste reduction. Together, we can create events that honor cultural heritage while protecting the planet.

ZIRAN is already excited for next year—with plans to help make the next fair stronger, greener, and even more connected.

To see more photos about the 3rd Annual Asian Fair , please check out article: 第三届亚洲节圆满落幕——族裔齐聚、精彩纷呈、热闹非凡!

Many thanks to Mr. Doug Shoemaker of MRES for bringing the state-of-art Solar Trailer to the fair.

Fix-it Clinic integrated with cultural art and medicinal herb - mugwort. Big thanks to our community artists and Dr. Yin.

Eartha, a student-run sustainable jewelry startup with recycled glass beads.

Rebound, a student-led startup creating a sustainable device to resurface and extend the life of squash balls

Months before the event, ZIRAN team members visited local schools to deliver environmental education workshops and recruit volunteers for the fair. ZIRAN also created self-training materials for volunteers and sent letters to food vendors, encouraging them to use recyclable and compostable serviceware.

Thanks to ZIRAN and their volunteers’ hard work, the Asian Fair saw businesses and attendees recycle thousands of gallons of recyclable materials, instead of sending them all to landfill as happens at most other local big community events. This means the fair became a cleaner, greener celebration and a teaching moment for thousands of community members.

Thanks to the volunteers’ extra effort, many of these misdirected waste items were recovered as organics and recyclables. Even after the fair ended, ZIRAN and volunteers continued sorting into the next day to ensure as much waste as possible was properly diverted.