Jessica Thompson is the founder of the Bee Joyful Shop in downtown Kalamazoo. It is Michigan’s first Zero Waste Shop and Refillery featuring locally-made and sustainably sourced zero-waste products. Jessica lived “off-the-grid” for most of her childhood with sustainability in her roots. Without access to electricity, indoor plumbing, or running water, she was forced to be resourceful, which led to self-sufficient habits and Earth-friendly tactics. During college she learned to love the conveniences of modern life but parenthood and life as a single parent made her acknowledge the amount of waste and plastic pollution “convenience” was generating. She knew there had to be an affordable, accessible solution for all individuals to make Earth-friendly changes that are good for people and our planet.