On Jan. 29, approximately 20 people gathered in Still North Books & Bar for a reading from new author Duncan Watson. Watson read from “Everyone’s Trash: One Man Against 1.6 Billion Pounds,” his debut memoir about the “human connection with trash,” he said.
To Watson, who has been running Keene, N.H.’s solid waste program for 33 years, that human-trash connection is a positive one — a sentiment he hoped to communicate in the book. The book, released on Nov. 15, 2024, comes at a good time — we are in the midst of a “trash crisis,” according to Watson. More specifically, he notes an American problem of over-consumption and pollution, resulting in a build-up of trash in landfills that is not properly recycled.
“The book could have easily been an axe grind and telling nasty stories about my co-workers and stuff like that,” he said. “… But that’s not how I wanted the book to go. … I wanted it to be accessible, you know, somewhat light.”
Still North bookstore manager H Rooker began the event by introducing Watson before ceding the floor to event moderator Lisa Gardner. Gardner, a close friend of Watson, offered a more personal introduction of the author and his book.
“It is an honor to be able to moderate this because over the years I have heard some of these tales from the dump,” she said to the audience. “… His book is this wonderful combination of information and stories.”
Before reading from his memoir, Watson delivered a presentation on the “trash crisis that we are facing,” citing a plethora of issues — from overfilled landfills to ineffective disposal systems. Using a collection of poster boards, he discussed concerns over waste disposal and the need for improved infrastructure to implement a more sustainable and effective waste system.
“We need a quantum leap in investment [in infrastructure],” Watson said. “And the reason that we need investment infrastructure is because without that investment infrastructure, we are not going to change the status quo. We are never going to move the needle from where we are right now.”
From there, Watson read two stories from “Everyone’s Trash.” In the first excerpt, Watson recounted his first foray into the world of trash as a 12-year-old recycling attendant in Tiburon, Calif. There, he was paid to break glass and ensure that the clear glass dumpster only contained clear glass. In the second section, Watson described his fear-inducing discovery of a rubber doll amid the recyclables.
Watson joked with his audience throughout the readings, noting, for example, that his experience with the glass-breaking job once “took an unexpectedly serendipitous turn.” He explained that he spotted a Playboy magazine and felt that he had discovered the “holy grail.” The 12-year subsequently went dumpster diving to retrieve it.
“I’m certain that the official term ‘dumpster diving’ was coined much later than 1976, but the
arc of my descent from the platform into that dumpster was Olympic-worthy,” Watson said.
The 30-minute reading was followed by a brief Q&A.
Watson elaborated on the logistics of creating greater efficiency in the waste disposal system, including the role of new technology including Advanced Materials Recovery Facilities (AMRFs) to help better process the influx of waste and reduce the amount of trash sent to landfills.
When asked about the effect of these technological changes on the processing of waste, Watson expressed his desire to preserve the community environment of the dump. He explained that the dump serves as a site where colorful characters from the community gather.
“We would want to preserve the … way of people bringing their materials to our facility so they can … socialize with their friends and neighbors because that’s really an important thing,” he said.
Attendees were then invited to meet Watson, get their copies of “Everyone’s Trash” signed and converse with other audience members.
In an interview with The Dartmouth, Rooker said they found Watson’s ideas particularly important to the local community — in which Watson is deeply embedded. According to Watson, Watson’s father and brother are Dartmouth alumni and he graduated from Hanover High School himself. His family also previously owned Lou’s Restaurant & Bakery.
“[Watson] is such a well-known entity within the community and this is a very environmentally conscious area,” they said. “So I think having more information for the community but also further exciting and activating the folks is always important … especially on environmental issues that they can individually interact with every day.”
Rooker added that they hoped the event would inspire a greater awareness of environmental concerns, such as proper recycling and landfill management — both topics covered by Watson’s book.
According to Upper Valley local Erica Hiller, a member of the local environmental group Vital Communities, Watson’s reading accomplished just that.
“I'm actually very interested to do some research about [AMRFs],” she said. “I think there are incentives for things to change and unless there’s more public awareness around different strategies that we’re just ignoring the big disaster.”
Attendees not only appreciated Watson’s discussion of environmentalism, but also the lightheartedness of his writing.
Hiller said she enjoyed Watson’s “mix of information sharing and humor,” a sentiment that was echoed by Gardner — who said the “funny and personal” nature of the stories “made [“Everyone’s Trash”] a pleasure to read.”
In an interview, Gardener expanded on her compliments of Watson, noting his persistence and commitment to making positive change.
“Policy … takes a lot of work, even if you have a lot of evidence and research behind you,” she said. “That’s daunting [and] …somewhat discouraging … I always appreciate Duncan’s willingness to go back and keep trying. …He really is determined to make a difference in the world.”
Watson himself said maintaining that positivity is especially important given the “gravity of our current [environmental] situation.”
“I consider myself an optimistic existentialist,” he said in an interview. “And I recognize that I have to be careful about that because I don’t want the stories to come across as being heavy and dark and hopeless.”
Ultimately, Watson said he hopes to find a “flicker of hope for our environmental future … through storytelling.”
Watson also discussed a possible sequel to “Everyone’s Trash” — though a second iteration depends on the success of the book. Still, he is already getting started on the project by writing stories that were not included in his first book.
But Watson isn’t just revved up about trash — he is exploring other topics as well, such as his family’s time as the second owners of Lou’s Restaurant. With around four chapters already written and a tentative title (“Meet Me at Lou’s”) in his mind, Watson said the book would focus on characters — “the people that were customers, our own selves” — and the “rich fountain of storytelling.”
Perhaps his interest in pursuing another book is rooted in the positive feedback he received about “Everyone’s Trash.” Watson said he made an interesting story out of a topic readers most likely would not be interested in.
“That’s the power of a good story, right?” Watson said. “It’s the idea of taking something and using storytelling techniques to get your point across. Whether it’s just meant to be a memoir or if you’re trying to get a point across, all of those are our possibilities with writing.”
