Plastic free July: three easy ways to join in
It’s plastic free July so we are sharing three easy ways you can take part, whether it’s just for one month or a long-term change of habits there’s no better time to start!
Plastic free July was started by Rebecca Prince-Ruiz (the founder of the Plastic Free Foundation) and a small team in local government in Western Australia, and is now one of the most influential environmental campaigns in the world. Millions of people across the globe take part every year, with many committing to reducing plastic pollution far beyond the month of July.
Plastic is so ubiquitous in our homes and lives that it can be hard to decouple from the stuff but just like in sustainable fashion and clothing purchases, individual and seemingly small changes add up to make a huge impact. You might roll your eyes and think you could manage a day but a month?! However, being mindful about plastic creeping into your life and changing habits over a month has the benefit of creating new habits and possibly long term change.
So, what are the three easiest ways to ditch plastic?
1. carrier bags - the most obvious. But they’re so bulky and it’s hard to remember to take them. Watch this trick from the BBC’s Naga Munchety and your life will be transformed.
regular plastic bin bags can be switched out for biodegradable ones that don’t cost significantly more.
2. buy loose fruit and vegetables - seems old fashioned but food doesn’t need ot come wrapped in plastic for our convenience. We can count to six and might feel we didn’t want six tomatoes in the first place, reducing food waste at the same time, hooray!
3. Find a refill shop near you or online. It’s a weirdly thrilling experience to take your empty plasic tubs or jam jars and Nutella jars to get them refilled with the same or different produce and a great habit to get into. As you search on google, sometimes these shops are called zero waste stores.
Most of all, just enjoy it, try to make plastic free July a little fun!