Personal Global Footprint: Cutting down on single use plastic #2minutesolution

[Boyd Roberts]

No.

More.

Plastic.

 

What you can do to make a difference.

 

By Martin Dorey

Ebury Press

 

This practical book by the founder of the #2minutesolution focuses on small actions that individuals can take in just 2 minutes. Each action is simple to do and takes very little time. But if we do one action each day, then that adds up to real impact over a period of time.

 

Here are some of the actions. (The book gives the background to each action and why it helps reduce plastic.)

 

1. Think of one item you buy in single-serve or handy packs – like tissues, yoghurts or individually wrapped crackers and dips – that’s about your convenience more than the planet.

Cut it out.

Add up the amount of packaging you’ll save from going to landfill (or the ocean) after a year.

 

2. Go outside into your street, a local park or open space. Set a timer to two minutes and pick up litter until the buzzer goes off. How much did you collect?

Surprised?

 

3. Go to the veg aisle at your local supermarket. Count up the number of items that could be sold without plastic.

 

4. Which 3 out of plastic bottles, plastic straws, crisp packets, cotton buds, plastic bags or wet wipes could you give up tomorrow.

Do it.

 

5. Look at the clothing labels in your wardrobe. Make a mental note of what contains man-made fibres and vow to wash them less frequently. Or get a Guppy Bag to wash them in.

 

(Man-made fibres shed small microfibres when we wash them. These are not removed by water processing and get into rivers and oceans. They are being found in water all over the planet, and in living animals. When we put clothes in a Guppy Bag, it filters out microfibres.)

 

6          Check your bathroom cabinet. Look for products you still have that contain microbeads listed in their ingredients (Check on the internet what components to look for). If you find a product that contains microbeads, stop using it immediately.

 

7. Ask your school to ban balloon releases and say why.

            Suggest other ways of celebrating. (This includes an element of Persuasion)

 

8. Ask your school and friends to cut out glitter. Tell them why.