Say no to plastic for a sustainable planet — The compound effect of Individual actions
“The greatest threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will save it. — Robert Swan”
This article discusses the role of individuals in saving the planet and discusses the hazardous impact of plastic. Do you know that more than 320 million metric tons of plastic are rapidly increasing every year? As per a Forbes survey, 88 percent of the consumers want brands and businesses to help the consumers improve the environment. Another survey has revealed that one-third of consumers want to be clear about recycling, sustainable practices, and composting information on the product package and wish to learn more about sustainability and adopt environmental-friendly practices in their lives.
You must be thinking about how an individual can make a difference, right?
Let’s meet Afroz Shah — the man behind the cleaning up of the Versova beach in Mumbai. He is the man who started the Versova beach clean drive all by himself and has been awarded the UN’s — Champions of the Earth award in 2016. The movement scaled up massively, grew up to 70,000 adults and 60,000 students, and more than 20 million kilos of garbage have been removed from the Versova seashore.
Constantly taken small steps often lead to massive results. Let us consider an example.
(1.00)* 365 days = 1.00
(1.01)* 365 days = 37.7
Above is a perfect example of how small efforts lead to the compound effect.
Saving the planet from plastic! It all starts with you!
We rely on our planet for most resources such as water, oxygen, food, and being the most intelligent species on the planet earth; It’s our responsibility to protect it and take care of it.
Do you know that a small country like Australia itself uses 6.9 billion plastic bags every year? If you tie 6.9 billion plastic bags together end to end, it will travel 42.5 times around the globe. Another shocking fact suggests that by the year 2050, there will be more plastic in the ocean than fish.
The most important thing to understand is that it is our responsibility, and each individual can make a difference. We have highlighted the example of Afroz Shah earlier to understand this!
Let us take another example of Peepal Baba- the man who has planted trees for 42 years to make India clean and green. He founded give me trees trust in his early years of tree plantation drives which later got registered as an NGO in 2011.
Do you wish to be part of the change? Start taking small action.
There are various ways in which we can save our planet from plastic. We have listed a few steps that one can easily take to diminish the use of plastic
· Use your own cloth bag when shopping
· Avoid goods packaged in plastic
· Get yourself a reusable water bottle
· Buy bread from bakeries that produce it and carry it in a cloth bag to avoid bread wrapped in plastic!
· Choose milk in returnable glass bottles!
· Avoid single-use plastic such as Straws
These steps are extremely simple to follow, and once avoiding plastic becomes a habit, it starts having a ripple effect!
Corporate response
If the individuals and groups are determined to take action, corporates are quick to react to the sensitivity of the customers. Many Indian companies like Cotbags.com have started producing cotton bags to reduce the use of plastic bags.
MNC’s such as Adidas has collaborated with Parley to convert plastic ocean waste into sneakers and sportswear. In 2019, Adidas expected to make 11 million pairs of shoes with recycled ocean plastic.
Conclusion
We must take care of the planet like we take care of our family. Now is the time to take action as well as spread awareness about how important it is to look after our mother nature and create a place for everyone to breathe!
We can make the manufacturers and sellers aware of how we as consumers won’t accept non-eco-friendly methods and products to change their practices. Planutgreen is an initiative to provide information and resources on how to go green as well as helping spread awareness about local, sustainable brands and industries.