How To Live Plastic-Free
Plastic pollution greatly impacts our natural environment negatively, especially marine ecosystems. The material's ability to be versatile, lightweight and cheap to produce makes it very attractive to create all sorts of products. However, the plastics that are commonly produced are often non-biodegradable and often fatally harmful to our environment.
Our World in Data estimates that in 2010 alone, 275 million tonnes of plastic waste was produced and approximately 80% of ocean plastics come from land-based sources. The staggering amount of plastic wasted can only harm us and our Earth and the problem may seem to be too large for just one person to handle but there are definitely steps you can take as an individual to reduce the amount of plastic that exists in the world.
Here are just a few ways you can go plastic-free:
- When you go shopping, take your own bags with you that you can reuse again and again.
Whether it's for your regular groceries or spontaneously buying that dress you had been eyeing for a few days, try to use your own bags when you check out with your items. Invest in something durable like a canvas tote that can be reused an infinite amount of times, unlike plastic carrier bags.
- Carry a reusable water bottle wherever you go.
By doing so, you kill two birds with one stone. You avoid buying plastic that will ultimately be wasted and save money throughout your day by refilling your own bottle with free filtered tap water.
- When you order food delivery, ask that they do not send any plastic utensils.
Single-use plastics like these are plentiful and often unnecessary. When delivering to your own home, using your own utensils is far more eco-conscious.
- Avoid personal care products that contain microbeads.
Some facial scrubs and shower gels may contain plastic beads or microbeads. These plastics, now banned in the UK and the US, cause great damage to marine life. Opt for products that either do not contain them - sometimes listed as polyethylene as an ingredient - or look for natural alternatives.
- Buy from brands that use alternatives.
Finally, do research on brands that take the time to find alternatives to plastic, whether it's for their packaging or for the product itself. There are a number of alternative packaging options that exist today that are far more eco-friendly and biodegradable.
From sourcing our fabrics to production to packaging, here at Sui, we do our best to cut out the need for plastic wherever we can - it's our way of keeping our green promise and one of the many green steps we take to minimize our negative impact on our planet. We are always looking for alternatives for our packaging and have been successful in using boxes made of recycled materials and non-plastic bags made from biodegradable, agro-waste to deliver our clothing to customers.
Our oceans are a wonderful, valuable part of our natural global ecosystem and are greatly affected by plastic pollution so it is with great pride that we also recently joined hands with ReefWatch, an NGO based in Mumbai, in order to support their efforts in educating others on our oceans, researching and conserving marine life.
We can all do our part to cut down on the plastic we use in our lives, all it takes is a little conscious thought to take those green steps towards a better, cleaner future.
