If you don’t know by now, our generation is ready to heal the world from centuries of deforestation, extinction, over-usage of natural resources, and pollution. Not going to lie, we have failed our only home by taking its beautiful resources for granted. In fact, if we don’t act fast, this planet we call home could be gone forever. So, here are some really small, but efficient ways for you to reduce your personal waste.
1. Purchase reusable drinkware and storage containers.
There are so many great alternatives to your favorite plastic items. Get a tumbler to bring to Starbucks or Dunkin to fill your favorite drinks or purchase a refillable bottle so you’ll always have water on the go. Try using reusable containers to store food and other goods. They’ll keep your food fresh a lot longer! Or if you’re like me, you can even buy metal or glass straws like this one! #SaveTheTurtles, girl!
RUSSBE
2. Ditch the plastic bags, sis!
Stores like CottonOn and Primark have ditched plastic bags and are encouraging their customers to bring in their own reusable bags or to purchase brown paper bags for as little as ten cents! If you shop like me, you can easily find yourself drowning in plastic bags, but buying one or two reusable shopping bags can cut that problem down, and you can look cute while doing it! Check out these super cute bags here.
Amazon
3. Try to become paperless.
Let’s be real, if it weren’t for school, most of us wouldn’t have to pick up a pen and pencil ever again. One of the easiest things we can do as students is to use less paper. Instead of using a paper planner, try using a digital one, or maybe instead of physical textbooks, try seeing if you can rent/purchase one online. Sometimes our professors prefer using pen and paper, but if you’re lucky to have a professor that allows you to use technology, take advantage of that!
FlatWorld
4. Learn how to fix things rather than throwing them away.
This is a big one! It’s so easy to toss something that’s minorly broken because you don’t want to bother fixing it, but think about everything you’ve thrown out the past few years that could have been tailored or fixed by someone, or even yourself? Not only could you have saved some money, but you would also have produced less waste!
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These four simple ways may not be as big of a movement as Ocean Cleanup, but small acts of change can have big results! You will certainly feel good about reducing your own waste, plus you can encourage your friends to do the same, and maybe they’ll encourage their friends to reduce the waste they create. The Earth is our only home, so it’s time we start taking care of it!