Our Earth, our home: Keeping plastic out of the ocean

Plastics are one of the biggest pollutants on the Earth.  They are found in our clothes, our body wash, and nearly everything we touch every day.  Plastics eventually find their way into the ocean where they are hurting the wildlife.  Here are some things you can do to reduce plastic waste.

1. Bring your own bag.
Sea turtles mistake plastic shopping bags for jelly fish and ingest them, leading to blockages and starvation.  Reusable shopping bags are a relatively cheap and easy way to make a difference in plastic wastage.  At the store, try and choose products with minimal packaging.  You can let your fruits and vegetables stay loose in your bag or in your own cloth bag instead of collecting them in plastic.

2. Skip the straw.
This is as simple as saying, "No straw, please," when you are out to eat.  Straws take 200-500 years to decompose, and even then, they still threaten wildlife as they degrade into microplastics.

3. Use a reusable water bottle.
This reduces the use of single-use water bottles.  If you're concerned about the taste of your local tap water, consider investing in a water filter.  It's a small investment that pays off in the long run.

4. Pack your lunch sustainably.
Bring your own reusable containers from home and skip the plastic silverware!

5. Say no to balloons.
Balloons are another plastic that frequently gets mistaken for food by wildlife.  Animals also get tangled in the ribbons of discarded balloons.  And don't worry.  A party without balloons is still a party!

Don't get discouraged if you aren't able to completely cut plastic waste out of your life all at once.  If this list sounds overwhelming, trying choosing one or two of these ideas and challenge yourself to adopt that change for a month.  Once it becomes a habit to avoid plastic waste in one or two ways, it will get easier to make other changes as well!