Lunch today out and about was a pasty from a bakery in a paper bag (couldn't get a sandwich - all in plastic wrapping).
We've been cooking some creative and lovely meals too.
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| Chayo happy with the Smarties in the cardboard tube. |
The truth is that doing this month will, I think, change us forever... I can't imagine we'll easily buy all our plastic wrapped snacks and foods after this. Not saying we won't buy them at all, because it is virtually impossible we are finding out.
Some things have really kept us going though. Just through doing Wasted, so many people around us are talking about landfill and plastic. Every time a whiteboard pen runs out in the classroom the children commiserate about the fact that it's going to landfill (discussions about using chalk have followed). Today in the staffroom a colleague said she was thinking about us last night when her takeaway arrived on polystyrene trays and she realised they'd be going straight into landfill. A child in my class said he's seen about 10 plastic bags floating around on Clarendon Road yesterday evening. So, people are noticing things and talking about them, plus quite a few friends and colleagues are taking active steps to reduce waste.
Chayo is so committed and amazing too. He keeps me going. He was so devastated when he realised the dog food we'd bought in a cardboard box had a plastic bag lining: "Oh no, Mum, we've lost!" he said. Today we went out to eat and he decided not to take a free kids party bag - "The pen's got a plastic wrapper on it, and it'll end up in landfill".
Hi - me again... and I have stuck with it! As I sit here eating my paper-and-foil-wrapped chocolate, I am reflecting on the tribulations and learning of the first half of the month. Love the song and mockumentary but they make me sad too when I think about how crazy we humans have all become since plastic and bins and the rest were invented only within the last few hundred years. What I have found most challenging is planning what I will eat, and when... it turns out that I was pretty dependent on plastic-wrapped snacks such as flapjacks to keep me going during the day. So I have enjoyed taking my own containers to the shops, and doing more home cooking and baking. Anyway I am still really happy to be doing my own bit for Wasted and I am SO grateful to Topsy and Chayo for leading some action to make things better. Love Dan K from Solar Salsa.
ReplyDeleteI liked the 6TP comments - especially the point that littery streets mean people don't like their city Some would say if we don't like our city we're more likely to chuck our rubbish on to the street.
ReplyDeleteCan you remember a national poster-campaign - Don't be a Litter-lout! ?Or was that much longer ago?
Have I dreamt it or have I been into a shop which has a big bin for unwanted wrappings? They are quite common in Germany - even in biggish chain shops. Maybe I'll start asking if they have such a bin every time I get unwanted wrappings, plastic or whatever. YES - do it!
ReplyDeleteWell done Topsy & Chayo - you're an example to us all.
What next????
Lots of love from Dilys