Category: Plastic-Free July

Observable Benefits of Plastic-Free July

Rachel2 Comments

We are on the tail end of Plastic-Free July. Tory was reflecting on how he was initially cynical about the experiment and worried it would turn me off to environmentally beneficial endeavours in the long term. As we’ve mentioned before, there are many ways to work around plastic free July without truly removing plastic. We were nervous about the scarcity would give us a bad taste towards environmentalism but we’re within a week of the end and it hasn’t really felt that way. We’re missing the quick-meal convenience of prepackaged pasta and bread and we both felt pretty passionate about the paper-wrapped chocolate bar we got at the grocery store the other day, but overall, we’ve brought our own bags and cups, found alternatives, DIY-ed new things, and started making local veggie markets and nearby farms our go-to grocery shopping stops.

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Plastic Free July: Week 1

Tory1 Comment

One week has passed since we decided to get on board with Plastic Free July. So far, adhering to the rules of no plastic has been relatively easy. We have both had a few slip-ups and oversights. Mainly straws. We really like going out for drinks, but straws have so subtly worked their way into our unconscious brain that I just reached for my straw that was kindly omitted from my drink and had a mental glitch when there was nothing there. It is estimated that Americans consume 500,000 straws  every day that is more than one per person in the US every single day. I do not mean to rant about straws, just illustrate my first point: just how subtly plastic has made its way into every part of our life. Continue reading “Plastic Free July: Week 1” →

Gearing up for Plastic-Free July in Chiang Mai

Rachel1 Comment

How do we end up finding ourselves surrounded by so much disposable plastic?
…plastic grocery bags because we made an unplanned trip to the store, plastic packaging for the imported food we love, plastic cups and straws because even though we order drinks “for here” it sometimes still comes in a to-go cup, little plastic bags because some food at the market is pre-bagged, another landfill offender- styrofoam – because we wanted take out, an iced tea made in a plastic bag, inside a paper bag, and then put into another plastic bag with handles for carrying… it goes on.

Thailand has become entrenched in plastic and so have our lives. Our family has made small changes over the few years and yet it still seeps in constantly. So when we heard about Plastic-Free July, we were impressed and a little uncomfortable – we wanted to do it but we were (and are) worried about the things we’ll have to give up. Continue reading “Gearing up for Plastic-Free July in Chiang Mai” →