Year 8 students Aashray Dullur, Julian Yu and Max Stone are the pioneers of the IGS Plastic Prevention Society with the help of alumna India Pardoel.
They want you to join them in reducing the use of plastic at IGS.
“We know avoiding plastic is important for wildlife, our environment and the food chain,” said Head of Sustainability Carmelo Fedele.
“This is why Sustainable Futures is encouraging all of the IGS community to take part in ‘Plastic Free Term 3’ (our take on Plastic Free July).
“The recent lockdown has forced us to change some of our plans, but there’s no reason why it should stop us from making some important changes.
“As we have been celebrating NAIDOC Week, we are particularly conscious of how our actions support this year’s theme of Healing Country.
Did you know? Australia is experiencing a recycling crisis and although the government has a plan to address the problem, the best way for us to manage our waste is by reducing it.”
So what can you do?
- Educate yourself: Learn about the impacts of plastic. This article, including the links, are a good place to start.
- Pledge: Complete this short survey and make your Plastic Free pledge for the duration of Term 3.
- Share: Talk to others about what you’ve learnt and how you’re making a difference and encourage them to join you.
Going completely plastic free might seem a bit challenging, but start small and make it fun! Consider the following tips to get you started.
- Decline plastic bags
One of the easiest and most obvious places to start, plastic bags are becoming less common but are still out there. Remember to bring your favourite reusable shopping bags whenever you head out shopping. Resist the temptation to settle for heavy-duty plastic bags which also eventually end up in landfill. - Bounce on bottled drinks
Single use plastic bottles can be recycled in crafty ways BUT are almost entirely avoidable. Bring a reusable water bottle, or opt for more sustainably packaged options when buying beverages to go. - Keep your cup
Coffee drinkers, keep an eye out for local cafes with discounts for BYO mugs and Keep Cups. COVID has made things more complicated but some cafes will accept BYO cups for ‘contactless’ coffee and other drinks. - Cut the plastic cutlery, lids and straws
Another easy one, particularly as these items are being outlawed in different cities and states. If you need a straw ask for paper or bamboo and if you’re having food delivered always remember to request no plastic cutlery! - Bring your lunch box
Lunchboxes aren’t just for school kids, they’re a great way to limit waste from meal packaging. Get creative with cloth bags and wax food wraps to minimize reliance on plastic cling wraps or aluminum foil.
For more resources, visit plasticfreejuly.org
What students had to say about the initiative.
Aashray Dullur: “Plastic free July is a challenge to reduce the use of single use plastics in daily life.”
Euan Thomas: “Plastic Free Term 3 is an opportunity to make a pledge to reduce your environmental footprint. It is an easy way to make a difference and a great way to engage with your friends and family to work towards a goal.”
Harriet Ryder: “Plastic free Term 3 is an initiative by Sustainable Futures which encourages everyone in the IGS community to reduce their plastic consumption for the term. We want to be able to pride ourselves on our Sustainability, and Plastic Free Term 3 is a great way for students and staff alike to be able to consider their own consumption of waste. We encourage everyone to participate.”
Alea Babeck: “Plastic use is a major issue in our society, it is overused and incredibly harmful to our society and environment. Substituting plastic is so easy, we should all make an effort to reduce our consumption. Weather its using beeswax wraps, brown paper bags or reusable lunch boxes, there is so much we can all do. And this is time to start. Participate in Plastic Free Term 3.”
Madeleine Hayen: “Plastic Free Term 3 is an initiative that everyone should do to help the environment and get into to better personal habits surrounding our own waste. It is also a chance for one to try something new. I personally am going to start making my own two-minute-noodles using plain flour and water instead of using the the packaged two-minute-noodles that create a huge amount of waste.
Julian Yu: “Plastic Free Term 3 is a movement to try and reduce the use of single use plastics. You should get involved because it’s important to raise awareness about single use plastics. We can reduce single use plastics by using reusable options such as reusable coffee cups and straws or finding ways to avoid them in daily life.”
Max Stone: “Plastic Free Term 3 is a way for people to reduce the use if plastic in everyday life. You should get involved because just reducing things one at a time would gradually make the environment cleaner and better for everyone. Find small things that you can change and once you found that you could change another until you have exhausted every way to cut down on plastic.”
India Pardoel: “Plastic Free Term 3, is an initiative to encourage personal reduction in our plastic usage, to make a community difference.”