{"id":1900,"date":"2019-04-26T05:23:12","date_gmt":"2019-04-26T09:23:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/si-mba\/?p=1900"},"modified":"2019-04-26T15:07:32","modified_gmt":"2019-04-26T19:07:32","slug":"how-to-decrease-the-single-use-plastics-in-your-life","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/si-mba\/2019\/04\/26\/how-to-decrease-the-single-use-plastics-in-your-life\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Decrease the Single-Use Plastics in Your Life"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

This post was written by Shea Mahoney ’19<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

With so much focus throughout The Sustainable Innovation MBA curriculum on the complex, pressing sustainability challenges across the globe it can start to feel claustrophobic and overwhelming to think about how to address these issues from as individual in terms of personal consumer behaviors. One place I have been trying to minimize my own ecological impact is by reducing my consumption of single-use and disposable consumer plastics products wherever I can. These attempts have made it clearer than ever how hard it is to break up with plastic, it is so ubiquitous in most of the products we all use on a daily basis. Fortunately this is an issue gaining traction, highlighted by Burlington\u2019s recent vote on Town Hall Meeting Day to ban single-use-plastic bags, and with higher scrutiny towards how prevalent these products are in our lives there is a broadening new market for more sustainable substitutes to help tamper plastic use. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

By looking at the plastic products I use most frequently I have been able to identify some\ngood alternative products to replace those, allowing me to reduce my reliance on them. One\nsource of plastic waste that might not immediately jump to front of mind is plastic toothbrushes,\nbut with their daily use they tend to be replaced fairly regularly and over one\u2019s lifetime\ntoothbrushes can account for a significant amount of plastic waste. Many companies have sought\nto offer a more sustainable option, with biodegradable bamboo toothbrushes being a common\nalternative. Bamboo is a very low agriculturally intensive crop, requiring relatively little land\nsurface area for cultivation and no fertilizer use. However, not all bamboo is created equal and\nwith the rising popularity of the crop for myriad uses it can take a bit of digging to verify\nwhether or not a bamboo toothbrush (or any product made with the eco-fiber) is actually\nsustainably grown or rather being greenwashed as a more eco-friendly option.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another area of single-use plastics that can be reduced through investing in more\neco-friendly substitutes is produce bags. While it has become pretty common practice for many\nto bring reusable grocery bags to the store, many of us still rely on plastic produce bags for\npackaging our perishable fruits and vegetables. However, there are many alternative, reusable\nmesh bags that can be easily used to replace the flimsy plastic ones so ubiquitous in grocery\nstores. These also make for a relatively simple addition to any already ingrained reusable bag\nhabits. While the need for more substantive, paradigmatic shift in the way we as a society views\nthe use and disposal of plastics remains a daunting and pressing concern, there are many ways at\nthe individual level to curb your consumption and make small but meaningful changes. Investing\nyour dollar votes in sustainable products that provide longer term solutions instead of reaching\nfor single use plastics when convenient is one way we can all contribute to the larger, collective\ngroundswell of change.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sources:\n<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

https:\/\/goodonyou.eco\/bamboo-fabric-sustainable\/ https:\/\/www.wcax.com\/content\/news\/Move-to-ban-single-use-plastic-bags-gaining-momentum-5 06765721.html <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Photo by <\/em>Patricia Val\u00e9rio<\/em><\/a> on <\/em>Unsplash<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This post was written by Shea Mahoney ’19 With so much focus throughout The Sustainable Innovation MBA curriculum on the complex, pressing sustainability challenges across the globe it can start to feel claustrophobic and overwhelming to think about how to address these issues from as individual in terms of personal consumer behaviors. One place I … <\/p>\n

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