Monday, May 14, 2018

Small Changes with Big Impact

I hope by now you know I have a passion for trying to leave this place a little better than I found it. Normally I don't urge others to join in, but hope my actions inspire others to follow suit (or at least cause them to think about their own actions/ habits/ lifestyle). I never want to come off as preachy or superior - I realize my journey is not necessarily your journey.

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Well, today I hope you give me a little leeway because I'm going to suggest a small change that could lead a big impact.

Will you join me in giving up plastic straws?!


Plastic straws have become one of those mindless conveniences that we don't even notice any more. Though at first this small straw may not seem like a lot, when its usage is added up, the impact on our environment and on the animals that encounter them is no longer sustainable or acceptable. And, with the USA using 500 million straws every single day (enough straws to circle around the Earth two and a half times on a DAILY basis!), that's a lot of trash and potential litter.


Did you know by refusing the use of plastic straws, you alone can offset the astonishing number by an average of 30,000 plastic straws in your lifetime?! Now that's a small and easy change we can make with long lasting effects!

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I know some of you may be particular about using a straw (for example, I know my mom gets the heebie-jeebies if she has to put her lips on a plastic cup at restaurants), so if you still need a straw, please consider a reusable one. There are tons of options on the market (from bamboo and stainless steel to glass and silicone). Some even come with a travel case so you can carry them in your purse, car, or etc. In fact, if you sign the #OneLessStraw Petition they will send you a coupon code for a reusable glass straw thanks to One More Generation and Simply Straws {offer excludes shipping}.

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I know it's easy to get discouraged and think our efforts don't actually matter, but I promise that if we all do our part we can make a difference! I love Margaret Mead's that says "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has." We impact the world - here's to hoping it's in a positive way!

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Will you join me in giving up plastic straws?

6 comments:

Bree at Clarity Defined said...

Yay! My work did a strawless challenge in April and gave all of us stainless steel straws. I feel so good skipping the straw! But I may need to look into these cases that you can put straws in.

Samantha McGowan Glass said...

Sounds great. I have started doing this (have some stainless straws), but can reach out to others to join. ��

Shannon said...

I honestly never really thought about the impact of plastic straws. Thanks for sharing this! I will become more conscious about my use of them.

Anonymous said...

Already done! That is a goal I've been working on this year, and it's going well. I bought reusable ones for the house, and I have been declining them at restaurants! (It took me awhile, I started with just setting them aside so we wouldn't use them - I just kept forgetting to decline them in advance, but I'm getting better at remembering!)

dd said...

I have two glass straws for myself, a larger diameter for thicker smoothies and a regular diameter for ice tea. I always wash them right away so just use the two and no plastic thank you very much.

Unknown said...

It’s not ideal but we use paper straws at home. We are in!