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Although it’s always been relevant, the problem of plastic has recently resurfaced, and rightfully so. As college students, it can be hard to care about a problem that seems so far away, so I found a few quick facts about the problem, and also some trendy lines that carry plastic-free items to help make the solution seem more possible.
Quick Facts:
At this rate of plastic use, there will be more plastic than fish in the ocean by 2050
Research suggests a plastic garbage patch in the Pacific Ocean equals twice the size of Texas
40% of all plastic is used once before being discarded
More than nine billion metric tons of plastic has been produced since 1950, the weight equivalent of 27,000 Empire State Buildings or more than a billion elephants
73% of beach pollution is made up of plastic
Around the world, about 2 million plastic bags are used every minute
Plastic is killing more than 1.1 million seabirds and animals every year
Helping to fix this problem is a lot easier than it seems if we get involved in small ways every day like using a metal straw (or no straw), steel utensils, reusable water bottles, reusable grocery bags, and more. It might seem like a hassle to carry around a metal straw and/or utensil but I’ve gathered up a few brands that sell these options (and they’re cute too)!
Package Free Shop – a company that thrives off reducing waste and finding alternatives to single-use plastic. Find fun straws, cute bags, and more here!
Life Without Plastic – this brand aims to raise awareness on the health and environmental problems posed by plastic use. They have anything from zero-waste living to bath and body AND they offer fun deluxe kits to get you started.
Keep Cup – For all the coffee and tea lovers out there, this is a fun alternative to Starbucks and other throw-away cups. Keep Cup has multiple collections of cups and even the option to design your own.
4Ocean – This company isn’t so much about eating/drinking habits, but instead lets you wear your support right on your wrist. 4Ocean has designed a collection of cute bracelets all made from recycled materials and what’s even better is when you buy one, you remove 1 pound of trash from the ocean and coastlines. More-so, some of their bracelets also go to other causes like helping polar bears and sea turtles and you know you want to do that.