If you haven’t heard of “Plastic Free July”, then you are missing out on an eye-opening challenge. An organization out of Australia started a campaign to bring attention to just how much single-use plastic we each use on a daily basis and that campaign caught my attention.

I started July 2016 and, although I was already using my own shopping bags & bringing my own water cups instead of using bottles, I was a LONG way from being plastic-free. One of the great things about this campaign is that it showed me just how much single-use I was still going through, so I was able to make even better choices throughout the year (I didn’t just stop going plastic free on August 1!)

So this year, to help increase awareness of this project, I asked my office to take the challenge – and they accepted! This inspired me to branch out & see if there were others willing to take the Plastic Free in July challenge.

Soooooo…Are you up for it?

The best place to start is to go to this site, http://www.plasticfreejuly.org/ , and click the big blue button that says, “YES – I accept the challenge!” From there you can go to their “getting started” section and take their “Pesky Plastic Quiz” and use their “Action picker” list to get so many simple ideas about going plastic free.

Another great aspect of this site is that they offer a “toolbox” full of promotional tools, how to host an event, and how to get your local community involved. Ya know…just in case you are ready to ask YOUR office or school or family to have a Plastic Free July!

I would love to hear how you are going Plastic Free in July – are you giving up straws at the drive-thru, taking your shopping bags to the store (even retail stores, this isn’t just for grocery shopping!)? Or perhaps you’ve noticed just how many veggie/fruit bags you bring home from the grocery store – do we really need those? Just pick 1, 2 or 3 ways you are ready to take the challenge & DO IT!

Posting on social media creates awareness and gets others involved and isn’t it more fun to take a challenge with friends anyway? So post a pic of your challenge and tag @plasticfreejuly and @my_eco_awareness.