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3.61 AVERAGE
3.61 AVERAGE
informative
fast-paced
Published in 2018 and Keurig had promised consumers 100% recyclable coffee pods by 2020… That was 5 years ago and didn’t come to fruition. Tossing a plastic pod with compostable grinds and tiny aluminum lid into a recycle bin will contaminate the recycling.
This book reminds me of my previous zeal and dedication to sustainability. I can’t believe we haven’t made more progress. Locally in Denver plastic bags are banned (yay) but the progress isn’t happening remotely fast enough. Consumer culture seems to be headed the wrong direction with online shopping and shipping worse than anyone could have ever imagined in 2018…
This book reminds me of my previous zeal and dedication to sustainability. I can’t believe we haven’t made more progress. Locally in Denver plastic bags are banned (yay) but the progress isn’t happening remotely fast enough. Consumer culture seems to be headed the wrong direction with online shopping and shipping worse than anyone could have ever imagined in 2018…
By presenting the stark statistics relating to plastic pollution, McCallum makes a compelling case for each of us to do whatever we can to reduce our plastic consumption. Among these facts are the following: most plastic containers are not recycled, there are already 165 million tons of plastic in the ocean (a significant portion of these is the result of microfibers being released when certain clothes are washed), Sea animals are particularly vulnerable to ingesting plastic refuse thereby suffering negative outcomes, and it takes 450 years for a plastic bottle to break down in the ocean. It’s easy to understand that the path we are on is not sustainable. A number of easily executed strategies to help reduce individual purchase of plastics are discussed. Several of these I have already incorporated into my lifestyle, some will be useful to help me continue to decrease my environmental impact and some are less plausible for me to utilize.
Things we are already doing:
avoiding bottled water
using tote bags for shopping purchases instead of plastic bags
using a loofah for showering
minimal purchase of clothing
minimal purchase of takeout food in Styrofoam packing
avoid the use of a straws
reuse plastic bags, saran wrap in the kitchen
home garden to reduce consumption of packaged produce
Things we can do:
switch from bottle body wash to minimally packaged bar soap
switch from liquid hand soap to minimally packaged bar soap
find a better alternative for a kitchen sponge
try to be aware of plastic when shopping for produce
Things we are already doing:
avoiding bottled water
using tote bags for shopping purchases instead of plastic bags
using a loofah for showering
minimal purchase of clothing
minimal purchase of takeout food in Styrofoam packing
avoid the use of a straws
reuse plastic bags, saran wrap in the kitchen
home garden to reduce consumption of packaged produce
Things we can do:
switch from bottle body wash to minimally packaged bar soap
switch from liquid hand soap to minimally packaged bar soap
find a better alternative for a kitchen sponge
try to be aware of plastic when shopping for produce
Great book for anyone wanting to start out on an anti-plastic journey!
Same information as in many other books. I liked the stats given on the amount of waste in the oceans, but there was no mention of the fact that there is waste in recycling and made global beverage manufacturers are not adopting sustainable practices.
I am a little torn on this book! The topic is so important, and it offered wonderfully concrete ways to reduce plastic impact - both as individuals/families and as members of a community and nation. But, I had to overlook some of recommendations that I bought would be more likely to raise ire than support. Still, I am very glad to have read this, and am holding on to it as a reference/workbook. With that grain of salt, I’d highly encourage everyone to give this a read!
This is a very practical beginner's guide for reducing the amount of plastic coming and going in your life, with plenty of statistics and anecdotes, though I did find some new ideas for things I'd like to try to swap out, as someone who has already made quite a few changes to reduce the amount of plastic we use and discard. It does reference those who need plastics (such as straws) due to disabilities, and while it gives the end-user tips, it never loses sight of the fact that it's ultimately bigger corporations that have to take steps to reducing their plastic packaging and find another solution to their dependency on plastics.
It also includes guides for creating bigger change, such as petitions, letter-writing, sending back plastic packaging to corporations, doing beach/neighborhood cleanups, putting your dollars toward companies that use fewer plastics, and more.
One kind of major bummer though is that the pandemic has kind of ruined some of the options that would be great under normal circumstances. Like in theory, yes to drinking fountains! But in pandemic times, keep your face away from everything! Also, yes styrofoam is bad and takes a bazillion years to break down, but in pandemic times, every time I order takeout, it comes in a clamshell that then gets sanitized with Chlorox wipes, which are probably not good for the oceans either, but public health crisis? So, while I in general feel good about the ways we already avoid plastics (reusable grocery bags/mesh produce sacks, silicone sandwich baggies, bar shampoo/soaps, using our own coffee mugs and water bottles, etc.), there's definitely a weighing of what's reasonable in weird times, and hopefully someday we'll be able to do better again.
It also includes guides for creating bigger change, such as petitions, letter-writing, sending back plastic packaging to corporations, doing beach/neighborhood cleanups, putting your dollars toward companies that use fewer plastics, and more.
One kind of major bummer though is that the pandemic has kind of ruined some of the options that would be great under normal circumstances. Like in theory, yes to drinking fountains! But in pandemic times, keep your face away from everything! Also, yes styrofoam is bad and takes a bazillion years to break down, but in pandemic times, every time I order takeout, it comes in a clamshell that then gets sanitized with Chlorox wipes, which are probably not good for the oceans either, but public health crisis? So, while I in general feel good about the ways we already avoid plastics (reusable grocery bags/mesh produce sacks, silicone sandwich baggies, bar shampoo/soaps, using our own coffee mugs and water bottles, etc.), there's definitely a weighing of what's reasonable in weird times, and hopefully someday we'll be able to do better again.
informative
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
I think, because this was written 7 years ago, and I know a lot about the subject already, there wasn’t really anything new for me here & I found it a bit repetitive. I also don’t think audiobook was the best format for this.
But it was fairly inspiring, reminded me why it’s important to try to reduce plastic, and would be useful for someone who didn’t know where to start.
Made me happy in some ways to see how far we’ve come in 7 years, but sad about how far we still have to go.
But it was fairly inspiring, reminded me why it’s important to try to reduce plastic, and would be useful for someone who didn’t know where to start.
Made me happy in some ways to see how far we’ve come in 7 years, but sad about how far we still have to go.
So simple. Way too simple to effect change or persuade anyone to do anything. At this point, people picking up this book already know all the information inside of it. It provided Band-aid solutions that were unclear. Text breaks like in a news article made the book seem lengthier than it actually was.
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced