Every year we hold a Plastic-Free Day, serendipitously timed to coincide with the birthday of environmental legend, Sir David Attenborough. It is a day to evaluate how much plastic we use and a chance to reflect on how we can reduce our dependence on it.
This year Sir David was 98 years old, and we were lucky enough to receive a letter from him, wishing us good luck for a successful event. In the letter, he says about single-use plastic; ‘We managed without it once. Why not again?’ – and that is what Plastic-Free Day is about.
In 2024, almost 9,500 students and individuals participated in Plastic-Free Day, including schools signing up to hold large-scale events, businesses registering to encourage their staff to cut back on their plastic consumption and individuals joining in just to change one little thing about their habits to reduce how much plastic they use.
One of our followers, Jo from @SUPStyles signed up and chose to do a Paddle Board Clean Up!
Plastic-Free Day was perhaps more significant than ever this year when you consider the results from The Big Plastic Count. Organised by Greenpeace and Everyday Plastic, The Big Plastic Count investigates how much plastic is being used and disposed of in UK households, to gather evidence that will push the government to take bold action on plastic. The results revealed that in the UK, we are estimated to throw away 1.7 billion pieces of plastic a week, equating to a staggering 90 billion pieces a year. Many of these items are single-use food packaging, like crisp and snack bags, and trays containing fruits and vegetables. This means that the UK tops the global charts for plastic waste per person, second only to the USA.
We hope that by bringing awareness to the impact plastic has on our environment and encouraging people to get involved in initiatives like Plastic-Free Day, more and more people will feel empowered to embrace plastic-free alternatives such as reusable water bottles & coffee cups, wax wraps and tote bags. If everyone made just one or two small changes to reduce their plastic consumption, together we could make a huge difference to the planet!
If you would like to get involved in Plastic-Free Day in 2025, you can follow us on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn where we will post information and updates about next year’s event.
