Ending Plastic Pollution this Earth Day 2018

April 22, 2018 marks the 48th Earth Day, an event which has reached global levels and is celebrated by more than 1 billion people across 192 countries worldwide.

The main aims for Earth Day involve educating, uniting and encouraging citizens to get involved in green acts to help preserve our earth and the natural beauty that mother nature has to offer. This includes environmental marches, clean-ups and recycling events, as well as signing pledges to support a sustainable cause.

This year’s Earth Day focuses on one main goal: to help end plastic pollution.

So, we’ve come up with some tips and advice on how you can educate and encourage others to be inspired by Earth Day and help to reduce plastic waste.

Get the facts and spread the word

Raising awareness about plastic pollution and its environmental effects is the first step on the road to reducing plastic waste. Many people may be unaware of the impact their plastic consumption can have on the wider environment, and so alerting them to this may help to inspire a sustainable change.

Gather together some plastic pollution and recycling facts ready to share with others to promote an eco-friendly lifestyle. We’ve put together some recycling facts that matter to help you scrub up on your knowledge!

For those who are unsure of how they can actively get involved in environmental movements or campaigns, expose them to ideas on things they can do to help decrease plastic pollution and benefit the earth.

Spread the word via:

• Word of Mouth – get talking! Don’t stop at just your family and friends; talk to your work colleagues, the cashier at the grocery store and even the local bus driver about how they can do their part for the environment.
• Newsletters– add a sustainability column to your in-house gazette or e-newsletter, including recycling tips and advice, and information on local events.
• Posters & leaflets – include details on how to properly dispose of plastic waste, you could even include a map or diagram pointing out where the recycling containers are situated within the local area!

Improve the ease of recycling

Did you know that 25%^* of Americans say that their biggest barrier when it comes to recycling is inconvenience?

Remove this obstacle and improve the ease of recycling by siting dedicated containers in accessible, high-traffic areas. We offer a range of indoor and outdoor recycling bins to suit any location, which can easily be adapted and personalized to suit your chosen waste stream.

If your school or workplace has a recycling program, make sure that your recycling bins are best placed in high-waste areas for maximum impact. For extra tips and advice, have a look at our guide on optimizing workplace waste management.

To help improve plastic recycling rates, it is recommended to site recycling bins for different waste streams with recognizable decals, to encourage passers-by to deposit their waste. We offer separate containers for plastic bottles and plastic bags to help segregate waste and minimize cross-contamination levels.

Host an Earth Day event

Unite others with a common goal by hosting an eco-event.

Some popular event ideas could include:

• Environmental clean-ups
• Recycling drives
• Waste-diversion competitions

You could even hold a repurposing plastic event, encouraging others to get creative with plastic waste by giving it a new life and saving landfill space!

Take the pledge

Reducing plastic waste and benefiting the environment is an ongoing battle and is one that we should all be a part of. Get involved and take the pledge to reduce your environmental impact this Earth Day – and encourage your peers and colleagues to do the same! This could be anything from minimizing the use of single-use plastics, to vowing to recycle more waste.

Here at Glasdon, Inc, we are always looking to do our bit to help the environment.
That’s why our office has pledged to go disposable plastic-free for the week commencing April 16 in support of Earth Day 2018!

Why not join us? You too can take the pledge and encourage others to join the End Plastic Pollution campaign this Earth Day!