Every year, the Plastic Free Foundation organises Plastic Free July, a global campaign involving millions of people across the world. Since its conception in 2011, the challenge has invited participants to avoid using single-use plastics for the duration of the month, with the aim of reducing plastic waste and its impact on the world by altering our lifestyle habits.

Tasked with answering the research question “What does the PPiPL team’s experience of doing Plastic Free July tell us about the issue of single-use plastics in our current consumer culture?”, I set about gathering the team’s thoughts in the form of a dialogue.

Dialogue

I was walking through campus the other day for some fresh air, when I became hungry and thought I’d treat myself to some fast food. As I sat there, enjoying my food and drink, I suddenly noticed Helen approaching.

“Cyril,” they said, “It’s good to see you, I’ve been wanting to talk to you.”

“Well, what is it that you want to talk with me about?” I replied.

“How did you find Plastic Free July, of course?”

“Difficult, much more difficult than I expected. How about you?”

“Well, I expected it to be hard; my expectations fell short of the mark.”

“I know what you mean… Before taking part in the challenge, I was much less aware of my consumption of single-use plastics. The challenge opened my eyes, so to speak. What do you think?”

“I was already quite conscious of my usage of single-use plastics, but to consistently avoid them for an extended period was very challenging. I hadn’t quite appreciated our heavy dependence on them for almost everything.”

“I think it is so difficult because there is such limited access to alternative options that don’t rely on such packaging. Even though you can bring your own Tupperware to the supermarket, there are some products that you simply cannot find without plastic, for instance, lots of different fruit and vegetables. There are places that offer more plastic-free alternatives, but these can be difficult to find, especially if you don’t live in an urban area.”

“Yes, they are usually more expensive, too, which means not everyone can afford to go completely plastic-free.”

“Agree, and the alternatives are not totally plastic free either, they still create some plastic waste.”

“I agree, and I think that this lack of access to products that do not use single-use plastics makes avoiding them very inconvenient.”

“I could not agree with you more. I live in a busy city centre and use public transport to go to all the necessary places, to avoid single-use plastics as much as possible. On top of work and researching, it is a great burden - certainly more difficult than just going to my local supermarket. I spent a great deal of time planning and preparing for my shopping. I must admit it was a relief when the challenge ended.”

“I do my best to avoid single-use plastics generally, but to totally avoid them is exceptionally difficult and very inconvenient.”

I paused for a moment to take a sip from my drink, when I spotted Eliska approaching us.

“What are you two talking about?” she said.

“Our experiences of Plastic Free July.” Helen answered. They then turned to me and said “Cyril, I am afraid I must leave you; I have a meeting. Goodbye.”

I told them goodbye and then turned to face Eliska.

“Yes, it was very hard. I must confess I didn’t make it through the whole month.” She said.

“Why ever not?” I asked.

“Well, it can be so very difficult, depending on your circumstances. I went travelling, and I just couldn’t avoid single-use plastics.”

“Did you prepare your own food, so as to avoid relying on pre-packaged food during the journey?”

“No, I didn’t. I accept that I could have acted differently and avoided failing the challenge. However, even if I had taken different actions, I would have still failed when I arrived. I went to a country that didn’t have safe tap water and so I was forced to rely on bottled water.”

“Ah, that is unfortunate.”

“Yes, depending on your circumstances, it can be extremely difficult to avoid using single-use plastics. Have you heard about Sarah’s experience of Plastic Free July? No? They have a young child, making it practically impossible for them to complete the challenge.”

“Yes, doing Plastic Free July on top of that, sounds like a challenge too many.”

Eliska then jumped up and declared that she needed to be somewhere. I watched them go and was left alone for about five minutes. Then who should appear, but Cleo!

“I’ve got the blues, Cyril,” they said. “Ever since I started doing Plastic Free July, I realised that I cannot eat Quorn without throwing away the plastic packaging. It’s my favourite food - I love it! But alas, I can have it no longer.”

“Wow! That shows dedication - not everyone who did the project permanently changed their lifestyle habits to be more sustainable.” “Oh, no, I can’t believe it, is that the time? I need to get back for a meeting, it was good to see you Cleo and we must catch-up again soon.” I picked up the empty food and drink packages (paper and tin) and walked away.

What does this tell us about the issue of single-use plastics in our current consumer culture?

The dialogue outlines four key challenges the team encountered as consumers – awareness, access, circumstances, and lifestyle changes raising the question of whether avoiding single use plastics is the only thing that matters.

Initiatives like Plastic Free July are vital because they raise awareness of our daily usage and heavy reliance on single use plastics. Before participating, team members were less conscious of single use plastics, and regularly avoiding plastic packaging difficult due to limited access to alternative options and the high cost of plastic-free alternatives, especially for non-urban areas. A transition away from single-use plastic necessitates easy access to cost-effective alternatives.

Avoiding single-use plastics is inconvenient due to the lack of access to products available without them. Living in a busy city centre and travelling around the city to different shops to avoid plastics is one illustration of the ongoing challenges the team faced. The theme of accessibility features again, but this time expands to include, not only access to alternative packaging, but also the amount of time required. Shifting to alternative forms of packaging requires considerations of consumer convenience, which can differ depending on lifestyle.

Personal circumstances and cultural contexts featured as a barrier, especially when considering travelling and the difficulties of being completely prepared. The instances cited included preparing food to take on the flight to prevent single-use plastics use on the plane, inability to drink the local water and changes in life circumstances as a result of becoming a parent. This highlighted the importance of convenience once more, as being prepared required not only rethinking travelling practices, but also a reconfiguration of what is carried in hand luggage.

All of the team members who participated experienced lifestyle changes, reinforcing the positive influence of taking part in campaigns such as Plastic Free July. The illustration in the dialogue above was giving up Quorn, but other examples included reusable cups, switching from plastic to glass bottle milk, using reuseable Tupperware containers and many more.

Reflecting upon the PPiPL team’s involvement with Plastic Free July prompted the important question of whether eliminating single-use plastics is the only thing that matters. To provide access to all, solutions for reducing or eliminating single-use plastics must take into account the social and cultural settings in which they function, as well as the diversity of human circumstances and lifestyles. However, one thing is certain: every small adjustment made individually can make a significant world-wide impact.

James Pain,

Research Assistant – Bishop Luffa Year 12 Work Experience

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  Plastic Free July 2022. ‘For the love of plastics’: reflections on a challenging month.

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