Stay Curious
Many of us are thinking more about what happens to our stuff after we are done with it. That's a good thing, because we can become more conscious not only about the end of life for products, but how they are made and what we can be doing differently as a society.
The design of products we buy needs to connect more directly with the systems we have in place for recycling and composting. You can participate in this process by learning more about different products and seeing how they tie to the waste collection infrastructure available in your community. Solutions lie across the spectrum, from how items are made and constructed to what recycling options are available to people around the world.
Waste is a problem that is growing right before our eyes. Recycling is only one in a whole range of solutions needed across the supply chains that bring us the products we use every day.
of plastic produced is packaging
estimated number of microplastics Americans ingest per year
value of plastic lost to the global economy after one use
Make Your Impact
Vote With Your Wallet
Look for products that contain recycled materials and are designed from the start with circularity in mind. As consumers make these purchasing decisions, they should "use their voice, telling companies what they're doing and telling elected officials why this really matters to them," Harrison said.
Seek More Transparency
Ask questions about the products that you’re using. The more curious you are about what you buy, the more it will encourage transparency in the supply chain. What is the product made of? How long will it last? Is it recyclable or compostable in your area? Is there an alternative? Look for a How2Recycle label, which offers instructions.
Call for Smart, Coordinated Action
Reducing the amount of plastic waste requires a cohesive solution that brings everyone together to make better use of our resources. Call for smart, science-backed, coordinated action, both from companies and from policymakers. "We don't need to continue investing money into finding new plastics and finding new packages," said Jennifer Russell, assistant professor at Virginia Tech. "What we need to do is put that money into systems that recover the ones we are [making now]."