It's time to rethink Mardi Gras—without tons of plastic beads
Green groups are urging revelers to recycle, reuse, and reconnect with the pre-plastic soul of a great celebration.
This article was created in partnership with the National Geographic Society.
In 2011, Holly Groh and her family stood on a street corner in New Orleans, giddy with anticipation as the Mardi Gras parade approached. Her husband’s family had congregated at that spot every year for decades. Her children were always entranced by the raucous, exuberant performances—and also by the shiny beads and other “throws,” the trinkets tossed by the parading “krewes.”
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