I run a debate club at my daughter’s school. This Friday, I’d picked the moot “That Plastic Bags Should be Banned.” The moot lead to a vigorous discussion for the pro side, as it was quite easy to favor conservation and protecting the planet, and arguments about the length of time it takes for plastic to break down came easily. The con side of the argument struggled to come up with points in support – other than the convenience of having it, and the burdens of policing.
The debate made me think just how prevalent plastic is in our world. And, a teacher who helps me with debate club shared recent developments in Kenya (where she used to live) to ban plastic bags.
Do you know the story?
“Last month, Kenya took strong action to tackle the scourge of plastic bags. CreditSimon Maina/Agence France-Presse – Getty Images” Kenya is banning plastic bags – with heavy penalties being enforced to tourists and locals. Here’s a New York Times article from September. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/14/opinion/kenya-plastic-bag-laws.html
I left the debate club, and thought about my own use of plastic. I did a little more research. Here are 10 things you can do to reduce your use of plastic.
Plastic can destroy (and arguably is destroying) our world. Here’s an article about plastic bags and climate change. https://1bagatatime.com/learn/plastic-bags-climate-change/ .
I felt the need to learn more. I decided that my weekly travel twitter chat that day should talk about the subject. I host every Friday at 11 am est – called #vastchat. We were talking initially about Kenya, and efforts in California and New York as well. But I had friends joining the chat from India, Grenada, Vancouver, Washington, and other places around the globe, chiming in on what their areas are doing to stop the prevalence of single-use plastic bags.
Here’s the transcript of my twitter chat. See http://travoscape.com/VastChat/1008835/transcript
My friends in Grenada shared a project two young kids in grade 6 are doing there. Watch, and get inspired.
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Sam and Tanner’s Project |
I was recently interviewed by Virtuoso Life about the work I do to promote sustainable tourism. I’ll share the article with you when it gets posted and goes “live” .
For now, know that when we chat about how you can travel responsibly and authentically, I’ll likely offer sustainable tourism options for you to consider in making your travel choices.
I like to work with partners like Big Five Tours, Lindblad Expeditions, and Natural Habitat – partners who continually win awards for their leadership in sustainable tourism development. And I’ll feature some of them below.
For now, read Virtuoso’s article by Costas Christ, our director of sustainability.
And let me know if you have some ideas on how you can travel sustainably.
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