Young people are more environmentally conscious than ever and students are always trying to minimise the harm they cause to the earth. However, it can be difficult to choose sustainable options on a student’s budget, when often low plastic options cost twice as much as the generic, plastic-packaged own brand equivalent.
But this doesn’t mean we should give up on trying to reduce our plastic consumption entirely. There are lots of ways to use less plastic without spending a fortune, and some of these tips will even save you money too.
Bring your own containers
This might be an obvious one, but it is easy to forget. Keep an empty travel coffee cup in your bag. Even if you aren’t expecting to get a drink that day, you won’t forget it when you do want one. If you regularly get takeaways, it might also be a good idea to bring a Tupperware with you too.
Buy loose produce
Instead of buying a bag of whatever fruits and vegetables you need, try buying them loose. You can bring your own reusable cloth or silicone bag to put them in. Not only will this prevent unnecessary plastic, and food waste, it will often save you some money, as loose produce tends to be cheaper.
Avoid meal deals
Student life and meal deals are practically synonymous. But they create unnecessary plastic waste. A sandwich, drink, and pack of crisps (or whatever your meal deal of choice is). Sometimes it just isn’t possible to make your lunch before uni. But, when you can, this is a great way to use less plastic, while also saving money.
Avoid individually wrapped products
Whether it’s chocolate bars or crisps, often multipacks of snacks and drinks can seem like a great way to save money. However, this is yet another source of plastic waste. Instead try to buy larger packs. For example, if you’re craving chocolate, instead of buying a six pack of small individually wrapped chocolate bars, buy one larger bar, and if you need to, you can split it up into smaller pieces.
Don’t take freebees
Companies and societies love to give away free products to entice new customers and members. But when was the last time you used that free bouncy ball from a society you got during freshers’ week? Or the highlighter you got from an employer at that careers fair? It can be so tempting to take anything that’s free. Sometimes it can even feel like a game of who can get the most swag. However, at the end of the day, you don’t need it.
Don’t be too hard on yourself
It can often feel overwhelming seeing landfills full of waste, supermarket shelves with hardly a plastic-free product in sight, and companies that refuse to do anything more than a greenwashing marketing campaign. It’s easy to feel powerless at the sight of all this and that, no matter what you do, it will never be enough, so what’s the point? We can’t all be Greta Thunberg. But we can all make small changes to our lifestyles until stronger legislation passes, and companies actually begin making changes.
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