My child who loves pretends game pulled out the beach chair in front of the TV and sat in it like a swimmer relaxing post-swim. She asked for a glass of juice and as the playful pretend game was on the verge of its climax; she demanded a STRAW.

How she copies what she sees. I immediately told her that we do not use straws. She has to make an effort and sip the juice by the glass. She agreed. This entire scenario looks very normal. But shockingly, we never used straws even for kids. Because:

Reason 1- I never use these are impossible to clean and thus become a home to numerous bacteria and molds.

Reason 2- We never felt there is any NEED to use the straws when we can sip from the glass.

Reason 3- By not introducing the straws, my child has learned to drink directly from the cup. A step towards making them independent. What we teach them, they learn.

“There are 1000+ Marine Species In The World Are Known To Be Affected By Plastic Pollution In Our Oceans”

Beach cleanup by our children – Environmental current events

The last straw and the Passion Project are campaigns against single-use straws that cannot be reused.

Beach cleanup initiative on 15th September 2018 at Park Hyatt Abu Dhabi Hotel and Villas

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“Our Obsession with plastic is choking to death some of the most spectacular animals on the planet. We have to act and we have to act fast.”

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These plastic straws are a real culprit, we do not realize but their usage is so extensive that it is the worst disguised enemy of our plant. Guess who will be getting the most affected? Our Kids, The next generation.

Children are our future, we are the present. What we teach them, will remain with them forever. The habits, the logic. Everything. Please do not cover your face with a handkerchief when you cross a stinky landfill full of plastic waste. Instead, be the change and stop using the single-use plastic. Learn to recycle and upcycle/ repurpose things and imbibe the same in your kids. Leave the planet in a viable condition for them to survive and not to sulk.

“We do not want to protect the Environment, we want to create a world where the environment doesn’t need protecting.”

Cute kids taking a pledge

When I first came to The UAE, I was taken aback by the immensity of the plastic waste here. Each time I would buy groceries, the smallest of the items was first packed in a thin plastic bag and in the end, all those small bags would be handed over in bigger plastic bags. These plastic bags are disposed of by these supermarkets on a big scale. Each shopper would carry about a minimum of 2-3 plastic bags that eventually destined to end up in a trash bin at the most. Imagine the environmental impact. 

I was shocked at first but slowly this practice took over me too. I was comfortable buying my groceries in those plastic bags only. Until I met these awesome girls Mia and Sarah. Mia is an Environmom who has started a mission to spread awareness about the ill effects of single-use plastic as a part of environmental protection. Her campaign is called the last straw. Even her little kids and husband are supporting her. Sarah is the pioneer of The Passion Project and really trying to change the views of society against the use of plastic.

“Make Every Day Earth Day”

 

Ways to help the environment –

• Eat ice cream on a stick or cone.. say no to cup.

 Use Cones instead of cups

• Use more reusable bags, bring your own bags (cloth ones are everlasting and cost-effective too) to buy groceries.
  

      Some cool substitutes to the plastic items

   

• Use Steel/ glass bottles for water. One is Enough.
  

                   Would it hurt you to care?

   

• Say no to single-use straws opt for Steel, wood or paper straws. Save the marine life. Plastic is plastic, takes years to decompose.
  

              Reusable Straws

   

• Hey, also, Buy Secondhand when new isn’t necessary. There is a group on Facebook called Freecycle Abu Dhabi which has taken up-cycle and re-cycle to a new level. Free stuff, free-cycle.
• We can simply explore many alternates to many things that have plastic.

               Cloth Bags for Everything

• Use Reusable Cloth diapers instead of non-biodegradable disposable ones. This will even save a lot of money.
  

                   Reusable Cloth Diapers

   

The straws are ruining the world and most importantly, the marine life is the most affected? Thousands of dead animals found at the shores have straws and plastics stuck inside them. They succumb to a death they do not deserve. The Earth is going to face such an imbalance that will affect everyone soon. Even us Humans will be affected. Noah’s Arc won’t be able to save us then. Be responsible. Change your actions and habits NOW.

Straws deserve ditching. Do it now by taking a pledge here in the comments.

In association with the passion project and the last straw challenge, we will be giving away a surprise kit to ONE lucky winner. (For UAE Residents only). Simply comment with your Name and Email id to enter.

Please note that we are NOT promoting any brand or product here because this is an awareness program and giveaway is courtesy of The Passion Project.

Therefore, Don’t forget to share this post to spear awareness and enter the giveaway draw by simply commenting here with your Name and Email id. Very soon the winner’s name will be announced on the Facebook pages. Be environmentally friendly.

Read about 20 Tips to fly with kids here.

Will you change the world with me?