We are living in difficult times, and plastic waste ranks among the biggest challenges we face. That's why the 350 Brooklyn team is inviting you to sign-up for the Plastic Free July Challenge, a fun way of weaning yourself off plastic for the month of July. Together we'll find creative ways to hack the system. What system? Single use plastic everywhere you look!

Dive in and Take the Pledge!

Sign the pledge and receive weekly tips and actions for your plastic free life!

Let's be plastic free for the sea!

We may like the convenience that plastic offers us, but 99% of it comes from fossil fuels, one of the biggest contributors to the climate crisis. Single-use plastics like bottles, straws, bags and utensils stick around long after you use them, breaking down into microplastics. In fact, the average person ingests about a credit card's worth of plastic each week. Here are some other nasty plastic facts:

Though we think of plastic as disposable, it actually takes centuries to break down. So that ice coffee in a plastic cup that you had this morning, tossed and forgot about - it's going to be around for hundreds of years.

You say, "It's all good. I put it in the recycling bin." Unfortunately, the truth is that less than 30% of plastic is recyclable and often only 1 to 3% is actually recycled. Most products are made from virgin plastic.

Many of us have heard the famous metric that by 2050 the amount of plastic in the ocean will outweigh the fish. Do you really want your plastic shampoo bottle to be floating out there alongside a dolphin?

Together we can break our plastic habit, or at least monumentally curb it while we fight to hold manufacturers responsible for the waste they create. By signing up to be a part of this global 31 day challenge, we'll send you tips and actions you can take each week to help you be plastic free.

We also created a FB group for the challenge where you can share resources, recipes, tips and even your frustrations with going plastic free! The combination of collective inspiration and friendly competition makes change a little easier --- and a lot more fun!

Dive in and take the Pledge now and start your journey to a plastic free life and a sustainable world!

Sincerely,

350 BK's Plastic Free Team

P.S. Every time you try a plastic free tip, take a pic and tag us @350Brooklyn on FB or IG and use #plasticfreejuly350BK and you'll be entered into our raffle to win a gift card from Package Free Shop or Precycle, two of Brooklyn's fabulous zero waste stores.