Paper or Plastic? Neither, thanks!

BYOB - Bring your own bag

Abby Suplizio wraps birthday presents in reusable bags, not paper.  A gentle reminder to other moms, Abby's gifts spread the word about a serious environmental problem.  Every day, thousands shop and their purchases are placed in plastic bags.  Less than 1 percent of the 100 billion polyethylene plastic bags are recycled.  These bags will persist on our planet for up to 1,000 years.  Pretty unfortunate, especially considering landfill waste produces the greenhouse gases that cause global warming. 

But wait, there's more... 

Abby's family has a Fuel Free Family Day each week, a day where they don't drive to lower emissions.  Abby's family buys locally produced food and buys only used items, such as clothing from kids consignment shops.  They also save water and energy at home with shorter showers.  Changing simple habits like this keeps our planet healthy.  

How can moms stop global warming?  It's as easy as 1, 2, 3!

Following the three 'R's - Reduce, Reuse, Recycle - is the common sense way to stop global warming and its devastating effects.  Ask yourself these three questions:  Do I really need it?  How long will I use it?  Where will it go after I'm done with it?  A little awareness goes a long way and reminds us to take action.  Most of our kids are too young to take action themselves, yet they and their kids are the ones who will suffer the most.  It doesn't seem fair, does it?

Reduce:  Less waste at birthday parties

You know the scene:  mounds of wrapping paper, disposable plates and utensils piled high in garbage bins.  Half-filled juice boxes ooze onto every surface.  It's a kids birthday party!  It's also an opportunity for moms to make postive changes.  We need to rethink our birthday parties and show our kids a better way.  Reducing our consumption makes it easy for us to do our part to stop global warming.  Wrapping presents in reusable bags, as Abby says, "presents a good opportunity to discuss alternative packaging ideas".  And when a lot of moms make many small changes collectively, together we can make a big difference.

Reuse: Buy it used or pass it on

With every company rushing to profess it's 'greenness' in the great green gold rush, it's easy to forget a simple tenent:  the most 'sustainable' product is the one that already exists.  So the best choice for the environment is to take care of what you have or to buy something used.  More common sense.  Like Abby, you can explore kids consignment stores for clothing, toys and gear.  Pass clothing your kids have outgrown to others or trade clothes with friends.  Your environment and your wallet will smile!

Recycle:  When you can't reduce or reuse

Make a pledge today to only buy things you can recycle.  Look carefully at the packaging in the store.  Does your town recycle that box or container?  If not, make another choice.  Compost your food scraps and produce healthy soil for your garden.  When the trash we produce ends up in rotting in landfills, it produces greenhouse gases.  Recycling just half your household garbage will save 2,400 lbs of carbon dioxide!

Take action today!

Moms get busy, believe us, we know how it is!  But this is one task we can't put off.  Like Abby, we can make fun changes to our lifestyle.  By taking action today, we can secure a better quality of life for future generations, for our children and theirs.

How are you taking action to stop climate change?  Tell us here!