Say Goodbye to Plastic with Sandra Ann Harris
Sandra Ann Harris
You’re likely used to seeing plastic in certain places — the grocery store will throw your meat in a plastic bag, a takeout container includes plastic utensils, or you might grab a plastic water bottle during a road trip, for example. But plastic is hiding in a lot more spots than we’d expect, and the pandemic only exacerbated the issue, with single-use plastic items being in high demand.
While raising awareness of plastics is critical (who doesn’t love a good stat or two), there’s more that we can be doing to diminish the amount of plastic we’re using in our everyday lives, particularly when there are alternatives available. But where do you even start?
If that question sounds like a headscratcher to you, you might want to check out Say Goodbye To Plastic: A Survival Guide For Plastic-Free Living, the new book from Sandra Ann Harris. Sandra is the founder of ECOlunchbox and a big proponent of turning awareness into action by removing plastic from daily routines and upcycling common plastic items so they don’t end up in a landfill, or even worse, in the ocean.
Sandra chatted with Good People, Cool Things about her book, the messages she hopes readers get from it, and what the future of the industry holds.
Why did you decide to write Say Goodbye to Plastic now?
Great question. Actually, I had wanted to write a book about my work as a plastic pollution activist and entrepreneur for quite a while. My background was in journalism and I felt like I had a story to tell that would light up people's hearts and open the opportunity for them to join the plastic-free lifestyle.
But the real answer is that I was asked by Hatherleigh Press to write Say Goodbye To Plastic: A Survival Guide For Plastic-Free Living, so the opportunity literally fell in my lap and I said yes right away! I was thrilled because I didn’t know how to go about finding a publisher and pitching my idea. Sometimes things really work out so serendipitously. I’m so grateful for the opportunity to share my homey activist/entrepreneurial story.
What's something surprising about plastics or plastic usage?
It's easy to demonize plastic, but its roots are not necessarily evil. In 1869 the material was first developed as a replacement for ivory in billiard balls. The growing popularity of billiards resulted in huge demand for ivory and the hunting of wild elephants. So weirdly, the material was developed on behalf of the environmental cause of saving wild elephants from extinction.
Obviously, plastic isn’t turning out to be an environmental hero nowadays since our oceans are overwhelmed by plastic waste and people are suffering health and carbon footprint consequences tied to plastics. It’s so sad that this material was designed with a positive function in mind but it’s backfiring big time!
What are some actionable steps people can take to diminish their plastics use?
Wake up and smell the coffee. Ha, ha… I mean wake up and track your plastic use one morning from the moment you wake up. You’ll be shocked, I think, at how pretty much everything you touch from the moment you turn off your alarm — or shout at your plastic Alexa — go potty, brush teeth, wash hair, etc… involves plastic. It’s totally ridiculous to needlessly use so much plastic.
In my book Say Goodbye To Plastic, I break down the home room by room into strategies for plastic-free living. When it comes to the bathroom, for example, you could try easy plastic-free swaps like a bamboo toothbrush, solid shampoo bars, refillable razor, chewable tooth tablets, and more.
Basically, I had to figure out how to weed plastic out of my life by MacGyvering solutions and the school of trial and error. The book is a chance for folks to hit the easy button with plug-and-play solutions laid out room by room. Pick your favorite room to start your plastic-free journey and open to that chapter. I’ll be your guide and cheerleader page by page.
A product from ECOlunchbox, Sandra’s company
Which companies are stepping up in reducing plastic usage or finding other methods to package or ship products?
During the pandemic, we’ve seen plastic packaging waste skyrocket with the huge shift to online shopping. We ship my company ECOlunchbox’s products entirely plastic-free by using recyclable cardboard mailers and boxes instead of plastic envelopes or padded envelopes. For tape, we skip the plastic and use recyclable kraft tape. And there are no plastic pillows or Styrofoam peanuts in our stainless steel food container and lunch box shipments — only recyclable crinkle cut paper. Plus, we carbon offset all our UPS shipments to further reduce harm to our environment.
When shopping online, I recommend shoppers choose companies with planet-centric shipping practices like these whenever possible. If you don’t know how they ship, ask questions. If you get a shipment that’s laden with plastic, send negative customer feedback and urge the company to consider changing to plastic-free, carbon offset shipping.
Where do you think we'll be as far as plastics or alternative materials in a decade?
I hope we’ll be using plastic only when there is no suitable alternative. Medical tubing and devices, for example, might still be made from traditional plastics, but foodware, toiletries, clothing, and most household items will be made with biodegradable materials.
Some of the cool innovations we’re seeing involve creating edible films and bubbles from seaweed for use in food service and packaged goods. Fallen palm leaves are being transformed into household items, like soap dishes, or protective packaging for fruits and vegetables. Instead of Styrofoam, biodegradable mushroom-based foam can be grown by cultivating a combination of mycelium and hemp fibers. Researchers are experimenting with creating a new plastic-like material made from sugar and carbon dioxide. Crustacean shell waste from shrimp is being collected, boiled, and stripped down to a plastic bag-like material.
I don’t think bioplastics are a good solution at this point. Growing plants, which involves carbon-emitting machinery, soil, and water, to use as a basis for a new plastic polymer might sound eco-friendly but the reality is there are many hidden environmental costs. Plus, PLA plastics are not biodegradable at home, are refused by most commercial biowaste companies, and end up in landfills.
While creatives and scientists are hatching up new materials solutions, I suggest we all weed single-use plastics out of our lives and rely more and more on reusable and biodegradable items instead.
What's next for you?
My company ECOlunchbox is releasing a new thermal container this summer with a circular design I’m really excited about. We came up with this innovative product, which has exceptional insulating performance for both hot and cold foods, by thinking deeply about end-of-life issues for most thermos containers. Typically, insulated containers are made from steel mixed with molded plastic, and when it’s time to discard the product it can’t be recycled because of the mixed materials. It goes into the landfill.
Our new Blue Water Bento Insulated Canister is a vacuum-sealed container with an external removable silicone gasket for easy cleaning and a lid with insulating wood tucked inside. To top it off, we’ve added a decorative etched bamboo lid with an eelgrass ocean design. The whole product can be taken apart at end of life so the steel can be separately recycled and the wood and bamboo can be biodegraded. I think our new “circular” design is really innovative and eco-friendly consumers are going to love how we’ve created the product for excellence while in use and after use.