Take the #StopSucking Challenge in St. Cloud

Plastic waste is a huge problem in the world right now. Our oceans are filling up with single use plastics and harming sea life. There have even been some predictions that by 2050 there will be more plastic in the ocean than fish.

I know Minnesota isn't near the ocean by any means, we're pretty land locked. But little changes made here can filter out through the rest of the country an world and help this problem.

One big thing that has started is companies stopping using plastic straws, or finding alternatives. Straws can't be recycled, so they mainly end up in landfills. There is a challenge that started on the internet called the #StopSucking challenge where people are encouraged to give up single use plastic straws for a week. The average American uses about two straws a day and that can really add up over time. Try this challenge out for yourself! Here are a few alternatives to help:

• Bring reusable cups and straws with you
• Ask for no straw when ordering a drink
• Use paper straws in place of plastic
• Bite the ends off of licorice and make a candy straw (yum!)
• Hollow long uncooked pasta also works as a straw that is totally biodegradable

I saw a quote recently on the internet that said,

I'm just one person, what difference will I make?
- 7 billion people.

Big changes don't have to happen overnight, it takes about 21 days to make and break habits. Little things we do now, like finding straw alternatives, will add up to big things down the road. Let's all try to leave the world a little better than how we found it.

StrawlessOcean.org