I thought this conservation
action, of not using straws, would be a lot easier of a task than it actually was. First, it started
with me remembering when ordering a drink not to request a straw. After I finally got the hang of requesting no
straw, sometimes the servers would forget, or they would bring a drink and straw
before I could make the request. The wait staff also did a double take to ask
if I was sure I did not want my kids to have a straw. I’m either the crazy lady
who does not let her kids drink from straws or I’m the crazy lady who pulls out
my own straws from my purse to use.
When my Action Plan first
started, I went out to a restaurant with a friend and my two kids. Immediately,
I forgot to ask for no straws for all of us. That night, between the 4 of us,
our server brought us 10 straws total in drinks with our dinner (4 straws in
the water glasses, 2 in the kid’s lemonades, 4 in the cocktails). This
encounter is what motivated me to be way more proactive in not requesting
straws when I am out. The other solution to this problem would be to order beer
instead of cocktails, so a straw is not even an option. Requesting “no straws
please” is finally a new habit that my kids and I have gotten the hang of. If I
forget to make the request, CJ, my 7-year-old reminds me to ask for no straw.
The other night we went to this restaurant again, and this time I remembered to
request “no straws”. They still accidentally brought us 2 straws, but I would
say that was vast improvement from the 10 at the previous visit.
The Starbucks inside the
Aquarium of the Pacific uses biodegradable straws, but the one down the street
still uses plastic straws. Most zoos do not even allow straws on-site because
they can end up in the animal enclosures, but I do not think this is a conservation
action only zoos and aquariums should adopt. My friend who came to dinner with
us, has also tried to stop using straws. He keeps going to Starbucks, trying to
refuse straws, but has not been successful yet. Both consumers and businesses need to work together to make a difference in reducing
the amount of straws or single-use plastic waste.
Throughout the semester, I posted on social media anytime anything came
out about not using straws, including this video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rfFpz8KM-9E).
The Lonely Whale Foundation has a social media campaign #stopsucking and
#strawlessoceans. I have seen a few friends of mine on Facebook pledge to also
give up straws. I even had a few friends from the Midwest comment that they
never considered the impact of straws on the environment and thanked me
for opening their eyes to this conservation issue.
To learn more about why you should take the last straw
challenge please follow the links below from some organizations trying to make a difference.
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