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Originally appears in the Winter 2021 issue.

By Lindsey Maheu

The issue of plastic production, consumption, and waste is a growing global concern and for a good reason. Approximately 350 million tons of plastic are produced annually and only 9% are recycled globally[1][2]. People rely heavily on plastics because they are lightweight, durable, inexpensive, and many of the products we buy and use every day are made of plastic[3]. Many plastics, such as straws, cannot be recycled, and the ones that can become secondary plastics. Secondary plastics can no longer be recycled after one use, and end up in landfills or as pollution in the environment[4]. Plastics degrade through heat and radiation into microplastics (fragments of plastic that are less than 5 mm), and integrate into the soil and water of environments[5]. Humans and all other life forms that rely on soil and water are at risk of consuming plastics, which threatens the health, survival, and sustainability of the environment[2].

With all these problems, what is the solution? Plastic waste needs to be addressed at the community level[6]. The adoption of education and outreach programs starts in communities and creates action by addressing habits, behaviors, and perceptions regarding plastic consumption[2][7]. As a high school science teacher and environmental activist in my community, my goal was to find the most effective strategies for creating community action in eliminating plastic waste. I have been involved in both school-based and non-profit-based conservation projects and was curious as to which types of strategies in each organization had the highest potential for community change in reducing plastic consumption. I researched techniques that represent a diversity of locations around the world and rang in age levels for both school-based and non-profit projects. I also examined community changes based on four categories: attitude towards goals, pro-environmental behavior changes, environmental knowledge, and involvement in the project. The communities with the most effective strategies experienced positive changes when projects encompassed parts from all four categories.

School-based strategies

The most effective school-based strategies are makerspace projects, educational outreach programs, and schoolwide sustainability curriculum.

A school makerspace is a student-led design challenge in which students engineer a solution to a plastic waste problem[8]. Students use the US-based Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) science and engineering practices of asking questions and defining problems, developing and using models, and constructing explanations and designing solutions in this classroom-based project. Student-generated questions include, “How can we reduce plastic waste at our school?” or “How can we teach our school community about the harmful effects plastics have on the environment?” If the problem is defined as a schoolwide lack of knowledge about the use and harm of plastics, students can collect plastics around the school found in trash and recycling bins to design, model, and build plastic artwork that shows how much plastic is being used. Students could use the plastic artwork to share the harmful effects plastics have on the environment, especially marine life, through signs or the construction of the artwork. The collected plastics could also be processed into filaments for 3D printing of plastic toys[9]. By allowing students of any grade level to lead the challenge, there will be greater buy-in from students, staff, and parents, and an increased chance for an outcome which could affect positive change in the entire school.

Conducting educational outreach programs is another effective strategy for promoting positive community changes. Schools partner with local organizations with expertise in plastic waste initiatives to bring engaging activities and experiments to the classroom[10]. These organizations — including universities, zoos, aquariums, research institutions, or other non-profit organizations — often have curriculum already designed and modified for any grade level or age group. An example of an organization that offers a plastic prevention educational outreach program is the National Marine Mammal Foundation (NMMF). The NMMF Prevent Ocean Plastics for a Porpoise program educates students on the ways that plastic pollution affects marine life and how to prevent plastic pollution from ending up in the ocean[11]. Activities are focused on the plastic lifecycle, a watershed model, and the endangered Vaquita porpoise[11]. Hearing about plastics and the effects of plastic waste from an expert engages students in a local effort to prevent plastic pollution and motivates them to participate in the program.

Implementing a schoolwide sustainability curriculum is the most important and effective school-based strategy to change school culture and create community action on plastic waste reduction. Doing so educates students, teachers, staff, and parents of the harmful effects of waste in the environment and aids in the development and implementation of a sustainability action plan. Teachers, in all subjects, receive training in the curriculum, which focuses on environmental education, waste management, and waste reduction. The curriculum may be developed by teachers and through collaborations with environmental education institutes or organizations. The Waste Wise Schools Program in Victoria, Australia promotes a sustainability curriculum and a commitment by schools to produce zero waste[12]. The program, developed by a local organization, EcoRecycle, encourages public and private schools of all grades to design a curriculum that creates a schoolwide action plan to reduce waste[12]. Schools that successfully reduce plastic waste earn the designation, certification, and statewide recognition as a Waste Wise School.

Non-profit strategies

The most effective non-profit strategies for reducing plastic waste and creating community action are plastic campaigns, citizen science projects, and water quality testing.

Non-profit organizations formulate international and national slogan campaigns to remove plastic waste from beaches, parks, and streets in communities. Successful slogans are catchy and easy to remember so that community members think twice before using plastics or disposing of them improperly. Campaigns and slogans may have a broader goal beyond plastic waste, such as tackling all waste or pollution in a community. For example, Neat Streets is an anti-littering campaign that encourages the public to improve their waste disposal13. However, campaigns may also target specific audiences with a more specific outcome. The Fishing for Litter (FFL) campaign involves working directly with commercial fishermen in the United Kingdom to remove litter from the ocean[13]. The fishermen are asked to collect the litter, bring it back to shore, and give it to the FFL to dispose of or recycle properly[14]. Non-profit organizations will also partner with local schools to design campaigns for plastic waste reduction.

Citizen science projects are a very effective method for engaging communities in plastic initiatives. These projects connect community members with scientists to monitor microplastics and macroplastics in the environment[15]. Most projects have the dual goal of engaging and communicating with volunteers and enhancing the research on plastic pollution. Citizen projects are effective at involving community members who are personally motivated to participate because of a passion for the ocean and the environment. In schools, citizen science projects engage students in scientific knowledge, practices, and skills, while also showing them the importance of contributing to scientific investigations on plastics in the environment. Adventure Scientists, another non-profit organization, uses worldwide citizen science efforts to track plastics traveling from waterways to the ocean[16]. The goal of the project is to determine the types and amounts of plastics entering into the ocean to inform future policies and campaigns aimed at eliminating plastic pollution.

This organization also uses the third effective non-profit strategy for preventing plastic pollution. Testing water quality involves monitoring, managing, and reporting the health of waterways and oceans to inform communities about their direct impacts on the surrounding environment. This strategy, like citizen science projects, can involve community members and schools in quarterly water quality tests of local watersheds and oceans[17]. In addition, non-profit campaigns incorporate healthy coastal and water quality testing strategies into nationally and internationally planned coastal and water clean-up days through collecting, quantifying, classifying, and recycling plastics[7][13][18]. The campaigns create slogans to entice communities and share the worldwide results for plastic clean-up days.

Five-step action plan

Based on my research and findings, I found that school-based programs and non-profit programs need to collaborate to increase community involvement and create the greatest amount of action in reducing plastic waste. Therefore, I designed a five-step plan to initiate a plastic-free program at schools of any grade level. The plan incorporates all effective school-based and non-profit strategies described above. The goal of the program is to spread awareness of the plastic pollution issue in the environment and to establish a schoolwide commitment to reduce and eventually eliminate the plastic waste generated by schools.

Step 1: Collect baseline data in order to analyze current schoolwide use and attitudes towards plastic waste. This step should be student-led, integrated into the curriculum of specific courses or student clubs, such as the Green Team or Associated Student Body (ASB). Depending on the size of the school, collecting all the plastic waste found in trash and recycling bins could be quite daunting. Start by having students create a map of the locations of all trash and recycling bins in common areas, such as hallways, lunch rooms, and outdoor spaces around the school. Avoid focusing on classrooms and bathrooms as these locations would not produce representative data of the entire school community. With students, collectively assign a number to each trash and recycling bin on the maps.

Randomly select five trash and five recycling bins for data collection. Using gloves, collect the trash bags and bins after lunch or at the end of the school day when they are most full. Using a tarp and continuing to use gloves, pour the contents of each trash or recycling bin onto the tarp and sort all plastics into a separate pile. Repeat for each recycling and trash bin until all plastics are separated. Using a data sheet in Google or Excel, record the types of plastics, such as plastic utensils and straws, water bottles, and food wrappers, and how many of each type of plastic.

Repeat the collection methods at least two more times on different days of the week and over a multiple-week time span for a greater sample size and to allow for variation. Analyzing the data to determine the most used plastics at school does not necessarily need to be done by a single class or science classes only. For example, math teachers can use and analyze the data with their classes to teach students about graphs and statistics.

Next, survey students, teachers, and staff to learn which plastics from the data collection are being brought to school and compare this to the plastics being provided by the school, vending machines, and cafeteria. Create an online survey with questions that may include the following: Do you eat a school lunch or bring lunch from home? What do you place your lunch food in when you bring it to school/work? or What are your thoughts on plastics in the environment? This data will also be useful in informing and developing the sustainability curriculum with teachers and informing the rest of the school and community of the large amounts of plastic waste generated every day.

Step 2: Create a partnership with a non-profit organization. It is essential to find one or more non-profit organizations with the same goals and expertise in waste reduction and management to support the program and curriculum development. I have found that non-profits are willing and eager to collaborate with schools to develop curriculum. Research local zoos, aquariums, and environmental organizations and read the section on their webpage dedicated to education. Email or call the organization’s education director and discuss the mission of your initiative and the resources or support your school may need to start a plastic-free initiative. Be sure to contact more than one organization to find out which is the most willing and best fit for your school. If funding is needed for time and resources, grants are available from organizations, such as Stop Waste, or some states in the US may offer funding to schools as well.

This is also an important time to discuss project goals and funding with the principal. Plan to meet with the principal in person and offer this five-step action plan, as modified for your specific school site, and develop a list of possible funding needed for the initiative. Funding will depend on the individual goals of the school site, for example, switching from single-use plastic food utensils to bamboo. Treat this action plan as a proposal, and let the principal know that the goals and funding may slightly change as the initiative develops with student and community input. The principal needs to approve the partnership and project before proceeding, and using the data from Step 1 will help convince the principal of the need for the initiative.

Step 3: Develop a sustainability curriculum. Teachers from every department and grade level can collaborate in the creation of the curriculum. Start by establishing a curriculum writing task force with one teacher representative from each subject area who can lead the designing of the lessons and coordinate schedules for topic implementation. Collaboratively write one unit, approximately one to three weeks of lesson plans, and choose which topics to cover in each subject area. Curriculum topics should include the lifecycle of plastics; the effects of plastics on the environment; alternatives to plastics; and plastic waste management, monitoring, and reduction practices. An example of a curriculum topic could be eliminating plastic drink bottles from vending machines and replacing with carton alternatives, or selling school sponsored reusable water bottles and bamboo travel utensils. These topics can be structured into lessons for any subject using a makerspace, educational outreach program, and citizen science or water quality testing projects. Plastic Education, Plastic Pollution Coalition, and Ocean Plastic Education provide planned units by subject and inquiry-based lesson plans for a variety of grade levels. Using the survey results in Step 1 will also help inform lesson plan topics based on student and community knowledge and attitudes towards plastics.

Step 4: Gain community commitment of project goals. Communicate curriculum topics with the school and community to spread awareness of the project and the issue of plastic waste in order to gain commitment from individuals to achieve the project goals. The first and most influential person to share his or her commitment is the principal. The principal’s dedication to the project is needed to gain schoolwide recognition and support. The principal can show commitment through a letter or statement posted on the school’s website pledging to make the school plastic-free. Next, there needs to be a commitment made by teachers, students, staff (including cafeteria supervisors), and parents. Commitments can be made through the use of an online pledge form on the school website, where people read the goals of the project, sign their name, and submit to show support.

Step 5: Recruit teacher leaders and student ambassadors to help manage and monitor the progress and success of the initiative. These teachers could be on the curriculum writing task force or passionate about the program. Teacher leaders should separate into teams based on project goals and expertise. Two examples are a plastic alternatives team or fundraising for bamboo utensils team. In addition, teachers need to recommend student leaders who would be ideal ambassadors of the program. A teacher leader will meet with the recommended students to explain the project and ask them to pledge to be ambassadors of the program. Writing and signing an additional, more detailed pledge as a group will create a more personalized and united experience for teachers and students. The student ambassadors will spread awareness of the progress and success of goals met with fellow students and the community through the school website and social media. Student ambassadors are also ideal leaders to create a catchy slogan campaign for the initiative to spark attention and recognition of efforts in the community. It is recommended that teacher leaders and student ambassadors meet once a week to continue to monitor and support the program, and once a month with the principal to share progress and successes.

The implementation of this five-step action plan requires advanced planning, efforts made by the total school community, and continuous development of the curriculum to see what fits best with the school. However, the results will be well worth the effort for a healthier and cleaner plastic-free environment now and for future generations.

Lindsey Maheu is a Chemistry and Biological Oceanography teacher at Mission Hills High School in San Marcos, California, USA. She is earning her Master of Biology through Project Dragonfly at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. Her research interests include methods for promoting community-based conservation and environmental stewardship of the ocean.

Endnotes:

[1]Geyer, R., Jambeck, J.R., & Law, K.L. (2017). Production, use, and fate of all plastics ever made. Science Advances, 3, 1–5.

[2]Heidbreder, L.M., Bablok, I., Drews, S., Menzel, C. (2019). Tackling the plastic problem: A review on perceptions, behaviors, and interventions. Science of the Total Environment, 668, 1077–1093.

[3]Ivar do Sul, J.A., & Costa, M.F. (2014). The present and future of microplastic pollution in the marine environment. Environmental Pollution, 185, 352–364.

[4]Bevis, M. (1982). Secondary recycling of plastics. Materials in Engineering, 3, 344–349.

[5]Chae, Y. & An, Y.J. (2018). Current research trends on plastic pollution and ecological impacts on the soil ecosystem: A review. Environmental Pollution, 240, 387–395.

[6]Hardesty, B.D., Good, T.P., & Wilcox, C. (2015). Novel methods, new results, and Science-based Solutions to tackle marine debris impacts on wildlife. Ocean and Coastal Management, 115, 4–9.

[7]Kershaw, P., Katsuhiko, S., Lee, S., Samseth, J., & Woodring D. (2011). Plastic debris in the ocean. UNEP Year Book 2011, 20–33.

[8]Kitagawa, L., Pombo, E., & Davis, T. (2018). Plastic pollution to solution: Second graders turn knowledge into action as they engineer solutions for a real-world problem in a school makerspace. Science and Children, 38–45.

[9]Vones, K., Allan, D., Lambert, I., & Vettese, S. (2018). 3D-printing ‘Ocean plastic’—Fostering childrens’ engagement with sustainability. Materials Today Communications, 16, 56–59.

[10]Sur, C., Abbott, J.M., Ambo-Rappe, R., Asriani, N., Hameed, S.O., Jellison, B.M., …Williams, S.L. (2018). Marine debris on small islands: Insights from an educational outreach program in the Spermonde Archipelago, Indonesia. Frontiers in Marine Science 5(35), 105.

[11]National Marine Mammal Foundation. (2019). POP for a Porpoise. https://www.nmmf.org/education-outreach/education-workshops/pop-for-a-porpoise/

[12]Cutter-Mackenzie, A. (2010). Australian Waste Wise schools program: Its past, present, and future. The Journal of Environmental Education, 41(3), 165–178.

[13]Willis, K., Maureaud, C., Wilcox, C., & Hardesty, B.D. (2018). How successful are waste abatement campaigns and government policies at reducing plastic waste into the marine environment? Marine Policy, 96, 243–249.

[14]Wyles, K.J., Pahl, S., Carroll, L., & Thompson, R.C. (2019). An evaluation of the Fishing For Litter (FFL) scheme in the UK in terms of attitudes, behavior, barriers, and opportunities. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 144, 48–60.

[15]Rambonnet, L., Vink, S.C., Land-Zandstra, A.M., & Bosker, T. (2019). Making citizen science count: Best practices and challenges of citizen science projects on plastics in aquatic environments. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 145, 271–277.

[16]Smith, M. (2018, December 3). Citizen Scientists Are Tracking Plastic Pollution Worldwide. Seeker. https://www.seeker.com/conservation/citizen-scientists-are-tracking-plastic-pollution-worldwide

[17]Wynne, A.L., Nieves, P.M., Vulava, V.M., Qirko, H.N., & Callahan, T.J. (2018). A community-based approach to solid waste management for riverine and coastal resource sustainability in the Philippines. Ocean and Coastal Management, 151, 36–44.

[18]Kiessling, T., Salas, S., Mutafoglu, K., & Thiel, M. (2017). Who cares about dirty beaches? Evaluating environmental awareness and action on coastal litter in Chile. Ocean and Coastal Management, 137, 82–95.