I can’t believe it’s almost July. In addition to being the start of the second half of the year, July is designated as Plastic Free July. So this year, I am planning a Plastic Free July Challenge. I will share my progress in weekly blog posts. Will you join me by finding ways to reduce single-use plastic in your life?

This post was originally published in June 2020 and updated in April 2023.

My inspiration for this challenge came from a couple of members of the blogging community – Angela at Tread Lightly Retire Early and Kathy at Baby Boomer Super Saver. Both of these ladies have done plastic-free challenges. They wrote about their experiences in this post.

As a result of reading their stories, I started thinking about doing my own challenge. Plastic Free July seemed the perfect opportunity to give it a go.

What is Plastic Free July?

Plastic Free July is a global initiative that helps people be part of the movement to reduce single-use plastic. It started in 2011 in Australia. Since then, it has expanded to millions of people around the world. In July 2019, an estimated 250 million people from 177 countries took part in the challenge.

You can learn more and take the pledge on the Plastic Free July website.

Why am I doing this challenge?

I have been working on reducing single-use plastic for quite a while now and I have made a lot of progress. But there are still some areas where I know I can do better.

I anticipate this challenge will be…well, challenging. I fully expect to fail but perfection is not my goal. Above all, my objective is to use the challenge to identify areas where I need to improve. After that, I will work on a plan to make those improvements.

When I decided to give Plastic Free July a try for the first time in 2020, I wondered if it was the right year to do it. The challenge was definitely more difficult because of the temporary pause on reusable container programs as a result of the pandemic.

Recognizing that what was happening at that time was out of my control, I decided go to ahead anyway.

Let’s keep in touch! Join my mailing list and I’ll email you when I add a new post.

Not ready to go plastic free? Start small!

The idea of going cold turkey on single-use plastic is intimidating, even for me. It’s okay if you’re not ready to go all-in. Rome wasn’t built in a day. Pick one or two small goals you think you can commit to.

For example, here are five ideas for you to consider:

• Replace plastic straws with reusable metal or plastic straws.
• Give up bottled water.
• Eliminate take-out coffee cups. Use a refillable mug or make your coffee at home.
• Replace liquid soap with bar soap.
• Say no to single-use plastic cutlery.  

Experts say it takes 28 days to form a new habit. If you start in July, you’ll be well on your way. Once you get started, you’ll be surprised how easy it is to find other ways to reduce waste.

In short, everyone can find at least one way to reduce single-use plastic. So what are you waiting for?

Watch for weekly updates on my progress

I will share updates on how I am doing with the Plastic Free July challenge every Saturday. I invite you to follow along and share your stories.

What are your ideas to reduce waste during Plastic Free July? Tell me about them below.