1 Bottle-less Week

After spending the past week plastic water bottle-free, I felt challenged in the beginning but also pleasantly surprised at how quickly my new behavior was becoming a habit. At the beginning of last week, I dug out a reusable coffee cup, dusted it off, and started using it to replace the hundreds of Dasani bottles that I’d been buying previously. I was initially discouraged by the first-world problem of having to fill up the cup every time with warmer water than I was used to. I also noticed myself being tempted to leave the cup behind when I was just running out of my dorm without a backpack. When I discovered that the water bottle leaked when it wasn’t completely upright, I considered switching to another behavior change. With perseverance for a few days, however, the coffee cup has become a part of my daily life. I am proud to say that I’ve stuck to my more sustainable behavior haven’t bought another plastic bottle since making the switch. The most positive outcome so far has been the satisfaction of knowing that if I want to make a small change in my routine to start living more sustainably, I can. It had been easy and convenient sticking to my old ways, but eventually carrying a reusable cup with me will become part of this habit and hopefully be difficult to reverse. Although it’s only a very little change, it’s satisfying to know that I’m no longer contributing to the 30 billion plastic bottles that are thrown out per year and take about 1000 years to fully disintegrate. The behavior of one individual may not make a difference in production numbers of bottled water companies, but knowing that I’m on the road to no longer supporting the unnecessary luxury items anymore is pleasing.

Carney, Garrett. “Buy, Grab, Drink, Trash: Environmental Implications of Bottled Water.” Sustainable Business Forum. 28 May 2012. Web.