Step 4- A community helps

With a supportive community by your side, it is easier to accomplish anything.  Not only do peers help to influence the way that people live, but they can also help to improve the lifestyles of those surrounding them. Within the members of my group “Team Coffee Cup/No plastic bottles”, we have all been attempting to rid our bad habits of wasting plastic and paper.  I think the main barrier to addressing our problem of over consumption and use of paper and plastic is how easily it is to get these things for free without even thinking twice about them. While just swiping a “meal” at lower farinon, any of us could get the option of 4 sides. These 4 sides could consist of 4 plastic water bottles or 4 coffee cups if we so decided.  If it was not so easy to obtain these things, I think we would have an easier time committing and making this a more life long switch and change in behavior.

However, Lafayette’s community is actually working to get the word out that paper and plastic cups should not be used.  There are signs in lower and all over campus that suggest how bad the plastic bottles are for the environment and give positive reinforcement about changing our attitudes and behavior in regards to this.  Also, I have received a few emails and been asked to sign things pledging that I will try to decrease my use of water bottles.  Because the topic is consistently being brought up, I think the community is doing a good job in spreading the word and helping people realize that they can affect the environment personally in the long run. I think that these reinforcements will help me to keep my positive environmental behavior going even when we are done with this challenge because there are constant reminders everywhere.