Step 4: Bottle Community

The many successes and struggles associated with ditching the convenience of a plastic water bottle are highlighted in the community “Team No Plastic Bottles/Bags.”  We have all stuck to the challenge, however all members commented on how the biggest struggle is the the convenience factor and the temptations of walking into lower and not using a meal to buy Dasani water bottles.  We all agreed that this sustainable behavior makes economical and environmental sense and it ended up being a lot easier to change our behavior than we originally thought.  Most of us chose to trade our plastic water bottles for reusable ones however, one community member decided to use their reusable coffee cup.  A lot of community members agreed they even noticed that they drank more water by using a reusable water bottle.  As a whole, we concurred that this behavior can be maintained throughout our lives and does not need to stop at the end of this class.

Another great benefit of creating this community base is broadening our behavior and knowledge.  Now that I have cut back on my plastic water consumption I am now pushed to reduce my use of throw-away coffee cups.  This behavior change would be even more beneficial because as soon as I am done with the coffee cup I throw it in the trash, at least with plastic water bottles I would either recycle them or refill them once or twice.

In general, having a community positively influenced my behavior change.  It was greatly beneficial to be able to read posts by other members and get ideas on the best and most sustainable way to go about this process.  Some people came across different struggles or approached the behavior change differently which helped expand my own knowledge.  Being able to use my own ideas as well as those of community members have created a positive and successful sustainable behavior change.