For individuals

• Use your own bags when (grocery) shopping
• Use a reusable water bottle and drink tap water when possible
• Use your legs, bicycle or public transport more often – car tyres are a huge source of microplastics ending up in nature
• Bring a lunchbox to work
• Use refillable coffee cups and pads – for example from Coffeeduck
• Try not to use disposable plastics – bring your own containers or plate for take away food, your own mug for coffee or ask for alternatives
• Bring your own cutlery when you eat out on the road – try one of those pocketknives with integrated spoon and fork
• Buy less food with packaging – in general the healthiest foods have less packaging anyway 🙂 (we know the choice between organic vegetables with plastic packaging or non-organic vegetables without packaging is a tough one)
• In bars and restaurants ask for drinks without straw and stirrer
• Do not flush plastics, like cotton buds, bandaids, cigarette buds and dental floss, through the toilet
• Avoid care products with plastic microbeads – check out a list here and download the Beat the Micro Bead-app
• Check whether your care products contain any of these plastics: Polyethylene (PE), Polypropylene (PP) en Polyethylene terephtalate (PET), Polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), nylon12
• Try using less shampoo, soap and other care products – some of us haven’t used shampoo in years for example, we know it’s extreme, but we invite you to come feel and smell our hair 🙂 (our grandpas and grandmas didn’t use shampoo)
• Make your own plastic-free care products and cleaning products – ask Emily-Jane Lowe for a Do-It-Yourself workshop (she’s been living without trash for three years) or join our workshop aboard our expeditions
• Don’t throw your cigarette butts on the street or in nature – use a pocket ashtray
• Sign the petition by Plastic Soup Surfer Merijn Tinga: deposit on small PET-bottles
• Pick up one piece of litter every day, just one piece! – like promoted by Klean Foundation & Zwerfinator
• Use more sustainable paint without microplastics
• Use less synthetic clothing or don’t wash it that often – their microfibres end up in our oceans after washing
• Do not release balloons in nature
• Something broke? Try to get it fixed at a Repair Café (when you’re in the Netherlands :))
• Buy less stuff in general – share with neighbors through for example Peerby
• Share this with your family & friends!
• Mention the subject of marine plastic pollution on your work, school, organisation or (local) government
• Walk barefoot more often and become truly aware of the massive amount of trash we dump on the streets 🙂

Over the last years we have noticed that most people are open to a conversation about using less plastics. Next time you’re at a takeaway place for example, tell the people there you’re trying to cut your plastic use and politely ask whether they want to think about alternatives with you.

For organisations

• Do the Plastic Scan by Searious Business to gain insight in your plastic use
• Contact us for a company expedition or workshop centered around plastics

Check out these awesome initiatives by our friends! 

• Deposit action from Plastic4Plastic by Coen & Rick Koetsier, sons of former expedition member Rob Koetsier
• Plastic Project by the International School of Stavanger (Norway) (see picture below)
• Simon held a speech on his primary school about plastic pollution, inspired by By the Ocean we Unite

Prevention is key!