It’s the first day of Plastic Free July and to commemorate the occasion, I thought I would pay homage to the incredible people in the green community – zero waste pioneers, sustainability advocates, eco activists and conscious folk – who continue to inspire me and countless others with their incredible words of wisdom.
As I made mention in our first post on curated green quotes, to the untrained mind, some quotes may seem unrelated to the low waste and plastic-free living, but when you look at the bigger picture you will see the quote’s relevance.
I hope you this list of quotes about plastic free, zero waste and minimal waste living inspires you through the plastic-free challenge!
(Note: Where I could locate the source of the quote, I have included in brackets.)
— Jen xx
1. We don’t need a handful of people doing zero waste perfectly. We need millions of people doing it imperfectly. – Anne Marie Bonneau aka The Zero Waste Chef
2. There is no such thing as ‘away’. When we throw anything away, it must go somewhere. – Annie Leonard
3. The world is changed by your example, not by your opinion. – Paulo Coelho
4. “It’s only one straw,” said 8 billion people. – Unknown
5. The most environmentally friendly product is the one you didn’t buy. – Joshua Becker, founder of Becoming Minimalist
6. Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed it’s the only thing that ever has. – Margaret Mead
7. To do good, you actually have to do something. – Yvon Chouinard, founder of Patagonia
8. Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not. – Dr. Seuss, The Lorax
9. Trash is for tossers. – Lauren Singer
10. Be the change you wish to see in the world. – Mahatma Gandhi
11. Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without. – New England proverb
12. If we want to move towards a low-polluting, sustainable society, we need to get consumers to think about their purchases. – David Suzuki
13. Be part of the solution, not part of the pollution. – Unknown
14. Waste is a design flaw. – Kate Kreba
15. Do your little bit of good where you are; it’s those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world. – Archbishop Desmond Tutu
16. Modern society will find no solution to the ecological problem unless it takes a serious look at its lifestyle. – Pope John Paul II
17. I am only one, but I am one. I cannot do everything, but I can do something. And I will not let what I cannot do interfere with what I can do. – Edward Everett Hale
18. It’s pretty amazing that our society has reached a point where the effort necessary to extract oil from the ground, ship it to a refinery, turn it into plastic, shape it appropriately, truck it to a store, buy it and bring it home, is considered to be less effort than what it takes to just wash the spoon when you’re done with it. – Unknown
19. Waste isn’t waste until we waste it. — Will.I.Am, musician
20. You cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you. What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make. – Jane Goodall
21. We have forgotten how to be good guests, how to walk lightly on the earth as its other creatures do. – Barbara Ward
22. It cannot be right to manufacture billions of objects that are used for a matter of minutes, and then are with us for centuries. – Roz Savage
23. We don’t have to engage in grand, heroic actions to participate in change. Small acts, when multiplied by millions of people, can transform the world. – Howard Zinn
24. Single-use plastic is a ticking time bomb for the environment. Avoid it wherever and whenever possible. – Jennifer Nini, editor Eco Warrior Princess.
25. Do something drastic – cut the plastic! – Unknown
Now over to you: What are some of your favourite sustainability quotes? Let us know by leaving a comment below.
Recommending reading:
- 20 Items That Should Be On Your Zero Waste List
- 32 Thought-Provoking Quotes About Ethical, Sustainable and Fast Fashion
- 40 Inspiring Quotes About Climate Change, Sustainable Living and Our Natural Environment
- Get Educated With These Free Sustainable Fashion and Ethical Business Online Courses
- 4 Must-See Short Online Films on The Topic of Fast Fashion
- The Sustainable Fashion Blueprint Report 2018: Industry Overview and Business Opportunities
