#NotAPlasticoholic: Three Gurugram Girls Are On A Mission To Stop The Use Of Plastic Straws
Priyanka Kalra, Umang Manchanda and Mallika Arya started No Straws Attached. The trio were upset over the irrational use of plastic straws by the restaurants. The campaign has sign ups with restaurants in 5 countries and volunteers based in almost 15 countries. The government needs to put a heavy tax on single-use plastic items.
Sitting in a Gurugram cafe, Priyanka Kalra, Umang Manchanda and Mallika Arya ordered their drinks and told the waiter to not put straws in it. Even after making a request, the waiter did not bother and served the drinks with straws. This made the trio upset over the fact that these restaurants would neither reuse these plastic straws nor will take the responsibility to make sure that it is not polluting water bodies and they decided to fight against the irrational use of plastic straws by the restaurants.
This is how 'No Straws Attached' was born...
While talking to Indiatimes.com, Mallika Arya said, "NSA began as a simple idea - There's this new wave of consumers refusing single-use plastic straws and we decided to take to this the next level. We decided to ask businesses to join the movement and stop keeping single-use plastic straws altogether! This ensured that the movement would get stronger from other - a consumer and business perspective."
Straws are not only polluting our environment but is also killing our endangered species. Remember the video filmed in Costa Rica where an endangered turtle got a 10-12 cm plastic straw stuck in it. The video became viral and triggered marine biologists and environmentalists to campaign against the troublesome tube.
Arya also told us that plastic straws are among the top 5 things found during beach cleans around the world. She said, "They're not only damaging our waterways (oceans, rivers and lakes) but are also causing immense damage to our marine life. When the turtle video went viral a few years back it really came as a shock to a lot of us. Plastic straws are used for a few minutes (sometimes even seconds and sometimes not used at all!) before they're thrown "away".
There is no away - these straws are so flimsy that they are hardly ever recycled. their light weight makes them float away into waterways. There are some places that use multiple straws in ONE drink - this is absolutely outrageous!! and it needs to stop today."
NSA wants people to look for alternatives that are available for plastic straws. "There are alternatives available- these can be made of bamboo, metal, glass or paper. If you absolutely require one then choose one of these. We have become so dependent single-use plastic - we really need to re-design and re-think of how we use things."
It might surprise you, but this amazing campaign has been running on zero funds since last 1 year. "You don't need money in order to talk to people and spread ideas. You simply need to use the power of your voice. We have managed to grow the campaign to multiple cities - we have sign ups with restaurants in 5 countries and have volunteers based in almost 15 countries - all through the power of social media," Priyanka told us.
We all should help these 3 young women to save our planet. Not only this, the government is also required to take some drastic steps. "The government needs to put a heavy tax on single-use plastic items. They need to set in laws and policies that discourage businesses from using these items. Additionally, they can give grants to individuals and organisations that are researching and creating alternatives to single-use plastics," NSA added.
"Animals and birds are often not able to tell the difference between plastics and food - until its too late. We hear stories or whales and dolphins choking on plastic bags and yet we are going on using them? when will this stop? Campaigns like NSA use the straw as a symbol - we need to CUT these items of our lives immediately. We cannot continue making excuses anymore and convenience is no longer an excuse we can use. We realise that there are people who still require plastic straws for their daily activities but we urge businesses to look at alternatives. Not everyone needs a straw - but for those that do - lets ensure the options are as sustainable as possible. Our actions need to stop causing harm to our natural environment," Kalra tells us.
The trio asks everyone to contribute and help save our planet.
"We think everyone has a responsibility to play towards protecting the environment. This world environment day, the global theme is 'Beat Plastic Pollution' and we all really need to reflect on our own single-use plastic consumption and questions our actions. Before asking the world to make changes, we need to start making the change in our own lives. Do we really need plastic straws? Can we stop depending (unnecessarily) on single use plastics?"