Towards Plastic Free Clubs

Tips to use less plastic at your club meetings

For whom: Club members and guests

What

Reduction of plastic waste at club meetings.
Eliminating single use, unnecessary plastic.

Aim

Reduce plastic usage and plastic waste and pollution.
Start small, step by step, week by week. Once your club embraces small changes, it will organically transition to plastic free community events, plastic free fundraising events and businesses.

What can you do as a club?

During the meetings or other events

Eliminate single use for food and drinks. Members and Attendees bring their own reusable bottle. Use reusable glasses, cups or plates.
Provide drinkable tapwater or a large water container to fill reusable bottles.
Eliminate plastic table clothes. Choose reusable table clothes or none when possible.
Eliminate plastic ware. Use reusable forks and knives.
When not arranged at the venue or meeting point: set out a collection bucket. A volunteer take them home to wash.

Gifts for speakers and members

Buy gifts without plastic (gift) wrapping for speakers or when honoring or rewarding a club member, e.g. flowers with no plastic wrappings or stickers.
Sustainable items you can consider: Cloth bag, water bottle, beeswax wraps, a fork/knife set they can take home or donate to the club’s reusable cutlery.

Location and vendors

Consider to discuss changes at your venue location to reduce plastic.
Choose vendors that use sustainable products to prevent styrofoam, plastic clam shells and toxic black plastic.
Check with your location or the local water supply company whether the tap water is of drinking water quality. If so: drink tap water instead of from plastic bottles.
Understand how to use the waste collection system at your meeting location; Conserve leftover food and ensure organic waste is collected separately from paper, plastic, metal, wood or rest waste

Do it together in your Rotary Club or District

Make it fun!

Do it together, step by step, exchange tips in your club, make it a challenge and reward. Do not exaggerate, Rome was not built in one day.
Consider the app ‘My Little Plastic Footprint’ to get inspired by more ideas to use less plastic, calculate your ‘Plastic Mass Index’ (PMI).
Be an example for other clubs!
Make plastic a recurring item on your agenda:
- Use ‘Fine Time for Climate Time’ – Quarterly plastic related questions.
- Share monthly tidbits about plastic with short actionable items.
Talk to your District Governor about creating a Single Use Plastic Free Club and District recognition.
Publish your achievements on social media and promote easy steps.

Share your experiences

Make notes of your experiences, what you will continue to do, where yoi can make another step or find an alternative.
Send tips, plastic-free alternatives or just your experience to endplasticsoup@gmail.com, jointly with the description of your actions including results and lessons learned.