Be drastic say no to plastic
[Music]
[Applause]
are we
addicted to plastic
we probably are david suzuki
an award-winning professor emeritus and
environmentalist
once said we humans
have become dependent on plastic
for a range of uses from packaging
to products reducing our use
of plastic bags is an easy place
to start getting our addiction under
control
addiction such a strong word you’d think
but very appropriate it is the best word
that describes us humans relationship
with plastic
in the 19th century when researchers
invented plastic manufacturers
immediately embraced it all of a sudden
plastics made everything cheaper and
easier to dispose of
an invention once thought to be saving
the grace of manufacturers
has turned out to be a poison to our
environment
that continues to harm our planet’s
well-being
who would have thought the world would
witness
such a thing i became interested
in plastic pollution in grade 3 when my
class
participated in a garbage cleanup
at first all we were really doing was
just
walking on a beach but soon
we found much more than we expected
nothing to laugh about
cigarettes socks skeletons of old
plastic bottles
and bags those were among the few things
we were
able to identify on the beach
while this was my experience the closest
beach or park to you
may just have bundles of plastic
hiding there underneath the sand and
shore
if you care to take note
one cannot but wonder and ask
how did we get here
it is no surprise that plastic pollution
has become one of the world’s
most pressing environmental crises
the increasing production of plastic has
surpassed our world’s ability
to properly discard or
recycle it our water bodies
have plastics swimming in them and
millions of animals die from plastic
ingestion
each year
did you know that only around nine
percent of plastic
is recycled here in canada
that means 91 percent
ending up unrecycled ending up
in landfills or even worse
the ocean it becomes
such a large burden to our
environment it tangles around
and chokes poor little sea creatures
it dissolves into microplastics
and is consumed by these animals
then it moves up the food train
and in to our own stomachs
in fact scientists recently discovered
microplastics and bpa
a chemical used to make plastic inside
human organs what’s far
more concerning is that bpa
is shown to cause cancer and many other
health problems
how frightening
there is good news that we can solve
this problem
hawaii’s most populated island oahu
and in it includes honolulu
has banned single-use plastics starting
from
december of 2019
why don’t we follow their lead
if a small island state can ban
single-use plastic
why doesn’t the rest of the world do the
same
i used to think i was eco-friendly
enough a kid who supported the
environment
etc but little did i know
that i too used plastic
on a day-to-day basis
plastic bags for shopping plastic
bottles for drinking
those are necessities in life that i
cannot imagine living without
i thought i was the perfect
environmentalist
up until grade four which was when i
participated
in a climate protest i suddenly had a
change of mindset
i realized that being a true
environmentalist didn’t simply mean
being disapproving of plastic
it meant taking action yourself
i decided then that i would stop
using plastic bottles and bags and
convince my family members
to ban single plastic usage in my home
i started boiling my own water not only
to avoid using bottled water but also
to ensure that our tap water was not
contaminated
this is how i decided
to follow my beliefs and fight against
the plastic crisis
this is how i an average
ten-year-old can take small steps
to change the world
taking small actionable steps
isn’t hard at all
starting in our own homes we can stop
using single-use plastic that means no
plastic bottles
no plastic bags
i have become accustomed to the feeling
of life without these single-use
plastics
so that means you can too
whenever you go to restaurants ask for a
reusable cup and fork
instead of any plastic item
when you go shopping bring your own bag
and buy bulk goods instead of packaged
ones
not only do you reduce your usage of
plastic
you actually also save money
we can take small steps at home
but more importantly we must spread the
word
we must raise awareness on the impact
that plastic has on land
and marine life we must
march against the production of new
plastic
to stop using single-use plastics
and to make sure that all of our
plastics
are recycled
the benefits are not only for the
environment
they will help us too if we all reduce
our usage of plastic
we also reduce the threat of having bpa
in our body
which means we will ultimately become
healthier
i started making these small changes
in my home a little less than
two years ago i’m just one person
taking small steps to save the world
but what if we all did what if we all
stopped using plastic bottles and bags
what if we all put raised awareness
and petitioned against single-use
plastic
it is the worst of times but
it is the best of times because
we still have a chance
our world needs our help let’s do this
together
let’s all be part of the solution
not part of the pollution
thank you