Plastic Free July
At St Margaret’s House, we take our Environmental Responsibility very seriously. It’s a central thread running through everything we do that we deliver for the Bethnal Green community. It’s also one of Arts Council England’s four Investment Principles (alongside Ambition & Quality, Inclusivity & Relevance and Dynamism) so we hold ourselves accountable to our main funder by reporting on the changes and improvements we make in our programmes, our operations and our approach as a team and an organisation.
You may not know, but we are also a work-home for 30 like-minded charities, social enterprises and wellbeing practitioners. We know that as a collection of organisations, with around 3500 people coming through our doors each week, we can create a ripple effect by setting an example with some of the changes we make. We want to ensure our collective work addresses social change by focusing on the connection between the wellness of people and planet. We meet with our tenant organisations twice a year to talk about sustainability changes that we can make together across our buildings.
As an organisation we have:
committed to sourcing items from sustainable and environmentally responsible companies wherever possible;
added recycling bins to each of our eight venues;
endeavoured to work with contractors who have a sustainable practice;
improved biodiversity in the SMH Garden;
introduced measures to ensure any food waste is recycled properly and put to use where possible;
replaced all lighting as it becomes redundant with LED motion sensor alternatives;
committed to using reusable cups for all events and hires
There’s still much more we want to do in terms of solar panels, heating systems and insulation and cooling which we are committing to as part of the major refurbishment works that are already underway.
You can find out more about Sustainability at SMH here: https://www.stmargaretshouse.org.uk/sustainability
Changes we can all make
Many of the changes an organisation can make aren’t possible for each individual, and it can be hard to know where to start when you want to try to make change in your own life. That’s why we’ve put together a list of small changes our team members have committed to at work and in their personal lives in the hope of inspiring changes you could make and creating that ripple effect.
Several team members have made commitments to reducing singleuse plastic use in their own lives and those personal goals have also been feeding into what we do in the Gallery Cafe, Ayoka charity boutique and the SMH office. It also helps us set a precedent for how we run our events and workshops. We’ve written our 31 top tips for July, one for each day of the month, so you can make some moves towards reducing singleuse plastic in your life too. Are you up for the challenge?
1. Always carry your reusable water bottle
There really is no excuse for buying water in singleuse plastic bottles these days. When it comes down to it, you are paying for the bottle rather than the water! At SMH you can refill your own bottles in the Gallery Cafe and with our recently installed water fountain in the Mulberry Hall (you told us about this issue in our Community Survey and we listened and responded). There are also easily accessible taps in all our other venues.
2. Take your reusable cup everywhere too!
We all love a takeaway tea or coffee when we’re on the go. It’s really easy to have a lightweight reusable cup in your bag (there are folding ones available if you don’t have much space). And most places offer a discount if you use your own cup when getting a takeaway. At The Gallery Café, we offer a 10% discount on your takeaway vegan latte when you skip the disposable cup. What’s not to love?
3. Take reusable to the next level for food and drink
Could you carry a metal straw with you? A couple of bits of cutlery so you never need a disposable fork. Could you carry your own empty Tupperware for your takeaway lunch from your favourite café? We also offer a 10% discount at The Gallery Cafe if you bring your own tub or tin for your salad-to-go order, for instance. Have a go!
4. Take bags, boxes and jars to the butcher, the baker and the grocer
If you get your weekly groceries in local, small shops, you can often use your own reusable packaging to save them giving you theirs. Could you give it a try?
5. Always have a tote bag with you so you never need a carrier bag
We’ve got a lovely one at Ayoka if you’re keen.
6. Consider switching to package-free shopping for lots of household staples
Package-free shops are popping up everywhere (try the Zero Waste Shop at Queen Mary University of London on the Mile End Road). They are great for taking your own jars and tubs and stocking up on loose food cupboard essentials like pasta, rice, cereals, nuts and dried fruit. You can even take your own bottles and jars to get cleaning and beauty products. Some things are a bit more expensive than the supermarket but there are lots of things that are much cheaper. Check it out.
7. Choose loose.
When you’re in a supermarket, if there is a choice to get loose items, take it… You don’t need the plastic bag!
8. Become a hidden plastic sleuth.
Lots of packaging these days can try to look eco and like paper and it’s not. Don’t be fooled! When you’ve got a choice between food in different jars, choose the ones you will want to reuse for another purpose, with paper labels and without that unnecessary bit of plastic around the neck or lid.
9. Grow your own herbs
Even if we’re not lucky enough to have a garden, we can grow some herbs on a windowsill or a wall outside. Some herbs can grow like wildfire so look after them and share with friends and neighbours.
10. Make your own of something you can’t get without plastic
There are some food products we love that we think we can only get in plastic. Think again and see what you could very easily make yourself: hummous is incredibly easy, for instance!
11. Recycle soft plastic waste
There’s some soft plastic (bags for food, wrapping and packets) that we just can’t avoid. Even if your kerbside recycling won’t take it, some of your local supermarkets will. We collect soft plastic waste in the SMH office and take it to the Co-Op on Cambridge Heath Road, for instance.
12. Don’t buy online
It’s really hard to avoid wasteful plastic packaging with lots of things you buy online. Take a stand against companies who haven’t made the switch to paper packaging and support your local high street in the process. Hint: Nothing in Ayoka comes in a plastic packet! And given that it’s second hand, it’s even better.
13. Choose paper packaging
We all need some quick and easy things in the fridge and freezer at times when life is busy. Try to buy things in card and tin foil packaging as these are the easiest materials to recycle.
14. Good old fashioned
Return to simple basics. Lots of our team have switched to bars of soap and pats of butter, for instance.
15. Make a natural alternative
One member of our team makes their own deodorant and lip balms – and has got other team members hooked too. There are some very simple recipes online. Could you make one product yourself to stop you having to buy it in plastic tubs?
16. Compostable rather than plastic products
If you need a new item, can you do a little research to try to find a compostable alternative? For instance, we love Pela compostable phone cases.
17. Beauty products in glass jars. Refill options
If you buy beauty products, can you switch to things in glass jars? Glass is much easier to recycle.
18. Blister pack recycling
It can be hard to ditch the plastic of blisterpacks (the things tablets come in). Did you know that any Superdrug that has a pharmacy counter will take your used blisterpacks and recycle them for you?
19. Tins of things
Try to switch to tinned food if there’s an option over a plastic tub or bag of something. One of our team has switched to tinned chopped spinach for curries, for instance, over the frozen bags.
20. Old fashioned razor
Some other old-fashioned items are coming back – can you make the switch to a safety razor from the disposable plastic ones? Bamboo toothbrush? There are a few options available – seek them out!
21. Flannels rather than wipes
How about switching back to flannels and cloths from disposable wipes. Whether it’s for cleaning or your body, it’s a much better option.
22. Paper tape
There are loads of paper tape options now available to switch out plastic cellotape.
23. Colouring pencils
One of our team has resorted back to colouring pencils rather than lots of highlighters and biros. But if you can’t give up the pens, remember that Rymans will take your used pens and recycle those for you.
24. Sewing some fabric bags
If you’ve got some old scraps of fabric at home, you could sew some simple bags to use for when you’re doing the shopping and need bags for loose fruit or veg. Pop along to our Repair Cafe in September and we can show you how if you don’t know.
25. Chocolate in paper and foil
Sweet treats are difficult to resist. Luckily, there are lots of chocolate bars that you can buy in paper and foil now. Choose those options when you can.
26. Washing up tools
Washing up sponges are terrible shedders of microplastics that end up in our water system. Could you switch to a compostable alternative to make a difference?
27. Reusable stuff for parties and picnics
If you need some disposable plates and cutlery for a party or a picnic, consider buying a slightly more expensive selection that you can reuse for many years – it will save you money in the long-run. You might have noticed that at all SMH evening events now we never serve you a drink in a disposable cup and instead we have reusable plastic cups.
28. Reusing giftwrap
How about also collecting up wrapping paper after someone has opened a present and keeping a collection for the next time you’re wrapping? One member of our team also collects all the bits of ribbon in clothes and uses those to tie up parcels when giving gifts.
29. Package Free Birthday Greetings
And if you’ve buying birthday cards, there are loads you can get now that don’t come with a plastic film on them – choose those whenever you can.
30. Make some jam or chutney
Have you got a recipe somewhere from your grandparent for a jam or chutney? Have a go at making some at some point. It’ll save you some money, will probably taste amazing and something homemade is a perfect gift. We’re going to do our best to make some mulberry jam soon from the mulberries in the SMH garden. Watch this space.
31. Save napkins and take your unused one home
Most cafes or restaurants will normally give you a napkin with your food. If you don’t make use of it, remember, it’s going in the bin at the cafe, so why don’t you just pop it in your pocket and put it in a tin at home to use instead of buying kitchen roll. One team member has been doing this for years!
We hope you’ve enjoyed having a think about how you could add at least a handful of these changes to how you do things. We’d love to know how you get on if you start on any of these plasticfree swaps!