Lexy determinedly pledged Fantastic unplastic while her friend Nick peddled his way across Australia.  Read on to find out how her pledge helped her overcome her shyness, meet the milkman and change her habits for good…

A bit about you:

Name: Lexy Long

Occupation: Student Speech and Language Therapist        

Lives: London, UK

Interesting fact: At the time of doing the pledge, I was a Community-based Support Worker, living in Bristol, UK.  Bristol is quite a bit better than London.

A bit about your pledge:

How did you first found out about Do Nation?

I’d never head of it until my friend Nick asked me to pledge.  He was cycling across Australia, which as you know is quite a long way, so I didn’t really feel I could say no.

What was your initial reaction to being asked to pledge?

Honestly, I was delighted to be able to ‘sponsor’ someone without having to give away any money.  I find money is generally in pretty short supply when you’re working in social care.  It’s even worse now that I’m a student; whenever anyone does something sponsored I think ‘couldn’t you do it with Do Nation instead?’.

What pledge did you choose? How did you tackle the task?

I pledged to reduce my plastic packaging by half with Fantastic unplastic.  My first step was to get a milkman, which actually I carried on after the pledge was over because it’s just so lovely for milk to arrive on your doorstep in the morning.  And it’s in a nice glass bottle which he very helpfully takes away when it’s empty.

Beyond that, I switched to big pots of yoghurt and putting some in a clicklock box for my lunch, and making my own hummus.  I was forced (very much against my will) to get lovely bath products from Lush, as they were wrapped in paper.  And I overcame my shyness and asked people in cafes to fill up my water bottle when it ran out, rather than buying a new one.  They were all very kind about it.

Highlight!

I got a nice little email telling me how much carbon I’d saved.  You do have to own up to how well you have or haven’t done, but it’s nice and non-judgemental.  It was easier than I’d anticipated, and some things, like the tapwater, I’m still doing now.

Lowlight…

I didn’t do quite as well as I’d hoped to, if I’m honest.  I’d planned to get my washing up liquid refilled and buy rice and that in paper bags, you know where you weigh it out from a massive tub?  But then I just didn’t quite organise myself well enough.

Did you continue with your pledge after the two months?

Not completely.  I did carry on with the milkman until I moved, but I haven’t set up a new one.  I think I will again when I’m not a student anymore.  I still don’t buy bottled drinks or small yoghurts.

What impact has Do Nation had on you?

This is going to sound corny, but the biggest impact has come from seeing that, if I change my habits, less carbon is released.  I think it’s easy to feel pretty grim about the way the world is heading, really.  It’s nice to know I’ve done a measurable thing to slightly improve matters.

An amazing job by Lexy to tackle her pledge in creative and positive ways! If you’re thinking about pledging Fantastic unplastic, check out its Do Action page to find out the impact of Lexy’s actions.