Plastic-Free July

Welcome to Plastic Free July! Although we’re slightly late to the party, we’re really excited to be participating for another year in this amazing global initiative. Started in 2011 by Plastic Free Foundation, Plastic Free July is an annual campaign challenging individuals, organisations, schools and businesses to reduce their single-use plastic consumption. They provide resources and tools to help you throughout the month, with over 100 million participants across more than 190 countries. Global efforts through the initiative have managed to save an estimated 10 billion kgs of household waste! 

We’re still on a high from the 5 Day Challenge, and the success of our World Refill Day campaign and it’s encouraging to know many of you are too; 80% of participants who filled in our feedback survey said they’re continuing their reuse behaviours beyond the challenge. That is huge, and drives home the importance of collective action as well as support. We’ll be sharing more on the campaign’s impact in its very own blog coming soon so stay tuned. 

In the meantime, we can’t think of a better way to keep the momentum of the 5 Day Challenge going than to take part in Plastic Free July! There are many ways you can do this – firstly by pledging to the challenge via their website.

Secondly, by checking out the 5 small steps we recommend that can make a big difference this month, even from the comfort of your home this summer. Keep reading for more. 

This year, we’ve teamed up with Resource Media to launch a brand new Resource Hot 100 award: Refill Return Pioneer of the Year! 

This award celebrates the people powering the transition to the new reuse economy. They might be on the ground running reusable systems in your neighbourhoods, bringing products to market in refillable or returnable packaging, designing a policy framework that truly shifts focus up the waste hierarchy or enabling reuse through technology and infrastructure innovation. 

Vote in three simple steps: 

1. Nominate someone new or choose from the list of existing/previous nominees.
2. Make sure you tell us in the free text box why your nominee is a Refill Return Pioneer. 
3. Share your nominee on socials to gather more votes for them.  

Don’t forget to tag us on Instagram, Facebook or LinkedIn so we can support! Nominations close 30th July with winners announced in September. Scan the QR code in the image header or head to their website below to cast your vote.

Whether you’re at home, commuting or on holiday this summer, the Refill Return app can be your pocket guide to reuse. 

Here’s how to use it: 

• Find a refill return station near you – from coffee shops to lunch spots and water refill points. 
• Use the station to use, borrow, or return reusable packaging. 
• Add new stations you discover to help grow the network.

City to Sea’s Annual Polling Results found that lack of available options has been consistently the main reason preventing the public from reducing their use of single-use plastics, often because they don’t know where to find them. 

By using and adding to the app, you’re not just reducing your plastic waste, you’re making reuse and refill easier for your community too. 

Download the app and – if you love a place with reuse options – add it to the app, leave a review, and shout us out on socials: @RefillHQ!