Abstract or Keywords
Single-use plastics are a well-documented source of plastic debris and consequently a marine debris prevention policy priority. From August 2018 through May 2020, the Reduce Single-Use Project at Eckerd College (RSU) set out to raise the campus awareness of plastic marine debris, with the goal of reducing the community's single-use plastic consumption. To accomplish this, RSU facilitated a series of education and outreach events incentivizing vohmtary plastic reduction, including academic courses, community workshops, and coastal cleanups. Knowledge gains by the community were quantified through campus-wide surveys. Reduction of single-use plastic consumption was encouraged by providing reusable alternatives, inviting the community to participate in plastic reduction challenges, and ultimately working with the College administration to implement a campus-wide Break Free From Plastic Pledge barring the use of campus funds to purchase unnecessary single-use plastics. Behavioral changes were quantified via self-reported survey responses and observations of heavy plastic consumption areas on campus. Through this research, institutional policy changes that resulted in the direct removal of single-use plastics from campus locations (i.e., vendors offering wooden cutlery instead of plastic in the dining hall; swapping out plastic bags for paper at the campus bookstore) were i'ound to be the most effective method for reducing the consumption of single-use plastics. These policy changes were embraced by vendors and the College administration due to a demand for change from the campus community. Thus, individual behavior change fueled institutional policy change, which perpetuated further single-use plastic reduction.