Take a mug to work – don’t use plastic
Take a mug to work (as part of avoiding using disposable items whenever possible). And if you’re feeling particularly generous take another mug in for a colleague.

Often, because it is more ‘convenient’, our work settings invite us to use plastic cups. But resist this convenience and embrace the environment.

The UK produces 420 million tonnes of waste every year – enough to fill the Albert Hall in London every hour. Most of our household rubbish is disposed of in landfill sites, but this is set to change – new EU laws mean that if we don’t drastically reduce the amount we produce or recycle much more, we may need dozens of new incinerators.

Some might say that you’ve got to wash up a mug which involves heating water and so on – in other words, you might as well use throwaway cups which don’t need washing. But we say that as long as washing up is done, say, once a day when there’s a bowlfull to do – or the dishwasher is put on once a day when it’s chocca – you’re actually not using that much hot water to achieve a great deal.

If you already do this action in a work setting, encourage others to do the same and have a think about what your church does, too.

FLickr photo source