“You cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you. What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.”
-Jane goodall
Programs
Services
sustainability consulting services
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Bilingual business outreach
We provide bilingual outreach to Latinx owned, managed and staffed businesses to help them transition to more sustainable foodware options and operations, such as composting. New policies regulating single use plastics, edible food recovery and composting are taking effect throughout the nation at local, county, and state levels. Navigating these often complicated policies—and how to maintain compliance—can be extremely confusing, particularly when information is only available in English, or poorly translated. Misunderstanding new policies can lead to costly mistakes. That is why we work WITH businesses to co-develop solutions that are both cost effective and environmentally friendly. We believe in the inclusivity of sustainable solutions, that are often inaccessible to underserved communities.
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Bilingual door to door and residential outreach
We provide door-to-door and residential outreach to Latinx communities to help them understand and comply with existing and new ordinances related to sustainability. Contamination of recycling and composting waste streams can undermine efforts to reduce landfill waste. Product labeling only adds to the confusion, with recycling “arrows” on all plastics, including non-recyclable bags and films, and bio-plastics labeled “compostable” although they are usually not accepted (or desired) in compost bins. Focusing on Latinx communities, we work with residents, property owners and managers to dispel recycling and composting myths, aiming to reduce contamination of waste streams and helping to avoid the expensive penalties and fees from non-compliance.
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Community outreach and events
We offer support with tabling events and Spanish language channels and breakout rooms for virtual community education and outreach related to sustainability. We recognize that language barriers often limit participation of non-English speaking stakeholders who can benefit from community programs, activities and education about important issues. Moreover, sustainability efforts have much to gain by including Latinx voices, experiences and innovations in the conversation. We aim to amplify Latinx voices and increase their participation in the sustainability movement by offering dynamic, culturally meaningful facilitation by Spanish speaking sustainability experts.
why intersectional environmentalism?
All too often, Latinx and other underserved communities are excluded from sustainability conversations and lack access to the education, outreach, and programs enjoyed by their more affluent neighbors. A major focus of Plastic Free Future is bridging the wide Social Equity and Inclusion gap between Latinx communities and the sustainability movement.
We understand true equity and inclusion extends far beyond simple translation of information into different languages. To be truly equitable and inclusive, sustainability efforts must offer Latinx and other underrepresented communities a seat at the table early on, involving their participation from the start. Moving beyond translation, including underrepresented communities means presenting concepts in ways that are adapted to the cultural context of the community, with special consideration and attention to the specific strengths and challenges those communities commonly face. Equity must extend beyond listening to the voices of underrepresented communities, but should also include amplifying those voices. Not only so their specific needs and concerns are met, but so their innovative ideas and knowledge are included in the mainstream conversations. Latinx communities have so much to offer to the sustainability movement. We must continue to include and proudly celebrate the rich cultural heritage and traditional knowledge of our people.
We provide bilingual business outreach to Latinx owned businesses to help them transition to more sustainable foodware options, and offer Spanish language channels and breakout rooms for community education and outreach events related to sustainability.
REUSE INCENTIVE PROGRAMS
EAST PALO ALTO - PACIFICA - HALF MOON BAY
How it works:
Stop by one of our three Farmer’s Markets:
East Palo Alto Wednesday from 10am-12pm
Pacifica Wednesday from 3pm-5pm
Half Moon Bay - Saturday from 9am to 11am
Sign up to our program to learn how to reduce your plastic footprint. You’ll also get a beautiful reusable bag.
Stop by our table every week to receive a point every time you remember to bring your reusable bags to the market
After you collect 5 and 10 points you’ll receive cool reusable prizes (reusable jars, reusable straws, reusable utensils, reusable snack bags and more) to help you reduce your plastic footprint.
Your weekly effort will not only help the planet but it will also help us keep our communities cleaner and healthier
We have reusable bags from 6x6” to 14x16”. With so much variety on sizes and styles, our reusable bags are ideal for:
Grocery shopping
Packing snacks
Packing sandwiches
Using as produce bags
Replacing plastic lunch sacks
Buying bulk foods (rice, lentils, oats, coffee, etc)
Packing gifts
Using as bread bags
Anything else that requires a pesky plastic bag
Testimonials
Reusables at community events:
“It was incredible to see the difference this collaboration made right away. By replacing the compostable/ paper plates with reusable ones, we were able to host a truly zero-waste event. I think the visibility of the impact at events of this scale is inspiring and we heard a lot of feedback from the community that they would like to always have it!”
Liana Salikhova
Eastside Grown Manager, Veggilution
Bilingual workshops and events:
“For our first Spanish-language outreach project, Save The Bay needed translation and facilitation services that were both culturally competent and well versed in technical knowledge about the environmental field. We’re so grateful to Plastic Free Future for delivering that and so much more! They were able to connect with our workshop participants in an authentic way, helping us gather the information we needed while advocating for community needs. Plastic Free Future has gone above and beyond to help us build continued engagement with the South Bay Latinx community. We look forward to working with them on many more projects. Thanks, Plastic Free Future!
Sangeeta Sarkar
Political and Community Organizer, Save The Bay
Make a donation.
Your donations will help us promote reusable alternatives to single use plastic, expand our bilingual programs and bring environmental education to underserved communities in the San Francisco Bay Area.
THANK YOU!
Plastic Free Future is a registered 501(c)3 nonprofit organization.
Tax ID: 86-1649148