- Excessive plastic usage is so harmful to our environment that we need to take initiative now!
- Since Qatar Foundation is responsible for teaching the youth, it is important for them to raise awareness of the issue.
- Torba Framers Market is one of many initiatives that Qatar Foundation has to help promote sustainability and less plastic waste.
- Individuals are also responsible in being mindful of their plastic consumption and to look for alternatives to decrease their plastic usage.
As we all know, excessive plastic consumption is a big deal! With increase in population, our demand for plastic has increased tremendously. We all know why we need it, it is cheap, versatile and resourceful. How do we know when it is necessary to look for alternatives?
We know the dangers in the future, we know the extent of damage of our actions but barely anyone is taking initiative. Marine life is drowning in plastic waste and the least we could do is attempt to care.
This is how Qatar Foundation comes into the picture. We’ve all probably seen the trash cans scattered around Education City that cater to different items of trash. Almost all of the universities on campus have them, dividing the garbage into metal, paper, glass, general and most importantly, plastic. This initiative helps students, faculty and staff to sort out their garbage and this also plays a big role in Qatar’s National Vision 2030. The development plan aims to transform Qatar into an advanced society capable of achieving sustainable development. One goal of this plan is to achieve an environmentally aware population.
“It is so important for the younger generation to care about what they are doing before it is too late,” said Juhaina Al-Lanjawi, a youth ambassador in the Arab Youth Climate Movement in Qatar. “I think it is Qatar Foundation’s duty as a school to teach the students about how important plastic waste is and what we can do to minimize it as much as possible,” said Al-Lanjawi.
Qatar Foundation hosts a market every Saturday from November to April called Torba Farmers Market. Here, their aim is to promote healthy living and sustainability. Vendors sell local produce, cold-pressed juices and “everything-free” food like dairy-free, gluten-free and nut-free. All these promotional efforts come in short; however, if they sell their product with plastic, right? It would be ironic to encourage healthy living and a happy life if you are intentionally making no efforts to help mother nature. I spoke to one of the food vendor’s owners and she gave me some insight about the application process, “they ask you questions about the degree in which packaging is environmentally friendly? Or they have you explain how you will serve your product to reduce all waste including plastic,” said Fatima Ibrahim, owner of 3nb Leaves.
“I have noticed that most of the items sold contain little to no plastic packaging,” said Noof Al-Naama, a regular customer at Torba. Even though some plastic is still used, their attempts to limit it as much as they could still help people be mindful and shows that we could still go on with our day to day lives while using as little plastic as we could, said Al-Naama. Even after Torba’s efforts to cut down on unnecessary plastic usage, some slip ups still happen like serving plastic straws with iced coffee. If it is so easy to switch from a plastic cup to a paper one, switching to paper straws should not be that big of an issue as well. Considering most restaurants at Qatar Foundation ban the use of plastic straws, Torba should not be the exception. “I was kind of surprised by the straw because when most people think of the easiest utensil to switch to, it would be a straw,” said Al-Naama.
As a student, you can take matters into your own hands because every little change is still change, even the baby steps matter. Anto Mohsin, a professor at Northwestern University in Qatar has taught in some of his classes about the issue of plastic. He said that some of his students have comprehended the seriousness of plastic waste and have switched their regular water bottles to reusable ones. Another initiative includes using reusable plastic bags and food containers. Even though they are still plastic, they are more durable and will last longer, said professor Mohsin.
We know the extent that plastic plays in the current situation of our environment. What we can do as a society is to be mindful of our waste and try and do our best to be as resourceful as possible because if that does not work, we do not have a planet B.
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