​Dear Florida International University administration,

As faculty, staff, alumni and student organization leaders concerned about the amount of plastic pollution in our environment, we urge you to move away from unnecessary single-use plastic items on our campus. We live in an economy that encourages us to use, produce, and toss at the greatest speed. Often, we don’t think twice about our coffee to-go cup or groceries in a plastic bag. Because when we’re done with that coffee cup or plastic bag, we throw it away. But there is no “away.” All of this waste clogs our landfills, trashes our parks, and litters our streets, but it also washes into our rivers and oceans, where it can harm wildlife. For Floridians, it isn’t uncommon to witness plastic trash washing up on the shore or plastic bags flying around like tumbleweed. We can change this.

By pledging to Break Free from Plastic, we can play an important role in the statewide effort to reduce our dependence on single-use plastics.