This blog post was written by Arianna Lawrence, a 2024 EarthEcho Marine Plastics Ambassador.

Growing up in a pollution-burdened community in NYC, plastic waste inescapable– in the streets, my parks, and even my school. Every lunch period, I noticed thousands of plastic utensils piled high in garbage cans. Partnering with schools across the city, NYC Plastic Free Schools hosts workshops, bringing students reusable plant-based utensil sets to promote sustainability. We offer free resources targeted at educators and student leaders on the harms of plastic pollution that can be incorporated in class curriculum or utilized for extracurricular clubs. We’re working diligently to advocate for replacing single-use plastic utensils with biodegradable and/or reusable options in all NYC schools. To this end, we are committed to leveraging legislation and community partnerships to create state and nationwide change. This also includes connecting schools to plastic-free suppliers and identifying opportunities to make individual school policies more sustainable. Key to this project is empowering students with the knowledge and resources they need to make more sustainable choices.

I started my project by reflecting on my own experience as a former NYC Public Schools student and free lunch recipient. I then performed extensive research on current school policy regarding plastics, reaching out to administrators, educators, and students for additional information and to hear their personal experiences.

As a part of my project, I launched the Plastic Free School Lunches campaign by creating a website. I designed informational infographics and posters, and developed an educational curriculum for Pre K–5th grade, all of which are available to view on the website. In January, I presented a workshop on reducing plastics in schools to two classes of over 300 8th-grade students at a local middle school in Brooklyn, New York. Students learned how they could reduce their plastic footprint both at school and at home. I then hosted an outreach tabling event, reaching an additional 700 students and giving out 300 biodegradable utensils during their lunch periods. During this tabling event, I hosted a marine-based trivia game.

I collaborated with local schools and educators, particularly Mr. William Schell at IS 318 Academy of the Arts and Sciences. I shared resources with the organization Cafeteria Culture and the World Wildlife Foundation.

Project Impact:

• 300 students attended marine plastics reduction workshop
  600-700 students engaged during tabling session
• Prevented 300 plastic utensils from being used and discarded
• Empowered 500+ students with reusable utensils
• Overtime, can reduce countless tons of plastic 
• Exposed 53 people to our resources via our website

Despite the changes and challenges I’ve navigated since starting my project in March 2025, it has remained rooted in mobilizing youth to reduce marine plastics pollution. Initially, I planned to target bigger schools and an older age range, primarily high schoolers. However, it was challenging to coordinate logistics with the very regimented schedules of large high schools. Unexpectedly, this was a positive– younger students were very engaged, and working with a younger audience meant that promoting behavioral changes would be more impactful in the long run. I consider this project and the ambassadorship to be one of the most pivotal leadership experiences I’ve had. More than anything, I’ve learned the value of simply showing up. Local action is critical to creating the change we want to see in our communities, and showing up is the first step. Seeing my seemingly small idea transform into a full-blown campaign that has impacted hundreds of students has been beyond rewarding. Being a Marine Plastics Ambassador has bolstered my confidence in starting and executing community-based projects.

Interested individuals can find more information and track our progress by visiting https://plasticfreenycschools.wordpress.com/.

In the future, I plan to scale up the work of my project. Our local partner has requested me to return next year to give another workshop, and I intend to reach out to other schools as well. In the coming months, I plan to relaunch the campaign. I will start a newsletter to expand my project’s reach and maintain engagement. I will also design new flyers, handouts, and posters. Finally, I will write a policy proposal targeting plastics reduction. I will organize meetings with stakeholders to present the proposal. As my project grows, I hope to author an article about the harms of plastics in schools.

‍