A few weeks ago I wrote about a potential crowdsourced project that would help flag the culprits who are guilty of littering at red lights. Last week I pleaded for the necessity of taking a radical approach to litter. These blog posts go hand in hand: if we want to have any hope of reducing the waste that litters our communities, we must look to try new things. Not all of them will work, but without a willingness to break out of our current rut, I can’t see how the status quo will change.
On that note, here’s another litter experiment I would love to see trialled: thanking people for using a bin before they need one. Imagine a fast food place where, at purchase, the customer is told “Thank you for binning your rubbish”. Or “There’s now a £150 fine for littering; please make sure you dispose of your rubbish in a bin.” Even an eye-catching poster on the door or a sign by a drive-through could be worth trying … anything that notes the proper behaviour and associates it with the potential litter-to-be.
Many people sleepwalk through life, going from one habit to another without a second thought. Could actually calling their attention to what should be done wake them up?
