Ask Your Elders

Project image card - click to select this 3 hour project. Image shows a man and grandmother bake together.

3 Hours

Photo credit: Los Muertos Crew on Pexels.

Your mission

Learn about how your elders maximized their resources before the deluge of “disposables”.

Time Commitment: 3 Hours

Range of Impact: Home

Why this Action is impactful

We can learn a lot from our grandparents, elders and those who still remember a time before “disposable” was a common word.

What to know before getting started

Single-use plastics only became available and popular in the 1960-1970s – just 60 years ago! Many of our elders today still remember a time during their youth before the onset of the “Plastic Age.”

What to do

Have a conversation with someone from an older generation to find out what they remember about how they lived with less plastic. Record your conversation (with permission) or take notes.
Identify one thing they did that avoided or reduced their use of plastic, that you don’t already do.
Try doing it yourself!

Tips and suggestions

Show your respect and curiosity to help build a connection during your conversation.
Ask your interviewee for permission before sharing their name in your responses.
Ideas for questions to ask:

- How often did you buy clothes, did you learn how to mend things?
- Did you ever go on a picnick, go camping or on a road trip? What did you take with, and how did you pack food?
- How did you store leftovers at home?
- How did packaging at the store look different from now?
- How did you reuse things at home?
- What was it like to go out to eat when you were young?

Track your contribution

To submit your work and get recognized for your contribution to the movement, complete the form below. If we approve your submission, you’ll be awarded 3 Action Hours.

We’re embracing AI and want to provide you with guidance on our expectations for how it fits with this Action.

AI Stoplight: Red (AI not allowed) This Action is meant to encourage you to speak with a living person about their past. It can take courage to speak with someone, but we think you might really enjoy the connection it brings!