International Activities
[COOP Dialogue 3] A Movement to Reduce Plastic Straws by Students at Chiba University Co-op
In November 2021, the International Co-operative Alliance Asia and Pacific (ICA-AP) reintroduced COOP Dialogue as a biannual publication aimed at initiating discussions on matters pertinent to co-operatives in the region. The Asia-Pacific region boasts a wealth of diverse cooperative experiences, and ICA-AP’s objective is to amalgamate these narratives within COOP Dialogue to foster sharing, information exchange, and mutual learning. Every edition of this publication, centered on a specific theme, offers various viewpoints, fostering an engaging dialogue.
In COOP Dialogue 3, NFUCA Student Committee submitted an article titled “A Movement to Reduce Plastic Straws by Students at Chiba University Coop, Japan.”
As reported by the Japan’s Plastic Waste Management Institute, Japan used 9.63 million tons of plastic in 2020, of which 8.22 million tons went to waste. Meanwhile, a report by the Ocean Conservancy (2018), a nonprofit environmental advocacy group, found that plastic straws and stirrers account for about 5.96% of the top-ten items collected in coastal zones during an initiative called “International Coastal Cleanup.” As oceans cover 70 percent of the Earth's surface and we rely on them for food, energy and water, protecting the oceans is a vital task.
In order to contribute to the SDGs Goal 14: Life Below Water, Chiba University Student Committee for Environmental Management System and Chiba University Co-operative launched a campaign to reduce plastic straws in co-op stores, aimed at raising environmental awareness among students and faculty.
Read the full article here.