How to Change the World for Just $9 per Day
Plastic Free July is winding its way down, but if you’ve been on social media at all this month, you’ve probably heard buzz around the topic of reducing consumption, minimizing plastic waste, and being a conscious consumer during July and beyond. As important as reducing waste is, we’ve got an idea to make your #PlasticFreeJuly even more impactful with the money you’ll save through creating more eco-friendly habits all year long.
Hear us out. Eliminating even one to-go meal per day, or your coffee on your morning commute (if it’s packaged in a single use plastic container, like most are these days) saves you around $5-$15 per day. Forgoing that same oat milk vanilla latte on your way to work or pre-packaged salad on your lunch break has a much larger impact than you might expect.
Let us break it down for you:
$9.67 x 31 = $300.
That’s no small sum when added together monthly. There’s a lot you can do with that extra money, but we’ve got an idea that requires minimal planning, a little bit of sacrifice, and a lifetime of reward in the long run.
That nearly two hundred and fifty dollars each month goes a long way, especially when it comes to girls’ education. At Kurandza, our mission is to make changing the world accessible to everyday girls through the power of education. We partner with schools in Mozambique AND sponsors all over the world to send more than 200 girls to school every year. Although the work we do is much deeper than just “going to school”, we love partnering with passionate people across the world to make a difference in girls’ lives, and ultimately, change the world through education. Our programs enable students to travel safely to and from school (one of the most common reasons children don’t go to school regularly), stay in school, and thrive. They receive access to mentorship and literacy programs, health and nutrition coaching and other initiatives that empower them to live life as healthy young women choosing the paths for their own lives.
You see, when a girl has access to a consistent, high quality education, she is much more likely to secure a safe, fulfilling, and impactful job as an adult. She is much less likely to become pregnant before she is ready or become a child bride. She is much more likely to find her passion in life, have higher self-worth, and be able to provide for herself beyond simply making ends meet. Access to education, simply put, creates happier, healthier lives.
Back to where YOU come in. We may be nearly half way through the viral #PlasticFreeJuly movement, but whether you’re joining in or not, we hope you consider jumping in now (with a bit of a twist). For less than the cost of a lunch at your favorite cafe, one of our students will secure an education that lasts a lifetime. If that’s not worth investing in this Plastic Free July, - we don’t know what is.
Whether you’ve been working to minimize waste in your own life for years or this is a new adventure for you, here are a few easy things to let go of to minimize single use waste, save extra money, and invest into other things that matter all year long:
Bottled water (keep your own water bottle in your purse or backpack)
Coffee at cafes or shops (make your own at home! A french press is a very affordable investment)
Store-bought baked goods or prepackaged snacks (get crafty and bake your own at home. Pinterest is a wonderland of resources for this)
Soup stocks and broths (you can make your own from kitchen scraps)
Plastic grocery bag fees (bring reusable totes)
Paper towels (use tea towels or washable rags as your napkins and to clean up messes)
Snacks at the airport (make time to pack your own)
Flower vase (it’s fun and cute to reuse bottles and jars)
Gym membership (now more than ever, it feels good to exercise outdoors)
Auto-renewing a subscription that you don’t actually use
Expedited shipping if you don’t actually need the item in two to three days
Anything on sale that you wouldn’t look twice at if it were full price
Late fees (autopay works wonders)
Kids’ clothes (do an exchange with friends!)
For the rest of July, and throughout August, join us in implementing these tips to save $9.67/day. We can’t wait to show you how much of an impact that $9 each day will make.
Click here to pledge to participate in Plastic Free July with Kurandza, saving $9 per day to sponsor a girl when September arrives. Lastly, click here to learn more about our yearly initiative #IStandForGirls and get ready to join us for a month of advocating, fundraising, and empowerment.