Lexi Dupont Is Challenging You to Stop Buying Single-Use Plastics

According to Earth Day’s website, plastic production worldwide in 2016 totaled around 335 million metric tons. Worse yet, it is estimated that half of plastic production each year is made for a single-use product, such as a plastic bag, cup, or straw.

Little actions can go a long way, and big mountain skier Lexi Dupont is making that crystal clear with her #NoThrowAway challenge. From June 21st to September 22nd, Dupont is encouraging all her friends and fans to stop using single-use plastics.

As an outdoor athlete - and member of Protect Our Winters - Dupont is extremely passionate about environmental protection, so we got on the phone with her to find out why this campaign matters, and why it matters now:

TGR: SO THIS WAS ALL YOUR IDEA, PRETTY MUCH. AND YOU DECIDED TO TAKE IT TO HYDROFLASK, ONE OF YOUR SPONSORS TO GET THEM ON BOARD WITH IT. WHAT IS IT, EXACTLY, THAT YOU'RE HOPING TO DO WITH THIS CHALLENGE?

Lexi Dupont: I’m trying to create a type of community through the hashtag #NoThrowAway to get people actively thinking about our plastic consumption, especially in these summer months when everyone is sipping on iced drinks and drinking out of more solo cups. But ultimately, it’s about creating a much bigger community around this pressing issue. I’d like to see this no plastics campaign go further and eventually become part of people’s lifestyles, including my own.

TGR: HOW IS YOUR OWN #NOTHROWAWAY CHALLENGE COMING ALONG? WHAT HAVE BEEN SOME OF THE DIFFICULTIES YOU'VE FACED SO FAR?

Dupont: I’m going to need to make greater sacrifices than just choosing to use reusable cups, but I’m still starting with the day-to-day differences, like telling my server or the barista to not give me a plastic straw. I find a huge bit of moral conflict being an airplane pilot and owning both a snowmobile and a truck, but what is attainable are the day-to-day changes that no one notices on a large scale but have a huge impact.

It has also been incredibly challenging while traveling, especially in places where there is poor water filtration. When I was in Mexico a few weeks ago, there weren’t many water filling stations, so I had to purchase a lot of drinks in glass bottles and then sort them at the airport recycling.

But coming back to the States, it’s quite easy to not drink out of plastic water bottles. So you can imagine my judgement when I see a well-educated American walking into a yoga studio with a plastic water bottle instead of a reusable one. Being here where there is ample access to plastics, I don’t think people have had to think about it as much.

TGR: CAN YOU EXPLAIN HOW YOU CAME UP WITH THIS IDEA?

Dupont: Basically this idea came to be when my partner in Revelstoke noticed how many people come into a restaurant or coffee shop and order stuff in a to-go cup, yet they sit there and drink the entire thing then throw it out before they leave, rather than just using a glass that the restaurant owns. It’s not really realistic to do a full non-plastic campaign since we are so reliant on plastics, but we made it more attainable by doing a campaign against plastic drinking cups--of all sorts--straws, and other single-use plastics.

TGR: HOW HAS THE COMMUNITY OF YOUR FANS AND YOUR PEERS BEEN RESPONDING?

I’ve had some really incredible conversations with people. People have been reaching out saying that they’ve been doing really well bringing their own cup with them everywhere they go, some have said they’ve been living this way for years, and others reach out with the challenges they’ve been facing. People are at all ends of the spectrum, and it’s great that people are just talking about it. Just being able to talk about it is a step in the right direction. I’ve always read that it takes the human brain seven times to make the same mistake before it becomes a good habit, so the key is for people to keep trying.

TGR: WHY DO YOU THINK THIS IS SO PERTINENT TO THE OUTDOOR COMMUNITY, ESPECIALLY?

Dupont: I think of the outdoor community as being more in touch with nature than other parts of the world. We’re the ones who are seeing these seasons of lower snowpack, the drastic pendulum swings in the temperatures, and all the global “weirding.” We need to be aware and connected, and speak up about our experiences, because the majority of the world lives their lives in taxis, trains, and in concrete jungles: they are closed off to what is happening. It is our responsibility to be stewards for the environment and the voice for speaking for the planet. As a mountain athlete, climate change affects more than just the industry I work in and my job. It affects my entire wellbeing and lifestyle, so I--along with thousands of other members of the outdoor community--need to worship it.

But by the same token, living in a city is not an excuse to ignore the drastically changing climate. Even if you’re in a city, you’re seeing earthquakes, hurricanes, forest fires, and so much more. If not in your backyard, it’s all over the news. So if you are carrying on with your life and turning a blind eye, you are so naive.

The biggest thing is, as a skier, of course I want to continue to inspire people to get out there and enjoy the sport through different networks. But there are bigger issues to inspire people to think about, and those bigger things are what I’m trying to draw attention to with this #NoThrowAway campaign.

TGR: WHY DOES THIS MATTER SO MUCH NOW?

Dupont: Living so much of my life in the mountains, I only get to visit the ocean a few times a year. And I’m always shocked whenever I walk the beach, because I can’t go a single step without seeing microplastics littering the shore. And every time I see the water, it calls for more action: it’s warmer, it’s dirtier, and it needs more help now than ever.

When I was in middle school, teachers would tell us these forecasts about how big climate change impacts may happen in our lifetime, but not even 10-15 years later we’re noticing it happening much faster than we predicted. We really are the first generation to witness climate change so immensely, and we’re the last generation to be able to do something about it. I would hate for my kids someday to ask me, “Mom, why didn’t you do anything about this?”

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stash member Greta Brown