Sometimes the best way to start a conversation around zero waste living, or low waste living, is to pull out a well-timed quote. Inspirational quotes about plastic pollution are a surefire way to spark change and want to do better for the world in which we live.
So, to make it easier for you to quickly grab motivational quotes when you need them, I’ve compiled this list of my favorites that I’ve been gathering over the years. Let’s go!
P.S. If you’re looking for hard-hitting facts about pollution instead, check this article.
Every Individual Matters. Every Individual has a role to Play. Every Individual makes a difference. – Jane Goodall
So, we can’t save the world by playing by the rules, because the rules have to be changed. Everything needs to change and it has to start today. – Greta Thunberg
Cherish the natural world, because you’re a part of it and you depend on it. – David Attenborough
If a man doesn’t learn to treat the oceans and the rain forest with respect, man will become extinct. – Peter Benchley
Plastic is a most destructive weapon than a nuclear bomb or an atom bomb, its impact shall remain for centuries on the future generation. – Sir P.S. Jagadeesh Kumar
Ethical fashion is the recognition that there are human beings behind the clothes that we wear – Elizabeth Joy
Waste is a design flaw. – Kate Kreba
The greatest threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will save it.— Robert Swan
We are the first generation to feel the impact of climate change and the last generation that can do something about it.— Barack Obama
What humans do over the next 50 years will determine the fate of all life on the planet. – David Attenborough.
There is no such thing as ‘away’. When we throw anything away, it must go somewhere. – Annie Leonard
The Earth is a fine place and worth fighting for. – Ernest Hemingway
Only we humans make waste that nature can’t digest. – Charles Moore
You cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you. What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make. – Jane Goodall
We don’t need a handful of people doing zero waste perfectly. We need millions of people doing it imperfectly. – Anne Marie Bonneau
Plastic pollution free world is not a choice but a commitment to life – a commitment to the next generation. – Amit Ray
The most environmentally friendly product is the one you didn’t buy. – Joshua Becker
The truth is: the natural world is changing. And we are totally dependent on that world. It provides our food, water and air. It is the most precious thing we have and we need to defend it. – David Attenborough
If we unbalance nature, humankind will suffer. Furthermore, as people alive today, we must consider future generations: a clean environment is a human right like any other. – Dalai Lama
Fast fashion isn’t free. Someone, somewhere, is paying. – Lucy Siegle
It isn’t enough just looking for the quality in the products we buy, we must ensure that there is quality in the lives of the people who make them. – Orsola De Castro
Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed individuals can change the world. In fact, it’s the only thing that ever has. – Margaret Mead
The scale of the mess we leave behind is proportionate to the level of respect we have for others. – Stewart Stafford
The ultimate test of man’s conscience may be his willingness to sacrifice something today for future generations whose words of thanks will not be heard. – Gaylord Nelson
When plastics do break down, they don’t biodegrade; rather, they break into increasingly smaller pieces, many of which end up in the oceans as microplastics that harm aquatic life and birds. – Dr. David Suzuki
To leave the world better than you found it, sometimes you have to pick up other people’s trash. – Bill Nye
Act as if what you’re doing makes a difference. It does. – William James
To do good, you actually have to do something. – Yvon Chouinard
Be the change you wish to see in the world. – Mahatma Gandhi
We don’t inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children. – Native American proverb
Modern society will find no solution to the ecological problem unless it takes a serious look at its lifestyle. – Pope John Paul II
I am only one, but I am one. I cannot do everything, but I can do something. And I will not let what I cannot do interfere with what I can do. – Edward Everett Hale
Plastic pollution is a global issue: killing wildlife, contaminating our oceans and waters, and lasting far longer than it is used. – Leonardo DiCaprio
It cannot be right to manufacture billions of objects that are used for a matter of minutes, and then are with us for centuries. – Roz Savage
The world is changed by your example, not by your opinion. – Paulo Coelho
Not only are plastics polluting our oceans and waterways and killing marine life – it’s in all of us and we can’t escape consuming plastics. – Marco Lambertini
We don’t have to engage in grand, heroic actions to participate in change. Small acts, when multiplied by millions of people, can transform the world. – Howard Zinn
The Earth is what we all have in common. – Wendell Berry
It is the worst of times but it is the best of times, because we still have a chance. – Sylvia Earle
Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not. – Dr Seuss, The Lorax
I hope you’ve enjoyed this selection of the best quotes about zero waste living, and they’ve inspired you in some way today. Feel free to share this post, or your favorite quote with the people you know, and become part of the movement towards a more sustainable society.