Here we are: at the end of National Marine Week!

What an awesome couple of weeks we have had, exploring some fantastic habitats around Kent, learning how and where to see some incredible wildlife, and hearing about how we can all protect our seas.

As all the events and activities come to a close, it’s important that we leave you with a legacy. Here are our top five tips to become an eco-warrior and fight for change!

1. Write to your local MP

Harness the power of your words! If there’s anything you feel should change in your local area, speak up. This might involve recycling practices, reducing food waste from supermarkets, creating more cycle lanes for sustainable travel, or saying no to fossil fuels… the list is endless! Governments will only act on what they hear from the public as key issues. The more of us that send in our concerns, the better chance we will be heard and represented.

2. The 4 Rs!

We often skip the first step in this process and go straight to buying recyclable goods, but only 10% of recycling actually gets recycled!

Let’s take a look at the 4 Rs in detail:

By Refusing to buy products from companies that are damaging to the environment (including those that produce single-use plastics, excess packaging or harmful chemicals), you send a message to those big companies. Make sure to support ethical companies instead. .

How to help:

By taking your own shopping bags, choosing items with less packaging, shopping with ethical brands, taking your own cup for hot drinks and tupperware for lunch, using natural, cruelty-free cosmetic products and toiletries with less chemicals and biodegradable packaging, buying fruit and veg in season (keep it local). Check out zero waste shops, local markets and find out about eco versions of brands online.

Reducing your consumption of things you don’t need, and making more conscious decisions when shopping (for food, clothes, gadgets etc.) is a great way to reduce demand.

It is important to stop and ask ourselves if we really need something. We can often mend and make do with the things we already have.

How to help: Meal planning really helps cut down on food waste, signing up to apps that save otherwise wasted food is a great way to help too. Reduce your home energy by taking shorter showers and even re-use pasta water for your plants! Take public transport or cycle where possible.

Reuse anything and everything you can! Check out YouTube tutorials for some great arts and crafts ideas for your old clothes, and recipes for vegetable scraps such as making stock/pesto! There is a wealth of information on YouTube and further afield about how to fix a lot of electrical items too, you’d be surprised how satisfying it feels to repair and revive your old gadgets! If this isn’t for you, consider selling your items on second-hand sites such as Freecycle or Gumtree.

Recycle as a last resort: very few items that are recyclable actually end up being recycled, and instead are often dumped overseas. Choose packaging which is paper or cardboard where possible, aluminium (infinitely recyclable) and glass. Get in touch with your local MP to campaign for greater recycling initiatives in your area.

3. Try a couple of veggie swaps!

So many supermarkets stock cheap, delicious plant-based alternatives for summer barbecuing, curries, chillis and pasta bakes. If there’s a way you can swap out a meal once a week for something veggie, you will be helping reduce the demand for meat. Perhaps consider shopping at your local butcher for more locally sourced meat which has less of a carbon footprint than meat shipped in from further afield. Additionally, more profit goes directly to the farmer.

4. Get involved in a cause

One of the best ways you can help make a huge impact as an individual is to give some of your time to volunteering with Kent Wildlife Trust, or any local conservation group! You can check out the work we’re currently doing on our website and check out our volunteering pages too: kentwildlifetrust.org.uk/get-involved/volunteering

5. Get out and explore your nearest wildlife reserve

Visit your local beach and stay curious about nature! There are loads of volunteers across our reserves in Kent who are always happy to have a chat and you can pop in to our visitor centres to find out more. As we know, blue health (improved health and wellbeing as a result of visiting the sea) is an amazing tool we can use to connect to ourselves and to our wild coasts too. Why not try paddleboarding, kayaking or snorkelling to see what wildlife you can spot around our shores?

Don’t forget to stay up to date with all of our work up and down Kent’s amazing coastline on our social media channels, and keep your eyes on our events pages for ways you can get involved with us too: kentwildlifetrust.org.uk/events