ABOUT US
About Bye-Bye Plastic Hello BYO
Bye-Bye Plastic Hello BYO is a campaign that was created and launched by the Better Business Partnership in July 2018 which targets businesses to reduce the amount of single use plastic they use and hand out to their customers. It also targets shoppers to reduce their reliance on single use items and to replace them with reusable alternatives.
Borrowing from the best campaigns like Plastic Free July, Sustainable Organisations Manly / Plastic Free Manly and successful social media savvy organisations like Take 3 for the Sea, we workshopped the best features from each to build an engaging campaign that would appeal to shoppers and businesses alike, seemingly light hearted to raise awareness of the issue, to provide support to a variety of stakeholders to change behaviours and to switch from single use plastic to more sustainable alternatives.
BBPHBYO focuses specifically on the most commonly used and discarded single use items that are commonly handed out by businesses and hence complements broader programs such as Plastic Free July which is an annual campaign that many councils adopt in their waste education programs.
Tapping into the ageless appeal of animated cartoon characters to subtly tell the story of why it was time to say Bye Bye Plastic Hello BYO, we created some interesting “villains” and “heroes. The Sad and Angry Plastic Bag was set against the Hero Mr Stylish Boomerang Bag. This also broadened the campaign’s appeal to all ages, including children.
Bye-Bye Plastic launched at the same time as the hugely successful second series of the ABC TV show hosted by Craig Reucassel, War on Waste. There was a huge outcry over the amount of waste senselessly created by the general public and many community groups and related not-for-profit environmental causes were united by the common goal of reducing waste and increasing recycling.
THE BETTER BUSINESS PARTNERSHIP
The Better Business Partnership (BBP) is a program established 10 years ago borne out of an Environmental Trust Fund grant and then securing ongoing funding by 3 neighbouring North Shore councils – North Sydney, Ku-ring-gai and Willoughby.
The program works with local businesses and its objective to is to increase the sustainability performance – primarily in the environmental and social/community engagement space, but increasingly helping local businesses with the skills and tools to stay in business.
The core service of the program is an appraisal and accreditation process across 9 key areas of sustainability – waste minimisation being a major focus – leading to badges, accreditation and ultimately recognition and celebration of achievements in the Better Business Awards.
