We have been learning about the impact of excessive plastic use on our environment for many years, but recently some initiatives have formed to alleviate the situation. In Brooklyn, plastic bags will start being taxed in February, but in Bali, they have a different plan.

Bye Bye Plastic Bags was founded by Melati and Isabel Wisjen, two sisters who convinced Bali to ban the use of plastic bags. The Wisjen sisters were just twelve years old when they started a petition after noticing how the bags were affecting their country. Bali does not have the appropriate waste management infrastructure to handle to excessive use of plastic bags. The petition ended up receiving 100,000 signatures but it was not until after they lead a Gandhi-inspired hunger strike did the government meet with them.

The girls met with a nutritionist to determine the best plan of action and decided to not eat from sunrise until sunset until they spoke to a government official. The governor of Bali met with the girls two days into their hunger strike and started a plan to make Bali plastic bag free by 2018. Bye Bye Plastic Bags is now located in 9 different countries as a youth driven social initiative. They claim to have reached nearly 5,583,000 people and cleaned 427 beaches. The team believes that their most powerful tool is education, and therefore created a 25-page booklet about waste management, marine debris, the 3r's - Reuse, Reduce, Reduce - and youth empowerment to be implemented into school systems in Bali and Indonesia.

The hard work of these sisters and all who work in their initiative may have stalled over the years due to unwilling officials and organizations, their efforts can be felt worldwide. It is important to remember that you always have a voice, but you must be willing to work hard to use it.