Giving Compass' Take:

• In England, there is momentum to change behavior around refilling water, bringing re-usable water bottles around, and hopefully, to end the use of plastic bottles to reduce waste. 

• What similar efforts are happening in the U.S.? How can donors aid the cause of using less plastic bottles? 

• Learn more about the state of plastic use and recycling. 

What if local cafes and pubs offered refills to anyone with a reusable water bottle? A program in the U.K. has found that it’s an effective way to get people to ditch single-use plastic.

Walking past a cafe or bar in London, you might notice a bright blue sticker in the window that says "free tap water." The message is simple: If you need to refill a reusable bottle, you can come inside.

Part of a grassroots project called the Refill initiative, the stickers were first used in the city of Bristol in 2015. Two months later, 200 businesses had signed up, and the idea quickly spread to other parts of the country and international cities like Hamburg and Berlin. Around 1,600 “refill stations” now exist in the U.K. The stickers will soon become ubiquitous, as a new campaign works with businesses and local agencies to build a network of tens of thousands of refill points in every city and town in England.

It’s not that it wasn’t possible to ask a cafe to refill a bottle in the past–and under the law, all licensed premises in England, including pubs, takeout restaurants, and theaters, are required to provide “free potable water” on request. But most Brits don’t feel comfortable asking. By joining the network, adding a sticker, and becoming part of an app that people can use to find the closest refill location, businesses can help shift norms.

Read the full article about water refill stations helping the environment by Adele Peters at Fast Company.