By Patti Radle, SA2020 Board Member and 2014 Resolutions Leader (follow her here!)

When I was asked back in February what I thought would be the biggest challenge or the main excuse people would offer when asked to give up bottled water, my response was, “Convenience.  People will find it hard to give up the convenience.”

But now that more organizations, churches, businesses, education campuses, and, indeed, cities are becoming more aware of the detriment of the rampant use of bottled water, these same entities are becoming more creative in making things easier for those who understand the importance of using a re-usable bottle for water.

Such was the experience of my colleague on the SAISD school board, Debra Guerrero.  She sent me this photo from New York, saying, “My Labor Day trip to NY was less a challenge to avoid bottled water than I originally thought it would be.  I packed my no-spill Contigo water bottle and was pleasantly surprised to see these awesome water fountains (at the Atlanta Airport)! They were at La Guardia when I landed, as well.  Let’s hope San Antonio is next.”

Thank you, Debra, for making the resolution not to use bottled water for the rest of 2014 and to consider this as a continued life style.   When Debra made the commitment, she said, “I am joining the challenge to stay hydrated ‘plastic bottle free.’  We all need to do our part to protect the environment.”

I was so happy to walk into a recent SAISD goal-setting session and see Debra sitting there with her re-usable water glass.

As important as it is to reduce the use of plastic, it is important to reduce the unnecessary use of water.  Remember, it takes three times the amount of water to produce a bottle of water than the amount of water that is in the bottle.