Start by thinking about: • What has your destination already done to reduce plastic? • Do you have a waste management policy/strategy/goals/targets/KPIs? • Do you have a sustainability policy? If so, does it have a section that talks about single-use plastics? • What do your visitors think about sustainability?  • Do you currently survey them about this? • Who do you need to work with inside your organisation to plan, procure and roll-out reusables? The Destination Case Study in this guide will introduce you to best practice reusable initiatives.

Going plastic free is a team effort and having the right people onboard will be key to your success. Aim for a representative from each of the following departments on your project committee: • Management - ideally somebody who could serve as a project ‘sponsor’.* • Cafe/food retail operations • Procurement • Waste management • Communications and marketing • Sustainability *Project sponsors are typically senior people in the organisation who can help the project team by championing in the project, removing obstacles and roadblocks if they emerge and would be able to help identify other opportunities within the project.

The Planning Meeting Checklist will assist you with topics to discuss to create your project action plan. You can use the Project Action Plan Template we have provided in the 'Downloads' section below. Start your plan by setting clear goals. What are the reusable items you want to target? How many single-use plastic items would you like to avoid? Make sure your goals are SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-Bound). Add any other relevant items into your plan that came out of your initial planning meeting. You can continue to fill out this plan as you go through this guide. Be sure to set up regular meetings as you roll-out your plan.

Budget How much money do you have to dedicate towards purchasing reusables? It is important to consider things like: • Quality of the reusable items - stainless steel, glass and ceramic items are higher quality but cost more than reusable plastic. • How many reusable items you need. • The size of the reusable items you need. • Whether you need to upgrade facilities - for example, will you need new dishwashers to accommodate cleaning your reusable items? Identify the amount in your Project Action Plan's (https://84587dc4-1d57-4a4a-b54c-822aa35c75b8.usrfiles.com/ugd/84587d_0f790057f27f4c4a8d72cb28d28eaf77.docx)'Budget' section. You can complete a budget breakdown later, but keep this amount in mind as you move forward towards costing out your program initiatives. Timeline How long will your project take? When it comes to making reusable switches, it is best to approach a few at a time. You may like to stage your project over several months or possibly years. Map out your timeline in the Project Action Plan's (https://84587dc4-1d57-4a4a-b54c-822aa35c75b8.usrfiles.com/ugd/84587d_0f790057f27f4c4a8d72cb28d28eaf77.docx)'Timeline' section

Now that you have a clear Action Plan,(https://84587dc4-1d57-4a4a-b54c-822aa35c75b8.usrfiles.com/ugd/84587d_0f790057f27f4c4a8d72cb28d28eaf77.docx) it’s time to get the approvals applicable to your organisation. This might be budgetary, inter-departmental (including Food and Beverage/Waste Management), communications, sustainability. Once you have approval, you can move onto Action 2 - Data Collection.