Lately, I’ve been wondering: is it just me, or does there seem to be more litter than there used to be?
When I’m out walking and running errands, I can’t help but notice it. Wrappers along the curb. Plastic bottles in the grass. Receipts and napkins drifting through parking lots. It feels more noticeable than even a year ago.
Maybe I’m just paying closer attention. But it really does seem like something has shifted.
Is It the Packaging?
Part of me wonders if it’s simply volume.
We live in a world of layers—boxes inside of boxes, food wrapped in plastic inside paper inside a bag. Online ordering, curbside pickup, food delivery—it all comes with packaging. Lots of it.
When everything is designed for convenience and speed, it’s also designed to be disposable. Lightweight containers blow out of trash cans. Straws and lids slip through cracks. Even when people intend to throw things away properly, the sheer amount of single-use material increases the chances that some of it ends up on the ground.
More packaging means more opportunity for litter.
Or Is It Psychology?
But I also think there’s something deeper going on.
When people see litter, they’re more predisposed to add to it. A clean sidewalk makes you hesitate before being the first person to drop something. A messy one lowers the bar. The internal dialogue shifts from “I shouldn’t” to “It’s already dirty.”
Environment shapes behavior. Whether we admit it or not, we take cues from what’s around us.
And once an area starts to look neglected, it often becomes a self-fulfilling cycle.
What I’m Choosing To Do
Many of you know that I’ve volunteered to pick up trash on the beach for years. It started as something small—just bringing a bag along on my walks and filling it up before I left.
Over time, it became something more meaningful. It wasn’t just about cleaning the sand; it was about stewardship. About leaving a place better than I found it.
Now I’ve decided to expand that commitment.
I’m making it part of my daily almsgiving—a tangible way to give back with action, not just intention. Each day, I’m going to make time to pick up litter wherever I am. A parking lot. A sidewalk. A neighborhood trail. It doesn’t have to be dramatic. It just has to be consistent.
Because if litter spreads through visibility, maybe care can spread the same way.
Maybe when someone sees a clean space, they’ll think twice before tossing something. Maybe when someone sees another person bending down to pick up trash, it plants a small seed of awareness.
I can’t control how much packaging companies produce. I can’t control every careless decision someone makes.
But I can control what I do.
And if I’m noticing more litter, maybe that’s not just frustration. Maybe it’s a nudge.
So I’m answering it—with a bag in hand.