How An 8-Minute Video Convinced Starbucks To Ditch 1 Billion Plastic Straws

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(Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

Big numbers rarely spark action, but a sea turtle with a straw in its nose can trigger a movement.

By now you’ve probably heard that Starbucks has announced it will eliminate plastic straws globally by 2020. The straws will be replaced with recyclable lids or straws made out of environmentally-friendly materials. The move is intended to do away with one billion plastic straws every year across Starbucks’ 28,000 stores.

One billion straws. It’s a big number. Here’s another one: 275 million metric tons of plastic waste finds its way into our oceans in a year. Surely, these numbers must have sparked corporations like Starbucks to take action to reduce waste. Yes, and no. The statistics were important; but emotional context was even more critical. It’s well-established in communication theory that big numbers don’t move people to action because they lack a critical element of persuasion—emotion. Without emotion, it’s nearly impossible to convince people to take action. A sea turtle gave the movement the emotion it needed.

The Sea Turtle That Sparked a Social Movement. The social movement to scrap single-use plastic straws took off after a video of a sea turtle was posted on YouTube in August of 2015. It wasn’t just any sea turtle. In the graphic video, we watch as marine biologists remove a straw that had become lodged in its nose. The video attracted more than 8 million views. An online petition calling on Starbucks to stop using plastic straws drew more than 150,000 signatures using—you guessed it—the turtle as its poster animal. A growing number of companies have made similar pledges including: McDonald’s, Alaska Airlines and the food service company Bon Appetit.

If you haven’t seen the turtle video, you might wish to avoid it. The video, described here, is bloody, gross and disturbing. Then again, that’s exactly why the video was uploaded to YouTube. The video served as a catalyst for individuals and corporations to take action. Neuroscience explains why it happened.

Emotion is the Fastest Path to the Brain. As an author who has spent the better part of two decades studying the tools of persuasion, I can tell you that emotion is the fastest path to the brain. We can prove it scientifically. In academic terms, an “emotionally competent stimulus” is any video or photo that elicits a strong emotional reaction. These images can trigger fear, sadness, joy, hope, shock, surprise, or disgust. The turtle video triggers several emotions at once.

Once we see or experience an emotionally charged stimulus, the amygdala—an almond-shaped structure in the brain’s temporal lobe—releases neurochemicals which are essential for us to feel emotion. Dopamine is one such chemical. A release of dopamine acts to stamp information on the brain. In other words, if the content triggers a rush of dopamine, it’s more likely to stick. You can see why this served as an important evolutionary function. If we don’t feel fear when faced with a lion, our species wouldn’t have made it this far.

The key lesson for anyone seeking to convince others to make big changes is put big numbers into an emotional context. The number—one billion—doesn’t mean anything to anyone. It’s just a number. Add one billion plastic straws, and it still doesn’t mean much without context. Attach the statistic to one disturbing video of a sea turtle and the combination creates an emotional experience that sparks people to action.

Scientists and experts who hope to drive change in any area—environmental, financial, governmental—would be wise to study statistics and emotion. Statistics are good; emotion is better. Emotion drives behavior and triggers change.


