I think it is interesting how the prompt mentions packaging because I do not normally think about reusing packaging as I usually just automatically recycle or throw away packaging. Often it is difficult to reuse packaging because it often comes in materials such as plastic wrap or Styrofoam which do not have many other uses after packaging. The Senior Vice President of the Natural Resources Defense Council, Conrad MacKerrron, wrote an in-depth research report titled “Waste and Opportunity 2015,” in which he discussed how companies handle packaging from food, beverages, and other goods.  I was surprised to learn from MacKerron’s report that McDonalds and Starbucks are some of the leading large corporations in turning to biodegradable packaging. However, the report also described how though some companies have switched over to using compostable packaging, customers often do not have easy access to compost bins and thus the packaging ends up getting thrown away anyways. This is frustrating because the companies’ expensive efforts to produce less packaging are rendered mostl y ineffective. The report further states that 86.2% of recyclable packaging ends up getting thrown away also. I think an important step in reducing waste from packaging is making sure that people compost packaging that is biodegradable. This could happen by increasing the amount of compost bins in public places and in stores that use compostable packaging. 
    Another way for us to reduce waste from packaging is to avoid buying individually wrapped items when possible. For example, instead of buying a lot of individually wrapped snacks, you could buy a big container of the snacks to avoid the excess packaging.  Another effective way to reduce packaging is to bring your own, reusable “packaging” to stores, such as your own mug when buying a drink.

Packaging is something that's hard to realize you're wasting, but it is important to keep in mind. When you think about it, we waste a lot of paper with packaging. Like when there are gifts for Christmas or a birthday, our first instinct is to automatically throw it away. Although it can make a huge difference to keep the wrapping to recycle it or reuse it. Another thing to do would be to bring your own plastic bags to take to the grocery store, because you can avoid using the plastic grocery bags. If you don't want to bring your own bags, you can reuse the grocery bags as doggy bags or other things