The fifth session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC-5) on plastic pollution, convened by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), is scheduled to take place from November 25 to December 1, 2024, in Busan, South Korea. This significant meeting...

Plastic waste in Indonesia documented by Plastic Collective The world has a plastic problem. The alarming global increase in plastic production from 2 million tonnes in 1950 to over 400 million tonnes in 2021 has created a crisis. Even as recycling initiatives...

Plastic Collective and SEArcular waste Pickers' in IndonesiaIndonesia stands at the epicentre of the global pollution crisis. The world produces over 300 million tons of plastic annually, and a staggering 8 million tons of it ends up in the ocean. Unfortunately,...

The plastic industry is grappling with a crisis: while the world produces over 400 million tons of plastic annually, only about 9% of it gets recycled. The rest accumulates in landfills, oceans, and ecosystems, contributing to a growing environmental emergency. To...

Plastic pollution is one of the most pressing environmental challenges of our time. As governments, businesses, and individuals strive to reduce their plastic footprint, finding the right tools to support this mission is essential. One increasingly popular initiative...

Image by CanvaIn recent years, microplastics have emerged as a significant environmental concern, but less discussed is their potential impact on human health. These tiny nanoparticles, often less than 5mm in size, are everywhere from the air we breathe to the water...

NYC Climate Week 2024 brought together global leaders, activists, and experts for an urgent conversation about the future of our planet. With over 900 events, this year’s event was the largest yet, focusing on accelerating climate solutions to limit global warming to...

At Plastic Collective, we believe that real change happens when brands take meaningful action to address their plastic use. Our mission is to empower companies to manage plastic responsibly and work towards a sustainable, circular economy. One of the standout brands...

For B Corporations (B Corps), whose very identity is rooted in balancing purpose and profit, reducing plastic isn’t just a nice-to-have, it’s essential. Tackling the plastic waste crisis directly aligns with the environmental and social commitments that are core to...

Image by SHVETS from PixabayThe Rise of the Conscious Consumer In today’s rapidly evolving marketplace, a new force is driving change: the conscious consumer. Gone are the days when a catchy slogan or flashy packaging was enough to win over consumers. Today, consumers...

Who We Are Plastic Collective is a leader in the global fight against the plastic pollution crisis. We work with businesses of all sizes to implement effective, scalable solutions that reduce plastic waste, promote recycling, and support communities in need. Our...

Image by zibik from PixabayA new study from researchers at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) has revealed that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is potentially underestimating methane emissions produced from...

Image by deepakrit from PixabayAwareness as to the harmful effects of plastic on the environment is ever increasing. Along with this awareness comes initiatives to explore and develop new ways and techniques to process plastic waste to help create new materials for...

Plastic Free July is a campaign and global movement that runs each year in July and was is run by the Plastic Free Foundation. the campaign itself has been running since 2011 and has been gaining popularity each subsequent year it runs. On the the main goals of the...

In early May, the Plastic Collective Oz team (Louise and myself) were invited to ‘Rubbish on the Shore, a Think Tank on Country’, to contribute to discussions on ghost net and marine debris pollution in northern Australia. We undertook our journey to Northeast Arnhem...

Last week, Ottawa hosted thousands of negotiators and observers for the fourth meeting of the UN Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) which is charged with negotiating by the end of this year a global, legally binding treaty to reduce plastic pollution....

Plastics are an extremely useful and flexible material. Because of this we often use plastics in our daily lives without giving them a second thought. One of the things that is overlooked when it comes to plastic types (although general awareness is growing) is that...

Yves Saint Laurent was once quoted as saying, “fashions fade, style is eternal.” Sadly, with the arrival of the fast fashion movement, fashion these days does not have a chance to fade, it is almost immediately replaced with something new, as quickly as it arrives....

The Plastic Pollution Crisis The plastic pollution crisis began in the late 20th century when plastic waste increased exponentially and scientists in the 1970s began to see its effects on the environment. Plastic was a material that was once thought of as being the...

Plastic has permeated every aspect of human life due to its durability, versatility, and affordability. However, the convenience of using plastic comes at a steep environmental cost. The reality of plastic pollution extends beyond littered beaches and overflowing...

For almost eight years Plastic Collective has been working with remote and vulnerable communities around the world to address the plastic waste crisis where plastic leakage into nature is most extreme and destructive. Siblings Louise, Stephen and Dianne Hardman...

Climate change is a topic that is currently garnering a lot of attention in the media, especially with reports of unseasonal and extreme weather events that are taking place around the world. With this increased scrutiny there is a focus on the various contributing...

The estimated 20 million waste pickers operating around the world [1] provide around 60 percent of the global collection volume for plastic recycled material [2]. However, waste pickers receive little to no recognition for their essential contribution to circular...

The Great Pacific Garbage Patch (GPGP) is a vast area in the North Pacific Ocean where marine debris, primarily plastics, has accumulated due to ocean currents. What we have come to know as the great pacific garbage patch was first discovered by Captain Charles Moore...

Mitigation of Plastic Pollution This blog is the second in our blog mini series focused on Plastic Collective’s Plastic Pathways for Corporates which help corporates address plastic pollution as part of taking action on climate change and achieving their...

Plastic pollution is a problem has quickly become one of the most important environmental issues in recent years. It is a global problem that affects every corner of the planet, from the deepest ocean trenches to the most remote mountain ranges. The ubiquity of...

In recent years, the phrases "net zero" and "carbon neutral" have become buzzwords in the climate change and sustainability discussion. Governments, businesses, and individuals are increasingly encouraged to reduce their carbon footprint and instead adopt green...

Recently (in April 2023) we proudly became an official member of the Global Partnership on Plastic Pollution and Marine Litter (GPML), a multi-stakeholder partnership working together to find solutions to prevent marine litter and plastic pollution. This global...

Is Plastic Recycling Effective? Most of us have come to understand that plastic is bad for the environment and can have a negative impact on our health. This is why in many countries plastic recycling schemes have been implemented and many people, at an individual...

We’ve all come across plastic waste in some form or other. You can find it in our homes, in our streets, and in our oceans. Plastic pollution has become a global issue that needs to be addressed urgently. While there have been some inroads over the years in terms of...

Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) is the concept that producers and importers should take responsibility for the products they put into a market across their entire lifecycle - the polluter pays principle. We are now seeing a ‘third wave’ in the development and...

Every day, thousands of tons of plastic are produced, used once, and then just thrown away. This plastic pollution is causing massive problems in the environment and is directly contributing to climate change. Businesses, in particular, are major contributors to the...

As a business it is almost inevitable that you will use a certain amount of plastic in either the products you supply or as a by-product of carrying out commerce. Many organizations have set themselves targets to improve the sustainability of the business operations,...

Image by Gerd Altmann from PixabaySustainable development has been on the agenda since the late 1980s and over that time much progress has been made in moving towards a world that is more sustainable. However, with population growth and issues surrounding climate...

Today more than ever there is a lot of reasons why it is a good idea for a business to become a zero carbon. However, this does raise the question on how this is to be achieved and what are the steps that need to be taken. Here we will discuss the reasons why it is a...

What is EPR? Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) is the concept that brands, plastic packaging producers and importers should take responsibility for the plastic they put into a market across its entire lifecycle. EPR policies are based on the “polluter pays”...

​It is hard to miss the news reports on television and in the press showing the effects of plastic waste and the amount of plastic debris in the ocean. From single-use plastic bags to fishing nets there is a vast quantity of plastics that end up in the sea. Most...

When plastic was first introduced it was thought of as a miracle and flexible material but as the world has come to realize this material comes at a cost to the environment and health. Businesses have relied on plastic not only as one of the raw materials in the...

The recycled PET market:  many large buyers, but not enough collection   We know that of the 460 million tonnes of plastic consumed globally each year, just 9 per cent is recycled (1). Roughly 50 percent of plastic waste generated globally ends up in landfill; 19...

The OECD’s latest report on plastic pollution is not exactly ‘beach read’ material. It projects that plastic leakage into the environment will double to 44 million tonnes a year by 2060, while the build-up of plastics in aquatic environments will more than triple,...

The cosmetic industry is a thriving growth sector worth a staggering $511 billion in 2022, and growing at a rate of 4.75%. By 2025 it is expected to reach $785 billion. The cosmetic industry can be divided into four broad categories        Cosmetics (or makeup)      ...

Businesses examining ways they can improve their eco-credentials and sustainability efforts might have come across the phrase, ‘greenwashing’ or ‘green sheen’. Often this phrase is highlighted because of bad publicity. Brands may have wondered how they too can avoid...

Corporates and their customers are increasingly aware of the challenges that plastic pollution poses to our environment and of the need to collectively rethink our approach to plastic use and management as part of climate action. The question for corporates is then -...

From plastic straws to microbeads contained in body scrubs, it is fair to say that plastic use is widespread. Once hailed as a miracle material that revolutionized the manufacturing industry, time has shown that there are significant downsides to plastic use. From...