How can we responsibly source post-consumer recycled plastic?

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Barak Ekshtein, Chief Executive Officer, Tontoton The lack of data and transparency surrounding post-consumer recycled plastic and other materials leads to irresponsible sourcing, but third-party audited protocols used in Ocean Bound Plastic (OBP) collection and plastic credit systems may […]

These entrepreneurs are helping reduce plastic in our ecosystems

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Ewan Thomson, Senior Writer, Formative Content We use over 460 million tonnes of plastics a year, according to the OECD – and that number is set to almost triple by 2060. Less than 10% of all plastic waste ever […]

Singapore is leading the way in recycling wastewater. What can it teach the rest of the world?

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Johnny Wood, Senior Writer, Formative Content Singapore is taking the “waste” out of its wastewater by turning sewage into safe, clean drinking water using an advanced filtration and treatment system. The Changi Water Reclamation Plant forms the core […]

How trade can help end plastic pollution

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Soumyajit Kar, Specialist, Sustainable Trade, World Economic Forum Government representatives are currently meeting in Uruguay to kickstart the first Intergovernmental Negotiation Committee (INC) on reaching an internationally binding treaty to end plastic pollution that the United Nations Environment […]

8 inspiring innovations that are helping to fight plastic pollution

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Poonam Watine, Knowledge Specialist, GPAP, World Economic Forum Plastic waste and pollution is a global problem, threatening both the health of humans and ecosystems all over the world. In June 2021, the Global Plastic Action Partnership and UpLink […]

4 ways Pakistan is tackling plastic waste and pollution

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Malik Amin Aslam Khan, Advisor to Prime Minister of Pakistan on Climate Change & Global Vice President of IUCN To eliminate plastic pollution, banning plastic bags is not enough. Creative solutions are needed to prevent and mitigate plastic […]

European Citizens’ Initiative: Commission decides to register ‘ReturnthePlastics’ initiative on plastic bottle recycling

This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission. Today, the Commission decided to register a European Citizens’ Initiative entitled ‘ReturnthePlastics: A Citizen’s Initiative to implement an EU-wide deposit-system to recycle plastic bottles’. The organisers of the initiative call on the Commission to present a proposal to: implement an EU-wide deposit-system to recycle […]

Circular economy: Commission provides guidance for harmonised application of Single-Use Plastic rules and advances on monitoring of fishing gear

This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission. Today, the European Commission provides guidance on the EU rules on single-use plastics and adopts an Implementing Decision on the monitoring and reporting of fishing gear placed on the market and waste fishing gear collected. These rules aim to reduce marine litter from single-use […]

Three experts on why eradicating plastic pollution will help achieve gender equality

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Kristin Hughes, Director, Global Plastic Action Partnership, Member of the Executive Committee, World Economic Forum Geneva Women fight on the frontlines against plastic pollution. The transition to a circular economy for plastics – and the shift to a […]

The business case for investing in sustainable plastics

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Audrey Choi, Chief Sustainability Officer, CEO of the Institute for Sustainable Investing and Chief Marketing Officer, Morgan Stanley Plastics reduction and climate change are sustainable investors’ top priorities. Solutions to plastic waste must come from all sectors. Financial […]

Our indispensable problem: the paradox of modern plastics

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Jim Fitterling, Chief Executive Officer, Dow Plastics have brought enormous benefits along with enormous challenges. There is no one-size-fits-all solution to the issue of plastic waste. To tackle it will require a multi-pronged, circular economy-based response. Here’s an […]

The water where baby fish are outnumbered 7 to 1 by plastic

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Johnny Wood, Senior Writer, Formative Content Tiny larval fish in the nursery waters off the coast of Hawaii have a new and plentiful source of food, which has no nutritional value, is high in toxins, and can take decades […]

Amsterdam has a bubble barrier to catch canal plastic

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Sean Fleming, Senior Writer, Formative Content The latest innovation to tackle plastic pollution? A bubble barrier. A wall of bubbles can intercept plastics in rivers and canals without blocking the passage of boats and marine wildlife. Tests of a […]

This brewery is ditching plastic six-pack rings to save marine life

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Douglas Broom, Senior Writer, Formative Content Fancy a beer? If you’re picking up a six-pack, stop and look at the packaging. About 100,000 marine creatures die every year after becoming entangled in ocean plastic waste, according to the WWF. […]

Trash bin at the top of the world: can we prevent Arctic plastic pollution?

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Halla Hrund Logadottir, Co-Founder and Co-Director, Arctic Initiative, Harvard Kennedy School of Government & Katie Segal, Research Assistant, Arctic Initiative and Louis Bacon Environmental Leadership Student Fellow, Harvard Kennedy School of Government Stranded polar bears, mining disasters, oil spills. […]

Inspired by orange peel, this ‘plastic’ packaging is totally compostable

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Joe Myers, Writer, Formative Content What do you think of when you think of orange peel? Probably not a lot – it keeps the inside safe and juicy, right? Well, exactly. TIPA, a new World Economic Forum Tech Pioneer, […]

David Attenborough’s worried about this ocean threat – and it’s not plastic

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Emma Charlton, Senior Writer, Formative Content If the ocean was an economy, it would be the seventh largest in the world. But instead of fostering it as a resource, humans are jeopardising its future – using it as […]

The 10 most common types of plastic choking Europe’s rivers

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Douglas Broom, Senior Writer, Formative Content That our rivers and oceans are choked with plastic is well-documented. But where is all this waste coming from? Based on analysis of almost 200,000 objects found in rivers across Europe, including France, […]

Parliament supports plans to improve quality of tap water and cut plastic litter

This article is brought to you in association with the European Parliament. MEPs backed plans to improve consumers’ trust in tap water, which is much cheaper and cleaner for the environment than bottled water, on Thursday. MEPs propose to tighten the maximum limits for certain pollutants such as lead (to be reduced by half), harmful bacteria, […]

Indonesia has a plan to deal with its plastic waste problem

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Kate Whiting, Senior Writer, Formative Content Image: The New Plastics Economy report In Indonesia, plastic waste is a very modern-day enemy. It’s such a problem that, last year, the army was called in to scoop it out of the […]

Plastic is a global problem. It’s also a global opportunity

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Peter Lacy, Senior Managing Director, Accenture Strategy & Wesley Spindler, Circulars Program Director, Accenture Strategy & Cathy McAndrew, Innovation Lead, Circulars Team, Accenture Strategy Plastic: a most versatile and ubiquitous material, it is difficult to imagine life without it. […]

We need to bin disposable items for good. Here are 5 ways to do it

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Tom Szaky, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, TerraCycle Single-use products and packaging are convenient and affordable – and causing a growing waste crisis. Scientists have been alarmed to discover plastic pieces in locations far removed from human populations, such […]

This 12-year-old built an underwater robot to fight plastic pollution

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Sean Fleming, Senior Writer, Formative Content An underwater robot that’s the brainchild of a 12-year-old girl from Massachusetts could be deployed someday in the war against marine plastic pollution. One of the 30 finalists in the Broadcom MASTERS competition […]

“Beyond the beach: tackling plastic pollution upstream”, a Sting Exclusive by Erik Solheim, Head of UN Environment

This article was exclusively written for The European Sting by Mr. Erik Solheim, Executive Director of the United Nations Environment. The opinions expressed in this article belong to the distinguished writer. Plastic has been nothing short of miraculous. In our kitchens and supermarkets, it’s helped cut down on food waste. It’s the source of medical […]

UN Environment Assembly 2017: where the world convenes to #BeatPollution

The third session of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA) is concluding today in Nairobi, Kenya, with more than 4.000 heads of state, ministers, business leaders, UN officials and civil society representatives to partake in this three-day meeting. Pollution and the ways to eliminate all its forms is the target of every leader, activist, scientist […]