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LATEST NEWS
Break Free From Plastic welcomes a new batch of youth ambassadors this 2022!
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Journalists under attack for their investigative work on global plastic waste trade
On July 27, 2022, independent freelance journalists Vedat Örüç and Elif Kurttaş, were attacked while visiting an industrial area with dozens of recycling facilities in Adana, Türkiye. According to a post on Twitter by Vedat Örüç, the journalists entered a plastic recycling facility with permission from a facility’s employee. They were working on a story, […]
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WHY TAKING THE TOXIC TOURS MATTERS
Von Hernandez is the Global Coordinator of #breakfreefromplastic, the world wide movement fighting plastic pollution at every step of its life cycle. For the launch of the Toxic Tours platform, that tells the stories of frontline communities living near plastic production, we asked him why it’s so important to tell these stories in order to […]
CONTINUE READINGBreak Free From Plastic welcomes a new batch of youth ambassadors this 2022!
CONTINUE READING Journalists under attack for their investigative work on global plastic waste trade
On July 27, 2022, independent freelance journalists Vedat Örüç and Elif Kurttaş, were attacked while visiting an industrial area with dozens of recycling facilities in Adana, Türkiye. According to a post on Twitter by Vedat Örüç, the journalists entered a plastic recycling facility with permission from a facility’s employee. They were working on a story, […]
CONTINUE READING WHY TAKING THE TOXIC TOURS MATTERS
Von Hernandez is the Global Coordinator of #breakfreefromplastic, the world wide movement fighting plastic pollution at every step of its life cycle. For the launch of the Toxic Tours platform, that tells the stories of frontline communities living near plastic production, we asked him why it’s so important to tell these stories in order to […]
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GAIA AND #BREAKFREEFROMPLASTIC MEMBERS RESPOND TO OCEAN CONSERVANCY’S APOLOGY
The United States-based organization Ocean Conservancy (OC), on 11th July 2022, issued a long-overdue apology to more than seven hundred organizations for the harm caused by the publication of their 2015 report “Stemming the Tide: Land-based strategies for a plastic-free ocean”, expressing its willingness to take responsibility for the damage caused by the publication. Froilan […]
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400 organisations demand the world’s 5 biggest plastic polluters switch to reusable packaging for World Refill Day
A global coalition of over 400 global organisations have joined forces on World Refill Day to demand that the five biggest plastic polluters commit to ‘transparent, ambitious and accountable reuse and refill systems’. In an open letter, organisations and members of the #breakfreefromplastic movement, including City to Sea (who are behind World Refill Day, the […]
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Environmental Groups Claim that New Rules Restricting Plastic Trade are being Ignored
Governments urged to fully enforce the Basel Convention Geneva, Switzerland (June 13, 2022) – At the ongoing meeting of the Basel Convention, the Basel Action Network (BAN) and member organizations of the Break Free from Plastic movement (BFFP) presented evidence of continued plastic waste trade, exported primarily from the rich developed countries to weaker economies, […]
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Member in the Spotlight: CIEL
Rachel Radvany on why the Global Plastics Treaty matters for youth around the world Introduction: Introduce yourself and your organisation and where you are based. How old you are and what has gotten you to work on plastic. My name is Rachel Radvany and I work for the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL). CIEL […]
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Member in the Spotlight: No Plastic In My Sea
Please introduce yourself(-ves) and your organisation? I am Muriel Papin, the head of the NGO No Plastic In My Sea. We are a French organisation, based in Paris, whose mission is to tackle plastic pollution at source. We raise awareness about the strong correlation between plastic pollution and plastic overproduction and campaign to create conditions […]
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Member in the Spotlight: FoE Croatia
My name is Ana Marija Mileusnić (or just Ana) and I work in an organisation called Zelena akcija / FoE Croatia based in Zagreb, Croatia. Zelena akcija was founded in 1990 and it is the oldest environmental organisation in Croatia. The organisation has been a member of #breakfreefromplastic (BFFP) movement since 2017 and ever since […]
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breakfreefromplastic
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Join the global movement working to end plastic pollution through LONG TERM systemic changes and REAL solutions. 🌏🙌🏽✨
breakfreefromplastic
Aug 19
Join Brand Audit's fifth year and help us hold top corporate plastic polluters accountable for their waste and false solutions! 💪
Link in bio! 👆🏾
#brandaudit2022 #breakfreefromplastic #corporateresponsibility #plasticproduction #plasticpollution #toppolluters ...
breakfreefromplastic
Aug 18
Remember the US-based #How2Recycle labeling program? The one that turned out to be founded by plastic producers like @exxonmobil and top corporate plastic polluters like @proctergamble and @nestle? Now they’re saying that polypropylene plastic can be marketed as “widely recyclable” DESPITE ONLY HAVING A 2.7% NATIONAL RECYCLING RATE! 😤
The industry-backed program made the change because 60% of consumers in the U.S. are now allowed to put these containers in their recycling bins and someone will collect them. BUT what good does that 60% collection rate do when only 2.7% of the plastic is ACTUALLY being recycled??
Read the full story, including important new calculations by #breakfreefromplastic changemaker Jan Dell with #TheLastBeachCleanup, at the link in our story.
(Photo credit: Mk2010, Polypropylene_lid, Wikimedia Commons)
#greenwashing #deceptivelabeling #corporateaccountability ...
breakfreefromplastic
Aug 18
How do we #breakfreefromplastic as a society? 🤔
Himalayas to Sea, Plastic Free led by #breakfreefromplastic member Katie Conlon, Ph.D. launches a new web series featuring leaders and changemakers addressing the plastic crisis. In its first episode, “Perspectives on Plastics: A Conversation with Global Experts,” BFFP Global Coordinator Von Hernandez talks about how plastics pollute throughout its life cycle and shares how we can tackle the plastic crisis in a systematic way.
Catch the series on the YouTube channel: "Plastic Free Journey"
@plasticfreejourney1
#webseries #plasticpollution #climatecrisis #climatechange ...
breakfreefromplastic
Aug 16
It’s the Global Brand Audit’s fifth year and we are going big!
What exactly is a brand audit? Swipe to find out!
Help us hold the biggest corporate polluters accountable for their plastic waste and false solutions.
This is also a great way to show your support for the Global Plastic Treaty. Visit the link to join a #brandaudit2022 event or organize your own!
It’s time for corporations to #breakfreefromplastic and invest in REAL solutions. Link in bio!
#brandaudit #topplasticpolluter #plasticpollution #falsesolutions #plasticfree #plasticpollution #plasticistoxic #environmentalactivism #environmentalactivist ...
breakfreefromplastic
Aug 11
Why are fires at plastic manufacturing facilities so dangerous? 🔥
August 19 of last year, an explosion led to a fire at the Poly-America facility in Grand Prairie, Texas, US. It caused A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF TOXIC FUMES TO POUR INTO THE AIR AND INTO THE SURROUNDING AREA. ⚠️
The facility produces highly-flammable polyethylene and petroleum-based products such as trash bags.
Residents are now suing the company for causing them to unwillingly inhale toxic fumes over the 23 hours it took to extinguish the fire.
A just society would value the health of people over profit. Governments and corporations must #breakfreefromplastic
#toxicplastics #noexcuseforsingleuse #singleusesucks #plasticproduction #reuserevolution #corporateaccountability #plasticistoxic #toxicplastic #plasticpollution #plasticproduction ...
breakfreefromplastic
Aug 11
@pepsi found to be the TOP POLLUTER in the Indian Himalayan region based on #TheHimalayanCleaup2022 brand audits. Swipe to see the top 3 corporate polluters polluters.
92.7% of the collected waste is plastic and 72% of those are non-recyclables. 82% of the plastic waste collected across the mountains are from packaged food and beverage.
It's clear that it's high time corporations shift to reuse and refill. #breakfreefromplastic
Watch out for the FIFTH Global Brand Audit report to be released this year!
📸 @zerowastehimalaya
#brandaudit #corporateaccountability #quitsachets #reuserevolution #himalayas #himalayan #brandaudit2022 ...
breakfreefromplastic
Aug 10
A new @dwnews investigation reveals two-thirds of pledges made by European food companies to go ‘greener on plastic’ FAIL OR ARE DROPPED. Many of the world’s top plastic polluters are pledging to phase out virgin plastics, increase the recyclability of their packaging and reduce the amount of plastic they use.
But the truth behind the claims paints a different story. Many plastic promises are made, but little to no follow-up is made to register and account for whether targets are on track.
What can make a difference?
🙋🏽♀️Voluntary commitments must come hand in hand with accountability and demand companies report and publicly reveal their progress.
🚢Legislation must tackle the continuing problem of waste colonialism and waste trade to stop Europe from shipping its plastic waste around the world.
🏭Global plastics production must reduce if we are to stop the plastic pollution crisis.
Find out more in our stories 🔗 ...
breakfreefromplastic
Aug 9
Indigenous Peoples have always had a close relationship and deep respect for the environment and our earth.
Traditional cultures have always been plastic-free and mostly zero waste. It's us who have to listen and learn from them.
We need to support them and give them their rightful space as we discuss and work towards a brighter, plastic-free furue.
#breakfreefromplastic #ipday #indigenouspeoplesday #plasticfree #zerowaste ...
breakfreefromplastic
Aug 5
In a historic decision, the @unitednations General Assembly has adopted a resolution to universally recognize the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment for all people.
Inger Andersen, Executive Director of @unep, says the new human right addresses the “triple planetary crisis” of climate change, nature and biodiversity loss, and pollution and waste. As we know, plastic (more than 99% of which is made from fossil fuels) plays a significant role in all three of these interconnected crises.
Learn how #breakfreefromplastic members like @ciel_org are advocating for the protection and fulfillment of this human right at the link in our bio.
#humanrights #healthyenvironment #sustainability #climateaction #biodiversity #pollution #fossilfuels #petrochemicals #keepitintheground #stopmakingplastic #noexcuseforsingleuse ...
breakfreefromplastic
Aug 4
#breakfreefromplastic member,@oceanabrasil’s new study The food delivery market and plastic pollution’ points out that consumption of single-use plastic items in that industry INCREASED BY 46% from 2019 to 2021. 📈
MOST OF THE PLASTIC DELIVERED WITH FOOD IS NOT RECYCLED. ❌
This initiative adds up to the #DeLivreDePlástico campaign, co-led by @oceana and the @unep, which mobilized the public to demand that delivery app companies commit to reducing single-use plastics involved in their operation, and the National Congress to create regulations for single-use plástics.
READ MORE. Link in our stories! 🔗
#DeLivreDePlástico #breakfreefromplastic #plastic #reuseispossible #reuserevolution #plasitcpackaging #plasticfreefuture ...
breakfreefromplastic
Aug 3
The Great Global Nurdle Hunt is back! #breakfreefromplastic member, Fidra, organises this global event annually - calling on individuals and organisations from across the world to hunt for nurdles on coastlines and waterways.
Plastic pellet pollution is a real problem for our environment. The Great Global Nurdle Hunt helps in collecting global data and evidence to show industry and decision-makers that urgent ACTION is needed!
Taking part is really simple:
🏖Head to a beach, estuary, or river between 19th Sep – 17th Oct.
🕵🏽♀️Search for nurdles
➕Count how many you find
✍🏽Record how long you searched for and how many people took part
📍Submit your data to Fidra’s online map
Want to take part? Register your event with Fidra - link in our stories 🔗
@greatnurdler ...
breakfreefromplastic
Aug 2
Does paying people to pick up plastic waste so it can be dumped or burned 🔥 while continuing to produce even more plastic sound like a solution?
❌ NOT AT ALL, right? If anything, it sounds like a bigger problem.
Yet that's what corporations like @nestle are doing! 🤦🏽♀️ Swipe to find out how corporations can ACTUALLY HELP solve the plastic pollution crisis.
To learn more about real vs false solutions, check out the NEW Plastic Solutions Review website. LINK IN BIO. ☝🏽
The Plastics Solutions Review was made possible by #breakfreefromplastic members and allies.
#PlasticSolutionsReview #falsesolutions #plasticpollution #plasticsolution #plasicpollutioncrisis #climatecrisis ...
breakfreefromplastic
Jul 30
Joe Bongay, YVE Gambia shows that #BagIsStillHere, in the Gambia!
He shares, “Plastic bags are only a part of the problem, and our relationship with plastic needs rethinking.
We take oil and gas from the earth to make plastic products that are often designed to be used only once, and then we throw them away. Every year, millions of tonnes of plastic, worth billions of dollars, end up in landfills, burned, or leaked into the environment.
A plastic pollution-free world is not a choice but a commitment to life – a commitment to the next generation.”
Check out @africaforzerowaste's socials for more details.
📷: YVE Gambia
#breakfreefromplastic #plasticbagban #plasticbag #plasticpollution #plasticfree ...
breakfreefromplastic
Jul 29
Look: In celebration of Plastic Free July, #breakfreefromplastic members in the Philippines put together a series of photo exhibit and Zero Waste bazaars to increase the public's awareness and understanding of the single-use plastics problem.
#breakfreefromplastic and help make a #plasticfreepilipinas a reality!
The events are presented by Plastic-Free Pilipinas members including @ewcoalition, @greenpeaceph, @motherearthph , @zerowasteasia, and @hcwhasia
#BanSingleUsePlastics
#SachetAway
#GoForZeroWaste
#ChooseReuse ...
breakfreefromplastic
Jul 28
How can restaurants in the U.S. reduce plastic, save money, and give customers what they want? 🍽️ A FREE guide offers real world advice for both front- and back-of-house, including where to purchase reusable take out containers, options to collect and wash reusable dishware and to-go ware💧, where to find funding 💵, calculating costs, communicating these changes to customers, environmental impacts 🌱 and more!
Download the new guide – created by #breakfreefromplastic member Beyond Plastics, working in collaboration with other members and allies from @upstreamsolutions, @surfrider, @oceanic.global, @thefutureisreusable, @plasticfreerestaurants, @plasticscoreco, and @shedd_aquarium – at the link in our story & in @beyondplasticsbennington’s bio.
#zerowasterestaurants #plasticfreerestaurants #noexcuseforsingleuse #zerowasteliving #skipthestraw #toxicplastic #reuserevolution #zerowaste #refusesingleuse #embracereuse ...
breakfreefromplastic
Jul 28
Have you heard of Chemical Recycling?
Corporations like Unilever promoted and invested in chemical recycling claiming it's a solution to the plastic pollution crisis. Spoiler alert, it's not. It's a FALSE SOLUTION that fails to reduce the amount of plastic produced.
Swipe to learn more. You can also visit the newly launched #PlasticSolutionsReview to check which solutions are real and which are not.
#breakfreefromplastic #chemicalrecycling #greenwashing #climatechange #climateaction #environmentalist #climateactivist ...
breakfreefromplastic
Jul 27
Did you know that it's the Global Brand Audit’s FIFTH YEAR?
Thanks to volunteers and allies, this is the FIFTH YEAR IN ROW that we will be naming and pressuring top polluters. This time, we're going BIG! 🙌🏾
Help us once again as we hold the biggest corporate polluters accountable for their plastic waste and the false solutions they have been promoting year after year. ⚡️
This year's Brand Audit is also a great way to support for the Global Plastic Treaty. The more data, the better! 🌎
It’s time for corporations to #breakfreefromplastic and invest in REAL solutions.
Come and join a #brandaudit2022 event or organize your own! LINK IN BIO 👆🏽
#brandaudit #topplasticpolluter #plasticpollution #cleanup #beachcleanup #cleanupevent #plasticfreejuly ...
breakfreefromplastic
Jul 25
NOT ALL SOLUTIONS ARE CREATED EQUAL 🧐
Unfortunately, many proposed solutions to the plastic pollution crisis serve as distractions, greenwashing efforts, or are simply unsustainable. These false solutions fail to address the root of the problem, which is the continuous and growing plastic production.
Check out the new Plastic Solutions Review site to find out which solutions are false and which are real! Link in Bio ☝🏽
The Plastics Solutions Review was made possible by #breakfreefromplastic members and allies.
#PlasticSolutionsReview #falsesolutions #plasticpollution #plasticsolution #plasicpollutioncrisis #climatecrisis ...
breakfreefromplastic
Jul 22
How do plastic sachets from around the world end up in Indonesia’s waters rivers and oceans, and degrade into microplastics? @ecoton.id goes on an expedition along 3 of Indonesia’s rivers and tries to connect the dots between sachets and waste trade, and what it implies for the health of communities and ecosystems.
Watch the video series through the link in our stories and follow @ecoton.id for more videos and updates.
#breakfreefromplastic
🎬 @ecoton.id ...
breakfreefromplastic
Jul 21
"Thinking we can end plastic pollution through recycling alone is like mopping a flooding bathroom while the tap is still running, and the plug is on. Viva total BAN on single-use plastic bags." Conwell Hakapya of @cesco_zm
Check @africaforzerowaste's socials to learn more about #TheBagIsStillHere campaign wherein they dive deep into Africa's plastic ban laws and implementation.
#breakfreefromplastic #ZeroWaste #PlasticFreeJuly #Zambia #plasticpollution #plasticban #plasticbag ...
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We are a global movement. #breakfreefromplastic
In an article on @inquirerdotnet, Gideon Lasco traces the history of sachets in the Philippines and points out the needed policies and enabling environment to curb the plastic crisis.
Read more 👇 https://opinion.inquirer.net/155787/the-trouble-with-tingi-tingi
How do we #breakfreefromplastic as a society? Von Hernandez talks about tackling the plastic crisis in a systemic way, looking at how plastics pollute throughout its life cycle.
🎥 a web series by Himalayas to Sea, Plastic Free
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CjR54U0url8
How do we save the planet if we can’t protect our own people? In Brooklyn’s Sunset Park, the community is coming together to fight gentrification and rising housing prices. Watch as Adan Palermo tells us the story of his work to protect their vibrant culture.
"What could be done differently is to center BIPOC leadership and cultures, equity, justice, and inclusivity, and to understand that unless and until the climate movement aligns with them, it won't prevail."
#breakfreefromplastic
CHECK IT OUT: PoP’s co-founder Shilpi Chhotray (@ShilpiChhotray) pens a powerful @Newsweek op-ed with artist and organizer Khafre Jay (@khafrej) of @HipHopforChang3 to say exactly what we're all thinking about the state of the climate movement.
READ MORE: https://buff.ly/3QkAnYA
This #InternationalYouthDay, Rachel Radvany from @ciel_tweets breaks down the role youth can & should play in the Global Plastics Treaty process ✨
Inclusion of younger generations in the fight against plastic pollution is vital. Find out why here 👉🏾
https://www.breakfreefromplastic.org/2022/08/12/member-in-the-spotlight-ciel/