This month, partners and allies of Plastic Pollution Coalition and the Break Free From Plastic movement traveled to Nairobi, Kenya, to participate in the third round of United Nations (UN) Plastics Treaty talks, INC-3. With the UN providing an unprecedented opportunity to finalize a binding treaty by 2025 to end plastic pollution, the clock is ticking to ensure the agreement language is as robust and effective as possible.

In the lead-up to INC-3, we shared information about plastic pollution and the treaty with the public and the media. We focused our September and October webinars on U.S. and global policy, amplified frontline voices, answered your top Plastics Treaty questions, and participated in an INC-3 X(Twitter)space hosted by our friends at the Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA).

While our movement’s diverse members were heard more widely during INC-3 than the treaty’s first two negotiating sessions, the omnipresence and massive influence of the fossil fuel, petrochemical, and plastics industries continues to impede real progress. Meanwhile, some historically fossil fuel–friendly nations have engaged in negotiating tactics that threaten a strong agreement with their low ambitions. In fact, we are also deeply concerned that industry influence will have a major impact on the 2023 UN Climate Change Conference (COP28) which starts today, November 30, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. At the same time, we are heartened that more people are speaking out about the connection between plastics and climate change and the urgent need to take real action on both—even the Dalai Lama mentioned it in a social media post this morning.

Plastic Pollution is a global problem in need of global solutions. A key focus of real solutions to plastic pollution is to reduce wastefulness and consumerism. That’s often a challenge at this time of year, as the holiday season includes giving and receiving gifts. While we encourage you to “buy nothing,” give experiences, spend time together and in nature, and opt for reuse and repurposing the stuff you already have, if you do plan to purchase physical gifts, our 2023 Plastic-Free Holiday Guide can help you find more people- and planet-friendly gifts. The guide is filled with exclusive discounts on more sustainable items from Plastic Pollution Coalition Business Members to help you avoid creating plastic pollution during this season of giving.

Read on to find the latest news, events, and opportunities to get involved in solutions to plastic pollution.

Onward,

Jen Fela
Vice President, Programs & Communications
Plastic Pollution Coalition

P.S. We are so grateful for your support during our GivingTuesday campaign to help create a more just, equitable world free of plastic pollution and its toxic impacts. If you missed GivingTuesday, you may still make a donation to support our work.

★ Fossil Fuel Industry Threatens to Sabotage COP28 as UN Climate Talks Open Today
The fossil fuel industry threatens to sabotage COP28 as United Nations (UN) climate talks open today, November 30, at Expo City, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. There is no shortage of talk about conflicts of interest as industries, investors, and complicit government representatives attend talks where UN delegates are expected to plan a phase down or phase out of industries’ extraction and use of climate-warming oil, gas, and coal. Plastic Pollution Coalition allies are there to address solutions. Learn more.

★ UN Global Plastics Treaty Negotiations (INC-3) Conclude in Nairobi
UN Plastics Treaty negotiations continue, with the third of five sessions (INC-3) held November 13–19, 2023, in Nairobi, Kenya. We outline key moments and takeaways, and ask you to sign our U.S. petition and global petition to advocate for a strong, legally binding plastics treaty. During our October webinar, Policy Matters: The UN Global Plastics Treaty, we received more questions than we had time to answer; we followed up some of them here.

★ In California, It’s Now Your “Right to Repair”
In October, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed SB244, or the Right to Repair Act, which significantly expands access to repair materials needed to fix electronics and appliances for consumers and independent repair shops. The Act is based on the premise that when something you buy no longer functions properly, you should be able to access the tools and services to fix it. Many large electronics manufacturers, such as Apple and Google, are located in California—meaning the items they manufacture for sale in other places must also meet the requirements of the Right to Repair Act. Learn more.

★ Businesses and Governments Failing to Meet Goals to Cut Plastic Pollution
Despite pledging to reduce their use of plastics, businesses and governments are failing to meet goals to cut plastic pollution. This, according to the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s report “The Global Commitment Five Years In: Perspective on Progress,” which assesses the integrity of commitments to reduce plastic pollution that were made by 123 businesses and 17 governments five years ago in 2018. Learn more.

★ Announcing the “Plastic Kills!” Short Film Contest Winners
On October 31, in partnership with Hollywood, Health and Society, Plastic Pollution Coalition announced the winner of our horror short film contest Plastic Kills! Watch the grand prize winning film Blastic, the fan voted favorite, and the runners-up and see what our all-star judges had to say about the top films that helped to highlight the horrors of plastic pollution. Read here.

★ The 2023 Plastic-Free Holiday Gift Guide
We encourage avoiding consumerism during the holidays and all year round to help people and the planet. However, if you do plan to give physical gifts for the holidays, check out our 2023 Plastic-Free Holiday Gift Guide! The guide features exclusive discount codes on a wide range of eco-friendly products and services from Plastic Pollution Coalition Business Members committed to stopping plastic pollution. Access the guide.

★ Join the Coalition
Not yet a member of Plastic Pollution Coalition? You may join as an individual, organization, or business. Apply here.

★ The Global Plastic Laws Database
Last month, Plastic Pollution Coalition and partners launched the Global Plastics Laws Database to provide an extensive database and resource library focused on plastic legislation that has been passed around the world. Designed for use by policymakers, researchers, educators, students, community advocates, and others interested in plastics policy, the database includes 9 topics covering the full life cycle of plastics along with key issue areas. Access the Database.

★ New Version of the Understanding Packaging (UP) Scorecard Launched
A new faster and more robust version of the Understanding Packaging (UP) Scorecard has launched this month with updates that make scoring more precise by incorporating additional details and data on the impacts of chemicals in food packaging and providing the possibility to set up a private account. The UP Scorecard is a free online resource that can help concert and sports venues, restaurants, and other businesses choose plastic-free and sustainable packaging for food and drinks and is the result of an unprecedented cross-industry collaboration of leading foodservice companies, environmental NGOs, and technical experts. Use the UP Scorecard.

★ Better Alternatives 3.0 Published by 5 Gyres
Earlier this month, the 5 Gyres Institute published Better Alternatives 3.0, a case study on bioplastic products and packaging. The goal of the report is to offer greater transparency around these novel materials, their real-world behavior in the environment, and considerations that should be made before the widespread adoption of bioplastics in all sectors of society. Learn more.

★ Community Change Grants from the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
This month, the Biden Administration has opened a nearly $2 billion pool of grant money to help advance environmental justice in underserved communities harmed by pollution across the nation. The EPA’s Community Change Grants are the single largest investment in environmental justice going directly to communities in history, and are made available through the Inflation Reduction Act. Applications are now open and will be received on a rolling basis until November 21, 2024. Learn more.

➤ Find more in our Resource Library.

★ Filtered Not Bottled: Protecting Communities from the Toxic Impacts of Lead and Plastic
The U.S. government approved $15 billion dollars to address toxic lead water pipes, also known as service lines, which an estimated 22 million people rely on across the country. However, this process will take many years and increased funding, causing numerous communities to rely on single-use plastic bottled water for drinking and cooking—but this only swaps one toxic problem for another. Plastic Pollution Coalition and our working group partners have two urgent science-backed recommendations for municipalities and states that will help protect community health and prioritize non-plastic solutions: filtered, not bottled water, and plastic-free pipes. Learn more and sign the petition.

★ Urge Coca-Cola to Bring Back Refill
Coca-Cola is the largest consumer-facing global seller of plastics, producing almost one quarter of PET plastic bottles globally—despite it once leading on refillables. The Story of Stuff Project has found that between the 1950s and 1970s, Coca-Cola gutted its own refillable infrastructure in the U.S., opting for single-use containers that externalized the cost of its new packaging waste onto the public and ratepayers. Call on Coca-Cola and its bottlers to bring back refillable bottles and support state-mandated refill quotas. Sign the petition.

➤ Find more Petitions on our website.

★ You Are What You Eat (and Breathe): Nanoplastics and Microplastics and Human Health
Plastic particles are now all around us—but what does that mean for people and the planet? Learn from experts about our exposure to nanoplastics and microplastics, and their impacts on our health. Tune in online on November 30, at 12pm ET. This webinar will include presentations from experts Dr. Todd Gouin, TG Environmental Research; Dr. Scott Coffin, California State Water Resources Control Board; and Dr. Charlie Rolsky, Shaw Institute, and Plastic Pollution Coalition Scientific Advisor. Learn more.

★ Neuroendocrine Disruptors and Brain Development: Lessons from PCBs
Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are acutely toxic at high concentrations. At lower concentrations they are endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs), with multiple effects on human health. In this webinar on December 12, at 1pm ET, Dr. Tom Zoeller will discuss how the endocrine-disrupting effects of PCBs can affect human brain development. Lessons from PCBs can also help us to understand the effects of other EDCs on the developing brain and nervous system. Learn more.

★ January 18 Webinar: Plastic-Free Resolutions: Protecting Your Health in 2024
Join Plastic Pollution Coalition on January 18 for our first webinar of 2024: Plastic-Free Resolutions: Protecting Your Health in 2024. During this event, our panel will discuss why plastic should not come in contact with your food, drink, or body, and how to maintain your plastic-free resolutions all year long to protect your health, and the wellbeing of your friends, family, and the planet we all share. Save the date.

➤ Find more Events on our website.