Tag: UNEP

New app helps young people turn tide on plastic pollution

Stuart Mitchell

Beneath the picturesque turquoise waters of Trinidad and Tobago, plastic pollution is wreaking havoc on marine ecosystems. Every year, more than 88,600 tonnes of plastic waste is deposited into the ocean around the Caribbean nation, harming marine life and ultimately impacting human health. “Plastic is everywhere. And plastic is overwhelming us,” says Sarah Sobrian, a 28-year-old environmental campaigner and member of RSC, a technology non-profit. A new app is aiming to help young people in Trinidad and Tobago, along with other small-island developing states, counter the damage done by plastic…

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UN roadmap outlines solutions to cut global plastic pollution

Stuart Mitchell

Plastic pollution could reduce by 80 per cent by 2040 if countries and companies make deep policy and market shifts using existing technologies, according to a new report by UN Environment Programme (UNEP). The report is released ahead of a second round of negotiations in Paris on a global agreement to beat plastic pollution, and outlines the magnitude and nature of the changes required to end plastic pollution and create a circular economy. Turning off the Tap: How the world can end plastic pollution and create a circular economy is…

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Historic day in the campaign to beat plastic pollution: Nations commit to develop a legally binding agreement

Stuart Mitchell

Heads of State, Ministers of environment and other representatives from 175 nations endorsed a historic resolution at the UN Environment Assembly (UNEA-5) today in Nairobi to End Plastic Pollution and forge an international legally binding agreement by 2024. The resolution addresses the full lifecycle of plastic, including its production, design and disposal. “Against the backdrop of geopolitical turmoil, the UN Environment Assembly shows multilateral cooperation at its best,” said the President of UNEA-5 and Norway’s Minister for Climate and the Environment, Espen Barth Eide. “Plastic pollution has grown into an…

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