In July 2020, The Pew Charitable Trusts and SYSTEMIQ released Breaking the Plastic Wave: A Comprehensive Assessment of Pathways Towards Stopping Ocean Plastic Pollution, one of the most analytically robust studies ever produced on ocean plastics. Thought partners were the University of Oxford, University of Leeds, Common Seas, and the Ellen MacArthur Foundation.

Breaking the Plastic Wave shows that by 2040, if we fail to act, the volume of plastic on the market will double, the annual volume of plastic entering the ocean will almost triple, and ocean plastic stocks will quadruple. This is in line with The Ellen MacArthur Foundation's 2016 analysis, which revealed that in 2050 there could be more plastic than fish in the ocean.


The study also confirms that a circular economy for plastic is the only way to address plastic waste and pollution at the source. This is a vision that already unites 850+ organisations through the New Plastics Economy Global Commitment and the Plastics Pact network.

Find out more here. at https://plastics.ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/breaking-the-plastic-wave-perspective

How can we stop the problem of plastic pollution? Recycling? Bioplastics? Compostable straws? No. We need to go to the root of the problem, and cut off the production of new plastic. That's the only way.

Cigarette filters are the “last acceptable form of littering,” but there are solutions that can help our health and planet.
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#NationalGeographic #Cigarettes #Plastic

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Cigarette filters are made of a plastic called cellulose acetate. When tossed into the environment, they dump not only plastic, but also the nicotine, heavy metals, and many other chemicals they’ve absorbed into waterways, and eventually oceans. But, there are solutions that can help our health and our planet.

Read more in "Cigarette butts are toxic plastic pollution. Should they be banned?"
https://on.natgeo.com/2MWWKW6

What's the World's Most Littered Plastic Item? Cigarette Butts | National Geographic
https://youtu.be/9wwz4_1P6P0

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https://www.youtube.com/natgeo

The Trump administration has advanced the process of opening up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to lease sales. The Department of Interior released its "Record of Decision" on August 17, 2020 taking the most aggressive and destructive drilling alternative possible. It paves the way for lease sales as early as December. During an oil glut, increasing threats from climate change, and a world-wide pandemic, the administration will attempt to lease the entire Coastal Plain of the Arctic Refuge-- more than 1.5 million acres-- to the oil industry. Representing the last 5% of America’s Arctic Coastal Plain where the law has barred oil and gas activity, this would forever transform these wild lands into a toxic industrial drilling complex. The Gwich’in people who depend on these lands call it “the sacred place where life begins.”

This move threatens the food security, and spiritual and cultural foundation of the Indiginous Gwich'in Nation, in addition to threats to endangered polar bears, the Porcupine Caribou herd, and birds that migrate to these lands from six continents and all 50 states. This is one of the most high-profile battles in America today at the intersection of the environment and social justice. 

This video includes five members of the Gwich’in community-- raising their voices at the 2016 Gwich’in Gathering in Arctic Village, Alaska-- Neets’aii Gwich’in Tribal Land. Thanks to Arctic Village Council, Venetie Tribal Council and Native Village of Venetie Tribal Government for permission for National Geographic photographer Florian Schulz to record these testimonies.

#ProtectTheArctic #StandwiththeGwichin

Voices include:

Dr. Rev. Trimble Gilbert
Sarah James
Nani’eeth Peter
Gideon James
Anthony Garnett
Narrator: Princess Daazhraii Johnson

Helen Caldicott - Fukushima's Ongoing Impact - Seattle - 09/28/14

"It's dangerous to live anywhere near a nuclear power plant - especially children under five years old (within 2 miles)."

Helen Caldicott, co-founder of Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR) on "Fukushima's Ongoing Impact" recorded September 28, 2014 at Town Hall Seattle.

Published on Oct 24, 2012

The Tar Sands Resistance March on Saturday, June 6th, 2015 drew more than 5,000 people to St. Paul, MN for the largest anti-tar sands march ever in the region. The march sent a clear message: keep toxic tar sands out of America's Heartland to protect our water, climate and communities.

Testimony by Ronald Waromi, West Papua Interest Association and Bernhard Th.W. Kaisiep MS, President of West Papua Melanesia in Exile and Hon Niko Nawaikula, Head, Fiji Native Delegation to UN. Published on Apr 27, 2015

Note: Many Papuans now have access to mobile phones and the internet and are using this technology to coordinate their struggle for freedom and to communicate to the rest of the world. Many young people have left their villages to study at universities across West Papua and Indonesia and are interacting with Indonesians and the global community to gain support for their struggle for freedom. (source)

A look at what crosses the Steel Bridge (built in 1910) here in Portland, Oregon a few miles from my home. Is that crude oil in those tankers? As citizens we need to start asking questions that will make our leaders uncomfortable as they may not even be aware of where and when crude oil is moved through urban areas. Produced and written by Ruth Ann Barrett for her YouTube Channel, PDXDowntowner. Published on Apr 2, 2015

Stephanie Herrera is Executive Director of the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability (AASHE). She brings over 20 years of leadership and management experience coupled with a lifetime of experience and passion for sustainable development and social justice. Having grown up on a Superfund hazard site located in the Denver neighborhood of Globeville, she is engaged with the struggles of impoverished communities and their efforts to address their health and economic issues. Stephanie's grandparents inspired her by participating in the class action suit that led to the Superfund Site designation and, ultimately, site clean up.

Produced by Ruth Ann Barrett of EarthSayers.tv with Barry Heidt of GeoSpirit.tv at the AASHE Conference 2014 in Portland, Oregon, October 28, 2014.