Global Environment Facility (GEF) Approves Its First Marine Plastics Project

The project aims to provide a strategic roadmap that would help prevent further fluxes of plastics to the ocean, and  integrate their use into circular economies at local, national and global scales. Such envisioned transformational shift from dumping to recycling requires innovations at multiple fronts -- incorporating recyclability design at product inception, phasing out single use plastics, managing current waste streams using effective and clean technologies, creating proactive policy environments, and developing novel funding mechanisms and partnerships, among others. A common vision and collective expertise among UN Environment and its partners including Ellen MacArthur Foundation, Ocean Conservancy and GRID-Arendal, and the support of multiple stakeholders and networks, will be key in determining project success.

(Photo credit: Gerry & Bonni)