Trash Hero World | Trash Hero World

Volunteers creating the world we deserve

by Lydia on 12/02/2025 No comments

Imagine a world where everyone understands the impact of plastic on our bodies, health, and environment, and supports real solutions to the plastics crisis. A world where businesses prioritise preventing waste and the health and well-being of people and the planet.

Every week, Trash Hero volunteers are working in their communities to make this dream a reality. This year, we welcomed 14 new chapters to the Trash Hero family, and the USA and Japan rejoined our growing network. We’re now active* in 103 locations across 15 countries (Cambodia, Czech Republic, Germany, Indonesia, Japan, Kuwait, Malaysia, Myanmar, Poland, Serbia, South Korea, Switzerland, Thailand, USA, and Vietnam).

Let’s take a look at the impact each of our core programmes has made:

Action and Awareness:

In 2024 alone, Trash Hero volunteers organised 2,446 community cleanups, mobilising 46,501 volunteers, including 17,036 under 16s! Together, they collected 105.2 tonnes of trash!

This brings the total impact of our Action and Awareness programme from December 2013 to December 2024 to:

23,304 cleanups organised
562,144 volunteers mobilised (including 154,918 under 16s)
2,601,608 kg of trash collected

Trash Hero Communities:

Trash Hero volunteers, through their consistent action, are given opportunities to share their knowledge and inspire others. This includes giving presentations, building zero-waste projects, and providing input at policy discussions. In 2024, Trash Hero volunteers organised or participated in 173 community events, engaging 13,537 people in the issues surrounding plastic pollution and the actions needed to solve it.

Since 2022, Trash Hero volunteers have engaged 25,685 people in 463 events.

Our Trash Hero Communities programme includes our free water refill network, which currently consists of 579 participating businesses. In 2024 alone, these businesses have helped prevent the use of 1.9 million single-use plastic bottles, avoiding 104.4 tonnes of CO2 emissions! Since the project began, we have:

distributed 111,068 reusable water bottles.
avoided 42.5 million single-use plastic bottles and 2,219.6 tonnes of CO2 emissions.

Kids and Education:

Our Trash Hero Kids programme is based on a story and activity book that engages young people in the issues of plastic pollution. In 2024, 585 kids enrolled in the programme – which over time encourages long-term behaviour change. We also ran 70 one-off awareness events for kids, introducing 5,401 under 16s to the critical issues of plastic pollution. This brings our total since we started recording in 2022, to 289 kids’ events, involving 14,510 kids!

In total, 23,330 copies of our kids’ story and activity book have been printed, and it’s available in 8 different languages.

Thank you to all of our volunteers and supporters – we could not have achieved this without you!

Join us in creating the world we deserve, a world free from plastic pollution.

Watch our latest impact video here:

https://youtu.be/qE6KZFE7-84?si=Y1KQCXiDDAuU8nLO

*Active chapters are those regularly organising Trash Hero events. If a chapter leader steps down and there is no one to replace them, or the team want to take a break for 3 months or longer, the chapter is “inactive” and not included in our reporting.

Plastics treaty talks end in deadlock

by Seema on 10/12/2024 No comments

It was supposed to be the final round of UN negotiations for a global plastics treaty. In the end, INC-5 wound up without an agreement – though not without progress.

The meeting was held in Busan, South Korea from 25 Nov to 1 Dec 2024, with almost 4,000 people in attendance. The Chair, Luis Vayas Valvidieso, was under intense pressure to seal a deal. He spent the week imploring countries to find common ground and “get it done”, even agreeing to closed door negotiations for almost three days – a flagrant disregard for transparency that left scientists, civil society groups and rights-holders most impacted by plastic pollution out in the cold.

But still a deal was not to be. The talks only highlighted the deep divisions among countries over three key issues: limiting plastic production (Article 6), regulating toxic chemicals (Article 3), and funding (Article 11).

A minority of so-called petrostates – major fossil fuel exporters – continued to block any attempts to cap or reduce plastic production, arguing this was irrelevant to the issue of pollution. They rejected scientific evidence of the harms of petrochemicals and claimed plastic was essential to progress, climate goals and the “right to development“.

However the majority of countries, covering both the Global South and Global North, were determined to include binding obligations to reduce plastic production, the phaseout of harmful plastic products and toxic chemicals, and a dedicated fund to support treaty implementation. They pointed to the UNEA resolution to take a full life cycle approach to plastic pollution and recalled the thousands of studies linking plastic chemicals with serious health issues.

With Juan Carlos Monterrey Gomez, the inspirational delegate from Panama.

Stand up for ambition

The emergence of this coalition of 100+ countries, led by Panama, Rwanda, Mexico and Fiji and backed by the EU, Switzerland, UK and Australia, was the high point of the talks. Appearing midweek, they swiftly gained the upper hand, using strong language – “if you’re not contributing constructively… then please get out” – that completely changed the energy and dynamics in the room.

At the closing plenary session, Juliet Kabera, the Director General of the Rwanda Environment Management Authority, received a thunderous standing ovation for her statement vowing to “stand up for ambition”.

For most observers, the failure to reach an agreement at INC-5 was a victory for courage over compromise. Instead of succumbing to the relentless petrostate bullying and watering down the text, progressive countries stood firm and opted for no treaty over a weak treaty. This leaves the door to real change very firmly open.

A failure of process

Indeed, the real failure at INC-5 was the process itself. Negotiations have gone much the same way over the last three rounds of talks: a text is proposed by the Chair with instructions to find an agreement or consensus. Countries then proceed to share their views, with the petrostates systematically vetoing whole articles and obfuscating every line with qualifications, additions and deletions. This results in an unintelligible and unusable document that has to be “streamlined” at the next round, before the process begins all over again.

Instead of switching up this failing formula at INC-5, the Chair simply increased the speed of the loop, bringing out two new streamlined proposals, one on Friday and one on Sunday, as each previous version was mangled within hours.

As Ana Rocha, Global Plastics Policy Director of GAIA, put it, “we cannot keep doing things the same way and expect different results – that is the definition of insanity. The ambitious majority needs to do whatever it takes to get these negotiations back on track and reclaim the spirit of multilateralism.” That might involve insisting on their right to vote on a text, instead of trying to find consensus, or even taking the whole process outside of the UN.

Broader implications

The divisions exposed in Busan have clear parallels with the challenges faced in the climate negotiations, where petrostates have been stalling progress for decades. Their orchestrated effort to obstruct and derail all multilateral environmental agreements needs to be recognised for what it is and seriously addressed by the UN. There are precedents for this, such as the conflict of interest policy used in the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control.

Failure to act decisively on plastic production will hinder broader environmental goals, including climate targets, as we know this sector alone could exceed the global carbon budget by 2060. Failure to act quickly will also intensify the looming public health crisis, as petrochemicals bioaccumulate and our exposure is growing every day.

A treaty in 2025?
INC-5 ended with negotiators agreeing to reconvene their session in 2025 – this will be known as INC-5.2, rather than INC-6, as it is a continuation of the same meeting. The date and venue is likely to be announced in January, and it is expected to take place within the first half of the year. This gives the new coalition of ambitious countries a few precious months to demonstrate strong leadership, intensify diplomacy and address the challenges of the process and vested interests to ensure we get a treaty that can truly end plastic pollution.

Trash Hero at the treaty talks
As a UNEP-accredited observer, Trash Hero is able to attend all INC meetings. We join our colleagues in the large civil society delegation that advocates for strong and just measures in the treaty and support the communications and advocacy work done in exhibition booths and side events around the meeting venue.

Last chance for a fossil phase-out?

by Seema on 23/11/2024 No comments

Forget COP 29, the plastics treaty is the most important environmental agreement in the world right now.

Is there anyone left – except the oil industry – who doesn’t roll their eyes at the mention of the climate COP? These conferences have become synonymous with blatant conflicts of interest, empty “blah, blah, blah” posturing of world leaders, and a frustrating inability to deliver real progress.

But next week in Busan, South Korea, there’s a glimmer of hope. UN member states are convening at INC-5, at what is expected to be the final round of negotiations for a global treaty to end plastic pollution. This is the chance for governments to show they are serious about tackling the harms of plastic overproduction and consumption. And a strong agreement, capable of addressing the interlinked crises of wildlife loss, chemical pollution and climate breakdown, could set in motion the fossil fuel phase-out that has eluded the climate convention for three decades.

The hidden driver of climate change
Plastic is not only a source of pollution choking oceans and poisoning ecosystems but also an important and overlooked driver of climate change. 99 percent of plastic is made from fossil fuels and, as production skyrockets, it’s become the world’s fastest-growing source of industrial greenhouse gases, pumping out more than double the emissions of the aviation industry.

Plastic also contains a staggering 16,000 chemicals. Less than 1 percent of these are regulated, most are untested, and around 4,000 are known hazards to human health. These are substances that bioaccumulate and are linked to cancers, respiratory and neurological problems and hormone disruption. Microplastics carrying these toxins permeate our air, water, soil, and even our bodies.

The plastic crisis impacts us all, but it’s felt hardest in poor communities, often in the Global South, where plastics are produced, burned, or dumped.

We can do better than the Paris Agreement
Since November 2022, countries have been going back and forth on what the plastics treaty should include, how to enforce it, and who will fund it. The good news is that the measures needed for meaningful change are all still on the table. Just as importantly, so are provisions for monitoring, compliance and transparency. These key elements were missing in the Paris Agreement: its voluntary approach has allowed emissions to climb year after year.

At INC-5 then, negotiators face a crucial question: will they learn from Paris or repeat its mistakes?

How to build an effective treaty

Binding commitments
Deep, rapid cuts in plastic production are required to avoid breaching the 1.5°C warming limit. Analysis shows a minimum reduction of 12% to 17% per year, starting now, will be necessary. This needs measurable targets, deadlines and penalties, not hollow pledges.

Global implementation
Treaty measures must apply universally, with no exemptions under “special national circumstances” – the excuse countries used in the Paris Agreement to sidestep action.

The principle they invoked – of “common but differentiated responsibilities” (CBDR) – was originally intended to recognise the differing roles of countries in causing environmental crises and their corresponding financial needs and obligations. It was never meant to allow countries to choose whether or not to pollute.

Issues like harmful chemicals in plastic are impossible to address if countries claim CBDR. Without transparency and strict regulation across the board, we end up with piecemeal bans that leave gaps in protecting public health.

Sufficient and predictable funding
Another critical lesson from the climate COPs is the need for a dedicated global fund to support developing countries and those hit hardest by plastic pollution. Here is where the principle of CBDR should be applied. Wealthier countries and the plastic industry itself must provide this funding, with investments in redesign, repair, and reuse – not just waste management.

Civil society and rights-holders
Those directly impacted by the plastic life cycle, from waste pickers to fenceline communities and Indigenous Peoples, must be involved in shaping the treaty and their needs reflected in the final text.

But there is a very real danger of their voices being drowned out. The UN still recognises business and industry reps as “stakeholders” in environmental fora. Like at the climate convention, they are officially invited to the talks, often as part of government delegations. This conflict of interest is a major hurdle for good faith negotiators in Busan.

The fight against Big Oil
More than 60 countries have already called for the treaty to include binding phasedown targets for fossil fuels, enforced through global caps on plastic and petrochemical production. Many more support a treaty grounded in environmental and climate justice, public health and human rights.

On the other side, a vocal minority of oil-producing countries insist that solving plastic pollution is just a matter of improving recycling and waste management. They downplay the harms of plastic as “unproven” and argue the benefits to society outweigh the risks.

It’s a bold position that ignores the UN Environment Assembly’s resolution that the treaty address the full life cycle of plastic – from fossil fuel extraction to disposal. It also flies in the face of tens of thousands of studies confirming plastic’s devastating impacts on health, ecosystems, and the climate.

Meanwhile, these same countries plan to triple plastic production over the next 30 years, investing in petrochemical plants and promoting flawed and dirty technologies like chemical recycling. At COP28, their promise to transition away from fossil fuels was carefully applied only to “energy systems” – not plastics.

If left unchecked, plastic production alone could exceed the global carbon budget by 2060, according to Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.

UN member states must now choose whether to stop this happening.

The world is watching
Can negotiators deliver an effective treaty in just one week, with industry lobbyists hovering and a “need for consensus” pressuring them to water down the text rather than risk a vote?

Yes – but only if the world is watching. Governments must feel the pressure to support an ambitious, effective treaty that serves science and public interest, not corporate agendas.

International agreements can and should be more than a stage for world leaders to claim progress without commitments. We deserve treaties that are fit for purpose.

So, all eyes on Busan: if negotiators get it right, the plastics treaty could become the world’s most impactful environmental agreement, offering a path to cap fossil fuel production, restore planetary health and build a fairer, safer and more sustainable future for all.

Seema Prabhu is programmes director at Trash Hero. Trash Hero World attends the plastics treaty talks as a UNEP civil society observer.

Where does the trash go?

by Seema on 25/06/2024 No comments

This is the question we get asked the most by our cleanup participants. After doing the hard work of picking it up, it’s natural to want to find out what happens next!

No easy answers

In almost all cases, the trash is handed to the municipality to manage, according to the waste management infrastructure in place locally. In other words, we move it from one place to another. Wherever possible, our volunteers will first sort the collected waste, separating any recyclable and reusable material. What gets separated will depend on the local facilities, but the pile is always far smaller than people imagine. And they are usually surprised to learn that the few types of “recyclable” plastic may not get recycled at all and can only be recycled once or twice – often with serious health risks – before it gets thrown away.

This is an opportunity to reflect that, even in areas where glass, metal and paper are easily recycled, there really is no good solution for plastic packaging.

In all locations, some form of landfill or incineration remain the default for the non-recyclable waste. Both of these options have serious health, social, environmental and climate impacts, even in developed countries like Switzerland.

Reframing the question

With no good answer to the question “where does the trash go?”, we can conclude it’s critical to reduce the waste being produced in the first place. So we ask a different question – “where does the trash come from?” – instead. There is a widely-held belief that the current plastic pollution crisis is caused by irresponsible people who litter and / or poor waste management. People who join our cleanups are often unaware that this is an industry-marketed fiction. Through our cleanups, we try to move the conversation towards the real causes of the crisis – poor packaging design and delivery systems, overproduction and the lack of regulation or producer responsibility. These wider systemic problems are the real source of the pollution – not the weekend picknickers.

In some areas, after a cleanup we might also examine and record the brands on the plastic trash collected, to highlight the link between producer decisions and pollution. This “brand audit” data is also shared with organisations such as Break Free From Plastic for research and advocacy work.

“Upcycling” and “recovery”?

People often ask why we don’t “upcycle” the trash or collaborate with companies who say they “recover ocean-bound plastic“, sometimes as part of a credit scheme. The reason is that these are false solutions. At best they distract from the real actions needed; in the worst case scenario they create new problems or enable greenwashing by companies that have the power to make far more impactful changes.

Shop to save the planet: is producing more stuff really the way out of a crisis caused by overproduction?

What do we mean by this? So-called plastic “upcycling” is really “downcycling” – creating objects that cannot be recycled further, using additional new resources. This only delays disposal of the material in a landfill, incinerator or worse, while creating microplastics and potentially hazardous chemical cocktails in the process.

Suggesting these recycled products use material “recovered” from the ocean without any proof can add an additional layer of greenwash. In reality, most plastic pulled from the sea is too degraded to be recycled. But with some creative accounting or vague labelling producers can claim packaging is 100% made from this source.

Both “upcycling” and plastic “recovery” are almost always presented as a solution for plastic pollution, which leads people to think that it is okay to keep producing and using plastic at current rates. It’s common for the plastics industry to focus attention on these kinds of false solutions, rather than take more helpful steps to reduce their production of single-use plastic. We don’t want to be part of this misinformation.

Local downcycling

We do however support some small, locally-based initiatives to deal with existing waste, if they fit certain criteria.

Some Trash Hero chapters donate non-recyclable trash to local entrepreneurs who use it as raw materials to make different things. This is typically on islands or in rural areas where the alternative is often open burning. As long as there are no better options for the waste and no greenwashing is involved, downcycling into durable and relatively safe products using minimal additional resources can be a practical, if temporary solution for existing waste. While these actions can’t solve the plastics crisis long term, they don’t get in the way of the solutions that will lead to a truly safe and circular economy.

From left: shoes collected at cleanups are downcycled into new flip-flops by Tlejourn; straws are donated to create filling for wheelchair cushions; a sculpture created for a festival in Thailand; collected cigarette butts are displayed in Zurich

On a smaller scale, we have also worked with artists who make sculptures and other works from trash to draw attention to the problem of plastic pollution. This is different from artists who try to create beauty from plastic waste, which again feeds into the narrative that it is okay to keep increasing production of this toxic, climate-damaging material.

The bottom line:
The answer to “where does the trash go?” is “nowhere good”. We must instead look at “where does the trash come from?”. We need to reduce the amount of materials we use in the first place, make them safe and keep them in use – through reuse infrastructure, not recycling – for as long as possible. Only by supporting zero waste systems and lifestyles will we be able to stop picking up trash every week.

What’s the problem with plastic?

by Seema on 20/06/2024 No comments

The problem – ironically – began with a solution. Plastic is a lightweight, durable, airtight, decay resistant, inexpensive material that can be moulded into a huge range of products. These are excellent, practical qualities – while the product is in use.

But almost 70% of all plastic (an estimated 5,700 million metric tons^[1]) has become waste: 10% incinerated^[2], releasing toxic heavy metals, dioxins and hazardous nano-particles into the air, water and soil; and 60% discarded, now accumulating in landfills or the natural environment.

“More than 1.2 billion kilogrammes of plastic – primarily single-use packaging – are produced globally every single day.^[3]“

In the ocean, as on land, plastics persist. Their lightweight and indestructible nature allows them to disperse easily, breaking into smaller and smaller, highly toxic pieces that cause the death or injury of wildlife^[4], biodiversity loss^[5] and pose grave dangers to human health as they enter and contaminate the food chain. Barely 1%^[6] of the 12.2 million tons of plastic that enters the ocean every year stays on the surface, making it all but impossible to recover.

Recycling cannot keep pace with the volume and variety of plastic materials in circulation. It is still only viable^[6] to recycle two kinds of plastics at scale: PET and HDPE, usually with only one “loop” before the material is too degraded to recycle again. Even this is costly, often more so than producing virgin plastic^[7]. This has led to many countries – who have infrastructure available – preferring to ship their plastic to the Global South in what has been termed “waste colonialism“^[8].

Chemical additives in plastic also make it problematic to recycle^[9], resulting in unwanted emissions, cross-contamination and concentration of hazardous substances in the resulting material. More than 16,000 chemicals have been identified in plastic^[10], many of them in food packaging^[11]. 7,000 of these chemicals have to date been researched – and 4,200 found to be hazardous, leading the World Health Organisation (WHO) to draft a resolution^[12] calling on nations to “[scale] up work on plastics and health to enable better information of the potential human health impacts”. These impacts include endocrine disruption^[13], cancer^[14] and infertility^[15].

Research from the Center for International Environmental Law^[16] further suggests there may be an imminent public health crisis caused by exposure to plastic at all stages of its lifecycle, from extraction to disposal. Humans are at risk through inhalation, ingestion and skin contact, with recent findings showing micro- and nanoplastics already present in our blood^[17], lungs^[18], reproductive organs^[19] and able to cause damage to cells^[20].

Plastic is also a climate issue. 99% of plastic is made from fossil fuels. At every stage of its lifecycle, emissions are produced^[21]: from the processing of the raw material, to its application and discarding. Plastic is the fastest growing industrial source of global greenhouse gas emissions, with an estimated contribution more than four times that of the entire aviation industry^[22]. This figure will only increase as Big Oil banks on plastic to make up for decreasing demand and revenue^[23].

Waste management infrastructure, ecosystems, the climate, even our own bodies are already overwhelmed by the impacts of plastic. It is a problem that is impossible to ignore and will be devastating if we do^[24]. We need to act and the time is now.

———————————-
Sources

[1] Production, use, and fate of all plastics ever made Roland Geyer, Jenna R. Jambeck, Kara Lavender Law, Sci Adv. July 2017
[2] Ibid, based on figures quoted of 407 million tons of plastic produced globally in 2015
[3] OECD, Global Plastics Outlook, 2022
[4] Plastic & Health: The Hidden Costs of a Plastic Planet, CIEL, Feb 2019
[5] Plastic and the environment online series, Geneva Environmental Network, Jul 2023
[6] ‘Viable’ includes both financial and technical criteria
[7] The Plastic Pandemic, Reuters investigative report, Oct 2020
[8] The Guardian, 31 Dec 2021 (and many other sources)
[9] Forever Toxic: The science on health threats from plastic recycling, Greenpeace, May 2023
[10] CNN reporting on the PlastChem Report, March 2024
[11] Food packaging and human health fact sheet, Food Packaging Forum, Dec 2018
[12] 76th World Health Assembly, Agenda item 16.3, 24 May 2023
[13] Plastic, EDCs & Health: Authoritative Guide, Endocrine Society, Dec 2020
[14] The Guardian, 28 Mar 2023 (and many other sources)
[15] Microplastics May Be a Significant Cause of Male Infertility, Chenming Zhang, Jianshe Chen, Sicheng Ma, Zixue Sun, Zulong Wang, AmJ Mens Health, 2022 May-Jun
[16] Plastic & Health: The Hidden Costs of a Plastic Planet, CIEL, Feb 2019
[17] Blood-type: Plastic, Common Seas, Jan 2020
[18] The Guardian, 6 Apr 2022 (and many other sources)
[19] Ibid, 20 May 2024
[20] Ibid, 8 Dec 2021
[21] Plastic & Climate: The Hidden Costs of a Plastic Planet, CIEL, May 2019
[22] The Hill, 18 April 2024
[23] ClientEarth, 16 Feb 2021
[24] Breaking the Plastic Wave, Pew Trust 2020 shows 5 years of inaction equates to an additional ~80 million tons of plastic in the ocean

Trash Hero attends Global Plastics Treaty talks in Paris

by Seema on 12/06/2023 No comments

Key outcomes

Member states agree on a mandate to develop a draft treaty

Presence of industry lobbyists and lack of access for rights-holders, scientists and civil society remains a concern

Ongoing debate over the rules of procedure could continue to delay progress on the treaty

In 2022, the United Nations Environment Assembly made an historic resolution to develop “an international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, including in the marine environment” – the Global Plastics Treaty – and gave member states just two short years to agree on the text.

And there is a lot of ground to cover, with ever-mounting evidence about the toxicity of plastic, from extraction to disposal; its significant role in planetary warming; its destruction of ecosystems and biodiversity; the impossibility of material circularity; and the disproportionate impacts of all of these issues on the Global South and vulnerable communities.

Member states must also agree on the implementation of any agreed measures – whether they will be voluntary or binding, how they will achieve compliance and how they will be financed.

Trash Hero World has just returned from INC-2, the second of five sessions to resolve these issues, held from 29 May – 2 June 2023 in Paris.

To see what we believe the treaty should look like, see this short video:

https://www.tiktok.com/@trashheroworld/video/7241141663110925570

What did Trash Hero do at the treaty talks?

It was Trash Hero World’s first time attending a UNEP event, as a recently accredited civil society organisation, and it was a huge honour to represent our volunteers and work alongside committed and knowledgeable colleagues in the Break Free From Plastic and GAIA networks.

Trash Hero World and other NGOs have the role of “observers” at UNEP: we cannot decide anything that goes into the treaty, but we are allowed to be present and – to some extent – heard at the negotiations, both formally and informally through discussions with official government delegates.

We were able to meet with the representatives from our major countries of operation – Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia and Switzerland – as well as several others. We also joined many side events to hear from experts in the fields of plastic toxicity and recycling (among others) and from indigenous leaders from the Global South.

With meetings starting early morning and negotiations going on well into the night, it was an intense and fruitful week, despite some early setbacks. Here are the key talking points:

1. Voting vs. consensus
Precious negotiating time was lost as a bloc of oil and plastic producing nations reopened an old discussion about the rules of procedure. They called for all treaty decisions to be made by “consensus”, i.e. unanimous agreement, rather than the 2/3 majority vote provisionally agreed at INC-1 in Uruguay, and refused to move forward until this point was resolved. Others present at the meeting observed that consensus would:

a) give any individual country veto power over the rest and
b) likely result in a weaker and / or voluntary set of measures being adopted, due to the difficulty of accommodating all interests

After more than 2 days of deadlock, a temporary compromise was reached, whereby the bloc’s objection to voting was mentioned in a footnote to the rule. This left less than 3 days for discussion on content – as well as the possibility that the issue could rear its head again at subsequent meetings.

2. Upstream vs. downstream
From the outset, countries have been divided over whether the treaty should focus on stronger, upstream measures to end plastic pollution (such as reducing the production of plastic and its associated chemicals and promoting reuse with safe alternatives) or instead look to weaker, downstream measures (such as reducing “leakage” and “improving*” waste management).

At INC-2, it was encouraging to see a majority of countries, including the EU, Switzerland, many small island developing states, Mexico, Senegal, New Zealand and others, openly support more ambitious upstream solutions. 135 out of 180 countries also called for the final rules to be globally binding for all countries. Countries who produce fossil fuels, petrochemicals and plastic unsurprisingly favoured downstream measures and a “bottom up” approach, where individual countries could pick and choose which measures to adopt.

Despite these fundamental differences, at the end of the week, a mandate was given to the INC secretariat to develop a first draft of the treaty to ‘reflect all viewpoints’. Although this will not be an easy task – especially if we are to keep the original ambition to regulate the whole life cycle of plastics, it was welcomed as a positive outcome and one that puts the negotiations back on track after the delays at the start of the week.

Intersessional work (informal meetings between now and INC-3) has also been mandated to make up for lost time and to set up scientific panels to advise member states on different issues. Who will sit on those panels will also be a topic for debate.

*”improving” in this context often includes false solutions such as incineration and chemical recycling.

3. Stakeholders vs. rights holders
UNEP reversed its decision to restrict access to civil society observers after an NGO action on the first day of the meeting, though access remains an ongoing issue for independent scientists, youth and indigenous peoples.

At the same time, at least 190 plastics industry lobbyists were present at the talks – some even joining official government delegations. UNEP regards this as normal “stakeholder” participation but this term, as GAIA notes, implies a “false symmetry […] between the perpetrators of plastic pollution and affected communities”. We should instead privilege the voices of “rights-holders” across the plastics life cycle. There is already a precedent for this, with WHO keeping the tobacco industry out of negotiations for the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control more than 20 years ago.

What happens now?
All eyes are now on INC-3 and the potential draft treaty that will emerge in the coming months, following the intersessional work and further submissions by member states and observers. The meeting is scheduled to be held in Nairobi in November 2023. We will have further updates on our social media channels @trashheroworld.

Group of volunteers smiling at the camera. ll are wearing Trash Hero -shirts

Our Impact up to 31st December 2022

by Lydia on 15/02/2023 2 comments

Every week volunteers around the world put on their yellow t-shirts and commit to working towards a world free from plastic pollution – but what does it really mean to be a Trash Hero?

It means that we are a global movement. Trash Hero is currently active in 139 locations in 17 countries. To date, our movement has mobilised 466,578 volunteers, 120,673 of whom were under 16! We are passionate about including a wide range of people in our activities, and we celebrate this diversity as much as possible.

Being a Trash Hero also means taking regular action against plastic pollution. In 2022 alone, Trash Hero volunteers organised 3,296 cleanups – an average of 9 cleanups a day and 45 kgs per event! This brings our total number of cleanups since 2013 to an incredible 18,206, removing a total of 2,302,862 kgs of trash

We help people reduce single-use plastic through our refill and reuse programmes. To date, we have distributed 106,188 reusable water bottles through our partner network, which includes 673 points where people can refill their bottle for free. This has prevented an incredible 38,8 million single-use plastic bottles from being used and has reduced 2017.572 tonnes of CO2 emissions. We have also distributed 29,520 reusable Trash Hero bags, preventing the use of 10.8 million single-use plastic bags

Trash Hero is also committed to inspiring a new generation of activists! Our dedicated kids programme, which began in 2018, has helped 23,330 kids build sustainable habits. This is done through our story and activities book

As well as hands-on action within communities, Trash Hero is committed to collecting data that can be used to influence policy change on plastic. Trash Heroes have conducted 402 brand audits that have been included in reports holding corporate polluters responsible. These reports have been submitted to the UN negotiations for a Global Plastics Treaty.

But it’s not just about the numbers. Being a Trash Hero means that we feel connected with your fellow volunteers, we are motivated to create change and we are thankful to everyone who supports and contributes to our movement.

And most of all, it means that we are family!

Thank you to all of our volunteers who have been part of the incredible impact that we have had. We can’t wait to see what 2023 brings!

We have been collecting data since December 2013; as of 31st December 2022 these are our numbers!

18,206 cleanups
139 active chapters in 17 countries
466,578 volunteers, including 120,673 under 16s
Responsibly collected and disposed of 2,302,862 kg of trash
As part of the Trash Hero Bottle program, 106,188 reusable bottles have been distributed, avoiding 38.8 million single-use plastic bottles and reducing 2,107 tonnes of CO2 emissions
As part of the Trash Hero Bag program, 29,520 reusable Trash Hero bags have been distributed, saving 10.8 million single-use plastic bags

Do you want to be part of a movement that is dedicated to creating change? Trash Hero cleanups are open for everyone to join – no cost, no sign-up, just show up! Find your nearest chapter here.

Winter is coming, plastic has to go: how the ongoing fuel crisis is linked to the plastics industry

by Lydia on 20/10/2022 No comments

A fascinating new report, ‘Winter is coming’ by Break Free From Plastic and CIEL, explores how the ongoing fuel crisis is linked to the plastics industry.

The Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 has affected energy supplies and, consequently, prices worldwide. This is especially true for European countries that rely on Russia for oil and gas – in 2020, Russia supplied 38% of the EU’s gas and 22% of their oil. By August 2022, it became clear to the EU that they were facing a severe energy crisis and limited supplies of oil and gas meant that prices continued to soar. There have been warnings of power cuts lasting up to 3 hours to try and save energy, and millions of people are concerned about how they can afford to stay warm over what could be a freezing winter.

In response to these concerns, the EU set a target for all member countries to reduce their energy consumption by 15% by 31 March 2023. To help achieve this, governments have been advising consumers about how they can reduce their energy use. For example, Germany recommended that its citizens take cold showers and limit the use of their heating. However, industrial use of oil and gas continues unabated, with no government advice or restrictions to date.

So how does this relate to plastic?

Currently, the plastics industry is the largest consumer of oil and gas in the EU, accounting for 8% and 9% of the EU’s final consumption in 2020, respectively ¹ . It overshadows any other industry, including steel, automobile manufacturing, machinery, food, and beverages. Within the plastics industry in the EU, over 40% of end-market plastics produced are instant waste – single-use plastic packaging.

The EU and its member states have been leaders in tackling the plastics crisis. In 2018 the EU released its Plastics Strategy, which aims to ‘transform the way plastic products are designed, produced, used and recycled’ and is described as ‘a key element of Europe’s transition to a circular economy’ ² . In 2019 they announced the Single Use Plastics Directive that set a collection target of 90% for recycling single-use plastic bottles by 2029. ³ This leadership was particularly evident at the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA) in March 2022, when there was a historic advance in negotiations for a global agreement to tackle plastic pollution.

Despite all that the EU has tried to do to reduce plastic pollution, there has been no mention of placing a cap on the production of unnecessary plastic or restricting the activity of the petrochemical industry. This, despite their significant contribution to climate change and their continuing depletion of precious oil and gas reserves.

The report found that if plastic packaging was reduced by 50% and the target of 90% recycling was achieved, this would lead to a reduction of 6.2 billion cubic metres (bcm) of fossil gas and 8.7 million tonnes of oil at the EU level compared to 2020. These figures are equivalent to the oil and gas consumption of the entire Czech Republic in 2020.⁴

The report concludes that, rather than seeking new trade deals for fossil fuels, this situation presents the EU with a unique opportunity to address the energy, climate and plastic crisis. Immediate and drastic action should be taken to reduce the production of unnecessary and excessive virgin plastic by implementing the Plastics Strategy from 2018 and the Single Use Plastics Directive from 2019. In turn, this would significantly reduce greenhouse emissions, reduce plastic pollution and free up the limited energy supplies. The oil and gas that would have been used to produce plastic could instead supply millions of people with reliable and more affordable energy over the winter.

You can read the Executive Summary of the report or the full report.

Footnotes & further reading:

Trash Hero Thailand Country Coordinator – Full Time, Remote

by Seema on 07/09/2022 No comments

Trash Hero Thailand is hiring! Please see below for job description.

This is a full time position (40+ hours a week), open to Thai citizens only.
Available immediately – applications will remain open until the position is filled.

Salary
– Based on location (local salary rates) and experience

About Trash Hero
Trash Hero Thailand (THT) is a registered association that leads, supports and governs the Trash Hero volunteer movement within Thailand, working for a clean world, free from plastic pollution. It is part of the Trash Hero World (THW) network, which has been active since December 2013.

In Thailand, there are around 30 Trash Hero chapters (local groups) in communities all over the kingdom. Activities focus on a weekly cleanup involving the local community, but volunteers are also involved in other projects, such as running a water bottle refill network, kids’ education, outreach work and zero waste advocacy.

Our country coordinator manages those chapters and activities and works closely with the global programmes team, which includes around 10 people, both volunteers and full-time staff.

Work Culture
We have an open, friendly and supportive work culture, with staff and volunteers working together at all levels of the organisation. We live the values of our Trash Hero Family and we are all personally committed to a zero waste future.

The Trash Hero Thailand country coordinator will work remotely from home (we do not have any offices). Team members connect over chat and meet regularly online during the week, often with international colleagues from Southeast Asia and the global programmes team.

Working hours are flexible and overtime and occasional weekend / out of hours work are considered part of the job. All working hours need to be documented.

Role description

The Trash Hero Thailand country coordinator helps to support and deliver our programmes within Thailand. It is a demanding position that will suit someone who enjoys multi-tasking and using a wide range of skills from people management to admin.

Country coordination requires a high level of organisation, excellent communication and networking skills, experience in (volunteer) training or coaching, as well as a passion for, commitment to and knowledge of zero waste and the Trash Hero mission.

You will work both independently, and as part of the global programmes team, to ensure that our operations in Thailand run smoothly, that our work is consistently of a high standard and that it creates the maximum impact possible. You will report directly to the Trash Hero World Programme Coordinator.

Key Duties & Responsibilities

PROGRAMMES SUPPORT & DELIVERY

Mentor new chapters and provide day-to-day support to existing chapters
Manage and expand bottles & bags and kids & education programmes
Monitor activity of existing chapters and identify potential issues with compliance; or good work that deserves praise or mention to THW
Stay informed about issues related to plastic pollution, zero waste, national policies, and potential solutions.
(With support from THW) Prepare and lead webinars, workshops and other volunteer training activities
(With support from THW) Create training materials, presentation slides and other programme materials as needed
Send out and collect chapter and programme surveys as required
Provide input for programme improvement to THW

PROGRAMMES ADMIN

Coordinate with suppliers and organise delivery of Trash Hero products and marketing materials
Process orders from volunteers and customers and make sure they know and follow correct procedures for payment etc.
Maintain stock reports of bottles, bags, kids books and other programme materials
Maintain a national contact database of refill points
Maintain up to date local language versions of all written and graphical programme materials (e.g. chapter handbook)
Collate and check cleanup data for all chapters on a monthly basis
Collate and check brand audit data for all chapters on a monthly basis
Produce weekly cleanup schedule for social media
Collate best photographs of all activities for THW image library
Administer the Meta Business Manager for all chapter social media accounts

COMMUNICATION

Act as first point of contact for the public, volunteers and other stakeholders
Filter emails, calls and social media messages and reply or forward to relevant people
Be in regular contact with chapter leaders via group chats and private channels
Write and send any general THT correspondence (e.g. invitation letters, thank you letters)
Manage THT’s social media channels, including developing and posting daily content
Analyse and report on social media engagement
Coach chapters to use the correct brand voice and narrative and monitor their (social) media posts

FINANCIAL ADMIN

Prepare all expenses claims to Trash Hero standards
Monthly and annual bookkeeping for the Association
Organise salary, insurance and tax payments and related admin
Lead the accounting at Family Meetings
Give input for the Association annual budget

GENERAL ADMIN

Organise volunteer Family Meetings (invitations, hotel, travel, meals, other logistics)
Organise regular meetings for the Board, mentor team, THW etc.
Take minutes at meetings i.e. Board and family meetings
Translate (or arrange translation of) key documents into Thai / English when required
Keep contact info, organisation chart and other records of the country up to date
Organise travel for Board and chapter leaders as required

Experience & Skills

Essential

Thai native speaker, with good English (B2 level)
Excellent communication skills (written, spoken and non-verbal)
10-12+ years of work experience, in an administrative, customer service or communications role
Good IT skills (Excel, Word, Powerpoint and Google equivalents, including Forms)
Basic design skills (Canva)
Ability to work with people of different ages, backgrounds and cultures
Good time management and ability to prioritise tasks
Accurate, thorough and efficient way of working

Desirable

Experience of volunteering with Trash Hero or other NGO in a similar field
Networking skills
Public speaking / presentation skills
Translation skills (English to Thai)
Video editing skills

Applications & recruitment timeline
STEP ONE: Applications should be made by email to info @ trashhero.org and include:

your CV with 2 references
a cover letter
a short (< 2 minutes) video introducing yourself and explaining why you want to work for Trash Hero (simple recording with phone, no editing needed)

Incomplete applications will not be reviewed.

STEP TWO: Successful candidates will be contacted for an initial online interview.

STEP THREE: The second round will involve a period of (part-time) volunteering, alongside the current country coordinator. Trash Hero is an organisation that depends entirely on volunteers, so this is a great opportunity to understand that dynamic, as well as allowing both sides to get to know each other before making a commitment. If all goes well, a formal job offer will follow.

World Refill Day: How you can have an impact

by Lydia on 16/06/2022 No comments

Plastic production is increasing, how can we – as concerned citizens- change this? We want to inspire you to make small changes and demand bigger ones so that globally we have a meaningful impact.

This World Refill Day (June 16th) we’re taking a closer look at refill and reuse and discovering why they are the key to reducing plastic pollution. We’ll share what we’ve been doing to support refill and show you how you can also make an impact with your actions. We’ll show you how to encourage the support of businesses who are providing refills, motivate you to examine the way products are sold and ultimately inspire you to integrate more refillables into your household and routine.

So why do we need to refill?

Currently, 380 million tonnes of plastics are produced each year ⁵_, over half of which are single-use plastics ⁶ . Around 9% of this plastic gets recycled, with less than 2% being effectively recycled⁷. The rest is littered, landfilled, burned or shipped around the world for someone else to deal with. The sheer volume of waste being generated means even improved recycling is not a practical solution – even if plastic manufacturers would like us to think it is.

The only solution that we know works is to reduce the amount of plastic being produced, especially single-use plastic. Refill and reuse of containers and packaging is one of the easiest and most efficient ways to reduce the amount of plastic needed in the world. Making refill the norm can start at an individual level and then must be supported by the local business community, government infrastructure and eventually by big consumer goods companies.

The benefits of refill are not just limited to reducing plastic waste in the environment. Reducing plastic also has a positive climate impact by reducing CO2 emissions. Plastic production and use currently accounts for around 4% of global carbon emissions, more than the entire airline industry. Integrating more refills into your routine will also have a positive impact on your wallet. Refilling as much as you need rather than buying pre-packaged amounts often works out cheaper, as does refilling drinking water. Many businesses also offer discounts for people who bring their own containers for takeaway food and drink.

So what can I do as an individual?

Make refilling a habit

Think about your daily routine – where do you eat lunch? What items do you regularly buy in single-use plastic? Then try and find ways in which you can swap the single-use for reuse or refill.

The simplest way is to switch to a reusable water bottle. If you already own one, you can encourage others to do the same!

There are many places that offer free water refills, especially in countries where you can drink from the tap. Even in those where you can’t, local refill networks such as the one created by Trash Hero (see below) often exist to help people stay hydrated while avoiding single-use plastic.

To see the impact you have when using a refillable water bottle you can use our free Bottle Impact Calculator. Share your results online to inspire others – and don’t forget to tag us @trashheroworld!

It’s not just water bottles

Let’s remember, It’s not just water bottles that can be refilled and reused! You can bring your own reusable cups and containers at many takeaway places and markets and more and more stores are offering refills of day-to-day essentials such as toiletries, cleaning products and groceries.

Even without a local refill store you can still take action: try a reusable container for your lunch (home made or takeaway) and a thermos for your coffee. You don’t necessarily need to buy anything new to start this, there are things in our houses that will do the job! Old takeaway containers are great to reuse for a packed lunch and old jam jars are perfect for home-made instant noodles – there are endless options and ideas out there! Have a look through your cupboards and see what can be repurposed for your refill journey.

reusable plates, world refill day — Reusable plates – Trash Hero Indonesia Family Meeting

refillable pots, world refill day — Reusable plates – Trash Hero Indonesia Family Meeting

Start a conversation

Talking about refill and how easy it is helps to make the idea accessible and normal for people around you. Make it your aim to research as many places as possible in your local community that allow you to bring your own container for purchases, or ask your friends and neighbours if they have any recommendations for water refills or other reuse tips. Share your findings with your network so that others are encouraged to try.

If there isn’t currently any refill store in your area, maybe there is a friendly local business that you can approach. Try bringing your own cup or container and start a discussion or brainstorm ways in which they could trial refills in their stores. A conversation is the first step to changing behaviour and consumer feedback is extremely powerful.

Support businesses that care

As we’ve mentioned, your feedback as a consumer holds power. This isn’t just about refusing single-use plastic in bigger stores, but supporting those businesses that are offering refills. Be sure to tell them you love what they do, share their sites on social media and encourage others to go there too.

A great resource for refill and reuse programmes is the Living Landscape of Reduse Solutions database – it provides fantastic information about the different ways refill works to eliminate waste, as well as an up-to-date list of refill and reuse providers. You can use it for research or submit your favourite store to their database.

Demand change

It is important to remember that refill is not a new idea. In fact, not so long ago refill was the norm in most countries. For example, products such as milk and soft drinks were delivered in refillable glass bottles. It’s easy to revive these systems and even improve them with new technology and materials.

Whenever you hear a company talking about more or better recycling, remind them and those around you that the real solution is to reduce and reuse / refill. Only when they realise people understand the link between their products and pollution and climate change will they change their packaging and delivery systems.

It may feel overwhelming at times, but together we have the power to demand change and show commitment to that change in our daily habits and purchases.

So what are Trash Hero doing about refills?

The Trash Hero bottle refill programme offers a safe and affordable alternative to single-use plastic bottles. We provide stainless steel water bottles at cost price to local businesses, who then sell them on and provide free drinking water refills to any bottle owner. We have a network of more than 700 refill points, predominantly in Southeast Asia, but also in Czech Republic. A study looked at the impact of refilling the Trash Hero bottle alongside the equivalent number of single-use plastic water bottles and concluded: ‘As a direct comparison between packaging systems, the Trash Hero reusable bottle reduces your [CO2 emissions] by around 95% vs. single-use plastic.’ ⁸ To date, we have sold 102,470 bottles and estimate that 37 million plastic bottles have been avoided as a result of the programme.⁹

Another Trash Hero refill project saw us partner with Swiss cosmetics company, Schnarwiler AG, to launch a range of refillable beauty products with 100% natural ingredients. Essential items such as hand and body soap, shampoo, conditioner and body lotion are packaged in recycled glass bottles and refilled in local stores from bulk containers that are also washed and reused. Since the project started in 2018, the refill network has grown to 84 outlets and 11 hotels, including a popular national chain store, demonstrating that such projects can be implemented on a large scale. It is estimated that 52,882 plastic bottles (200ml) have been avoided thanks to refill.

We’d love to hear from you about your refill journey. Any great refill or reuse ideas that you’ve found helpful? Any stores in your area that you want people to know about? Share in the comments below or tag us on social media!

Footnotes and references: