On June 30, 2022, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 54 (SB 54), a new state law supposedly designed to significantly reduce plastic pollution. However, many environmental and social justice groups have mixed feelings and some opposed SB 54—reflecting the challenging regulatory landscape within which plastic legislation is formulated, and industries’ outsized lobbying efforts which too often take center stage over human and environmental health. Known as the Plastic Pollution Prevention and Packaging Producer Responsibility Act, SB 54 has been touted by lawmakers, some nonprof ..read more

“There’s a famous speech in 1957 where a marketing guy showed up at a plastics industry conference and said, “the future of plastic is in the trash can … if you can convince people to throw it away.” — Jackie Nuñez, Advocacy & Engagement Manager for Plastic Pollution Coalition and Founder of The Last Plastic Straw From June 13–16, 2022; activists from across the #BreakFreeFromPlastic movement converged on Washington D.C. to lobby members of Congress to sign on to/co-sponsor the Break Free From Plastic Pollution Act. The proposed legislation, sponsored by Sen. Jeff Merkley (OR) and Rep. Ala ..read more

Every morning when you wake up, what do you pour into your cup?  For many of us, an early cup (or a few!) of coffee or tea is a daily ritual. But did you know that along with your morning brew, you might also be sipping on a hefty dose of plastic?  A major focus of this Plastic Free July—a global month-long movement to encourage people to engage in solutions to plastic pollution—is the ubiquitous single-use plastic coffee (or tea) cup. So this month we are highlighting why it’s important to cut plastic out of your “morning brew” routine—and we will show you how to do it! Get Plastic ..read more

“And that’s what we see with sperm decline. We do see a dramatic decline. Dramatic decline. Cut in half—99 million per milliliter in 1973 and down to 47 million per milliliter in 2011. That’s 39 years. It’s a decline of 52% which is faster than 1% per year, and if you thought about anything else, like breast cancer or ADHD or anything else increasing or changing at that rate people would be up in arms. But for some reason, they’re not so alarmed about this decline.” — Dr. Shanna Swan Dr. Shanna Swan (@DrShannaSwan) is an epidemiologist and Professor of Environmental Medicine and Public Health ..read more

BREAKING – The U.S. Government has announced it will evaluate its practices for reducing the purchasing of unnecessary single-use plastics.   A February 2022 petition led by the Center of Biological Diversity and supported by 180 other community and conservation groups named the U.S. government as the largest consumer of goods and services in the world. In response, the Government Services Administration (GSA) has called for public comment to help shape the future rules in purchasing single-use plastics contained within agency contracts. This historic move would greatly contribute t ..read more

Guest blog by Kathryn Nelson, Plastic-Free Mermaid Who is Plastic-Free Mermaid? I haven’t used single-use plastics in over a decade (13 years and 4 months to be exact!) and I’ve phased out most other plastics from my life in that time as well. I make most of my own products, track down natural materials to replace common plastic items, and when I can’t find a substitute, I settle for repurposed or second-hand plastics. It is such a rewarding lifestyle. I feel fortunate to have learned about plastic in college, and that my career took me into conservation work. Today, I continue to lobby for ch ..read more

Action Alert! On Thursday, June 30, at 11:30am EST, the House Subcommittee on Environment and Climate Change will hold a virtual hearing to discuss the CLEAN Future Act, legislation aimed at cutting the country’s greenhouse gas emissions to “net zero” by 2050. Waste reduction is a major aspect of the CLEAN Future Act’s comprehensive set of carbon-cutting policies, and recycling is a major focus. While the legislation does have some good points, unfortunately, it includes several problematic provisions. Along with our allies at Break Free From Plastic and Global Alliance for Incinerator Alterna ..read more

There's no entry fee. Deadline for submissions is August 1, 2022. Are you a TV writer who wants to share positive, inspiring visions of a better future for people and nature on screen? Do you envision a world free of plastic pollution? Well, now’s your opportunity to inspire change by entering the Blue Sky Scriptwriting Competition!  Instead of the typical dystopian hellscape of a scorched earth, polluted by plastics, plagued by injustice, and wrecked by war, can you envision a new utopia?  If our efforts to create a more just, equitable, sustainable world free of plastic pollution a ..read more

June 18 is International Surfing Day, and surfers were among the first to call attention to the global plastic pollution crisis. From the coasts of the United States to the shores of Australia to the beaches of Southeast Asia and South America, plastic has been washing ashore at greater and greater volumes over the past several decades, as the plastics and petrochemical industries pump out the material at an accelerating pace. And so a dedicated subculture of wave riders found themselves turning to activism to protect the beaches and waters they loved from plastic pollution. Plastic Pollution ..read more

Juneteenth is a celebration of Black resilience and an urgent call to action to address long-standing discrimination, including the environmental injustices Black people in America continue to face. This Sunday, June 19, we observe Juneteenth, a day marking the end of chattel slavery in the United States. The first people to celebrate Juneteenth were enslaved Blacks in Galveston, Texas, who claimed their stolen freedom at the end of the Civil War. At its core, Juneteenth is about Black resilience despite widespread systemic exploitation and abuse. At the same time, it is a stark reminder that ..read more