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Plastic Pollution Projects

Below we showcase our research to understand, conceptualise and quantitatively model plastics pollution across the world, with an emphasis on the Global South.

No challenge is too big for human ingenuity and determination to address. We strive to provide the evidence base for equitable and genuinely sustainable solutions to plastic pollution, enabling a circular economy.

Explore our work to quantify and prevent plastic pollution, ending mismanaged waste worldwide, and enabling a global circular economy that goes well beyond traditional resources recovery.

Plastic Pollution Projects

Plastic-to-Oceans (P2O)

A first of a kind model to analyse the stocks and flows of plastic waste flowing through global society

UNESCAP Closing the Loop - 4 major ASEAN cities

A UNESCAP project, in collaboration with IGES (Institute for Global Environmental Strategies, Japan).
Development of comprehensive plastic waste management flow, hotspot and leakages in four multi-city regions in ASEAN through application of the ISWA Plastic Pollution Calculator.

Plastic Pollution Prevention by Informal Sector – GRID Arendal

A project to quantify the contribution of the informal waste sector to plastic pollution mitigation

Plastic Pollution Assessment Methodologies Suitability Toolkit (PLAST)

A toolkit enabling users to identify which plastic pollution assessment methodology is best suited to their needs and resources

OECD Plastics Outlook

The most comprehensive global plastic flow model to date

Plastic Waste Assessment - Kerala State India

A World Bank Group project, in collaboration with Resource Futures.

The Bali Partnership - ISWA PPC

A SYSTEMIQ project which in Phase 1 determined the baseline level of plastic pollution across the Island of Bali by application of the ISWA Plastic Pollution Calculator

PISCES - Indonesia

A multidisciplinary collaboration with nine universities determined to eradicate plastic pollution in Indonesia

WFD: Waste Flow Diagram

A GIZ project for development of a toolkit for rapid assessment of a cities plastic pollution

Circular Economy Projects in the Global South

SoCo: Selective Solidary Collection

A methodological tool and training package to more objectively quantify and elaborate potential impacts and benefits of selective waste collection and recycling services, including those operated by waste pickers

InteRa: Integration Radar

A toolkit for performing a combined technological, socioeconomic and environmental analysis of resource recovery systems

WABI: Wasteware Cities Benchmark Indicators

An analytical framework and tool for integrating the informal recycling sector in waste and resource management systems in developing countries