The real solutions to pollution (including plastic) are movements, and if implemented fully, will not only solve the pollution problem they’ll add trillions to the global economy.
First, holding producers responsible for the full life cycles of their products. In the United States, Democratic lawmakers introduced the “Break Free from Plastic Pollution Act 2020,” analogous to the EU’s “extended producer responsibility” schemes, that would require plastic producers to “collect and recycle their own waste” and “phase out certain single-use plastic items” (Goldsberry, 2020). Needless to say, this faced strong opposition from those such as the CEO of the Plastics Industry Association Tony Radoszewski, who advocated instead for improved recycling infrastructure so that plastic companies need not take on the extra burden (we know that recycling only increases…
Among the biggest pieces of global gaslighting the world has ever seen is the one that convinced consumers and local governments to accept responsibility for litter and plastic pollution.
Gaslighting at this level is a decades-long endeavour, but it can be undone with less effort than it takes you to remember to bring your reusable bags to the supermarket.
Part one of this series details how we were sold this story and why. Hint — recycling was never designed to work!
Part two provides insights and access to the real solution.
Buckle up, this is both a fascinating story and…
Exposure to plastic adversely affects our health, but in ways that often go unnoticed until it is too late.
Unbeknownst to many of us, plastic occupies a fair share of our diets. To put its impact into perspective, data published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology quantifies that the average person consumes between 74,000 to 121,000 particles of microplastic each year — the equivalent of one credit card’s worth per week (Cox et al., 2019; Knapton, 2019).
But, how does this plastic get into our bodies in the first place, and what does it do once it gets there?
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We are looking for an amazing human to fill a Director of the board at Humble Bee
With our wonderful Chair, Greg Sitters leaving [see post on this here] we’re looking for someone to join our board as we prepare for our Series A.
I’ve taken inspiration from fellow wāhine founder, Anna Guenther of PledgeMe fame and we’ve decided to crowdsource applications.
We want to go wider. We want to hear from amazing people we wouldn’t have found otherwise. You are our crowd — fans and investors. …
This week we are sad to announce that Humble Bee’s founding Chairman, Greg Sitters, is stepping down.
After over two years of hard work, sage advice and mentoring, Greg is moving on to focus on the growth of his science focused investment fund, Matū, where he is a Founding Managing Partner.
I cold called Greg one Thursday afternoon in 2016 — later he told me he was at the NZ Angel Conference in Havelock North and went and stood in the rain to listen to my story. He was so enthusiastic about Humble Bee I couldn’t stop the questions and…
Pollution caused by plastics is a major problem globally. In New Zealand, it is number five on the list of things we are most concerned about.
With good reason too. Our biological systems are being polluted by hormone-disrupting, gene altering and cancer-causing substances leaching from plastics that are used in the millions of tonnes per year.
Our oceans in particular are awash with toxic single-use plastic. As fish eat it, then so do we — ingesting our own throwaway culture.
None of this changes the fact that plastics are incredibly useful. If you have ever worn a raincoat, used a…
Humble Bee
Biotech company making new plastics inspired by a species of solitary bee.
