The world is squandering its plastics treaty moment

An op-ed in the Daily Star by Dr. Shahriar Hossain, Senior Policy and Technical Advisor for Environment and Social Development Organization -ESDO, an IPEN member group from Bangladesh, notes that for years, the United Nations has promised a legally binding global agreement to end the plastic crisis. Geneva’s latest round of talks, held from August 5 to August 15, was meant to deliver progress. Instead, it ended in paralysis. The world’s most ambitious environmental negotiation has been reduced to brackets in a draft and deepening fractures between nations.

But there is still a landing zone. Voting rules could unblock the process. A global package deal could combine reduction targets, chemical controls, and design-for-circularity standards with a dedicated plastics fund for developing nations. Annexes could keep technical details flexible without reopening the treaty every time. And if the full committee cannot move, a coalition of ambitious states could go ahead, setting standards now and docking into a future UN treaty later.

Read the full article here.