С����Ƶ

I think that what's really sad

0:06

is that the state of our planet right now

0:08

is that it is

0:09

drowning under the plastic waste.

0:13

Whether it's macroplastics,

0:15

microplastics

0:16

or nanoplastics,

0:17

we now find these plastics

0:18

everywhere on the planet.

0:19

From the top of the tallest mountain

0:21

to the bottom of the deepest ocean.

0:24

We're seeing it

0:24

washing up on our shores all around us

0:27

as we speak.

0:28

We also find them in our bodies.

0:31

It's out of control.

0:35

The environmental and ecological challenges

0:37

we're facing are that plastics are interfering

0:40

with healthy functioning of ecosystems.

0:44

We have got a chemical crisis,

0:45

the biodiversity crisis

0:47

and the climate crisis.

0:53

It's been estimated that by 2025

0:57

there will be more plastics

0:58

than fish in the ocean.

1:01

The Revolution Plastics Institute has a really strong

1:04

mission driven research agenda

1:06

to tackle the negative effects

1:08

of plastic pollution

1:09

across the entire plastics lifecycle.

1:17

Collaboration within our group

1:19

in the С����Ƶ

1:20

is absolutely essential

1:21

to finding how to deal

1:23

with the problem of plastics.

1:24

We need to be able to live sustainably.

1:26

And to do that,

1:27

you need to have those people

1:28

that understand the different components

1:31

of how society works.

1:41

We can have all the scientific

1:42

and economic and social evidence we need,

1:45

but ultimately it's about changing policy

1:47

to actually make a difference.

1:49

Industry is not aware about

1:51

what the chemical composition

1:52

of their plastics is,

1:53

what happens when it breaks down

1:55

and what the effect of that is

1:57

when it's made into something else.

1:58

Researchers leading the direction

2:00

in terms of gathering knowledge and sharing

2:03

recommendations is the only way

2:05

we're going to move the dial.

2:07

The research has an incredibly

2:08

important role to offer.

2:09

We know that political education,

2:11

when packaged publicly in an accessible way,

2:14

can totally transform

2:16

the way that people envision

2:17

a sustainable future.

2:20

С����Ƶ as a case study site

2:22

is a very interesting place

2:24

because it's an island city.

2:25

It is a mesocosm of

2:27

what's going on around the UK

2:28

and what's going on around the globe.

2:29

С����Ƶ is the perfect place

2:30

to host the Revolution Plastics Institute

2:32

because С����Ƶ as a city exhibits

2:34

all of the challenges

2:35

we face when trying to tackle

2:37

the global plastics crisis.

2:39

So we can test out solutions

2:40

and ideas here

2:41

that we can apply elsewhere

2:42

and hopefully scale up

2:43

to make a real difference.

2:45

If you have hundreds,

2:46

thousands of people collecting data,

2:48

you can really build up a good picture

2:51

of what's happening in our environment.

2:53

The goal of the Revolution Plastics Institute

2:55

is to bring people with us on a journey,

2:57

whether you're in government.

2:59

in the private sector,

3:01

in a campaign group

3:02

or a member of the public.

3:04

We've all got a role to play in tackling

3:05

the global plastics crisis,

3:07

and that's what our institute will do.

3:08

We are accumulating vast amounts of plastic waste.

3:12

We've produced more plastic

3:14

in the last 10 years

3:15

than in the previous 100 years.

3:17

We're currently producing 400 million tonnes

3:19

of plastic waste per year.

3:21

That's set to double by 2040.

3:24

And of that plastic waste,

3:25

only 9% is being recycled.

3:27

We need to be challenging the status quo

3:30

and we need to transform

3:32

the way that we work with plastics.

3:34

Our plastic waste is an enormous symptom

3:37

of our addiction to fossil fuels.

3:39

This has resulted

3:40

in a very difficult state for our planet,

3:43

but crucially,

3:44

it's resulted in a lot of people

3:45

feeling like they can't see a way out,

3:47

a way to live without plastic.

3:48

The abnormal has become completely normal,

3:51

and people can't actually remember

3:53

a time when these plastic mountains weren't present.

3:56

It’s very important that everyone takes action

3:58

right now, and not tomorrow

3:59

and not the day after.

4:01

Not after a year, or after ten years.

4:02

We need that action right now.