Plastic is the defining material of our time—once hailed as a miracle, now recognized as a major contributor to the triple planetary crisis: climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss. Nearly half of today’s plastic production is for packaging and single-use disposables, and it’s making both our bodies and our ecosystems sick.
Unlike other toxic materials like asbestos or lead, plastic is more insidious: over 16,000 chemicals are used to manufacture a dizzying array of resins and products. With plastic production having reached 504 Mt in 2022 and expected to more than double by 2050, the scale of the threat is staggering—and largely unchecked. But science is finally catching up to a century of petrochemical ambition. The diagnosis is becoming clear.
In this keynote, Dr. Carney Almroth and Mr. Gedert examine the symptoms of our plastic-sickened world and deliver a candid prognosis. From petrochemical sacrifice zones to microplastic contamination, from toxic additives to global policy responses, they’ll explore where unchecked plastic production has brought us—and what lies ahead if the system remains untreated.
Moderator: Jeremy Drake, Zero Waste USA
Speakers:
- Bethanie Carney Almroth Ph.D, Professor of Ecotoxicology University of Gothenburg, Sweden, and Co-coordinator of the Scientists Coalition for an Effective Plastics Treaty
- Bob Gedert, Adjunct Professor, Xavier University – Cincinnati