Global Plastics Treaty: a crucial step for our planet
This week, in Busan, South Korea, countries from around the world are meeting for the final stage of UN negotiations on a global treaty against plastic pollution.
🛍 Three days before Black Friday, the symbol of overconsumption, it’s essential to remember that this shopping frenzy directly feeds the massive production of plastic and the pollution that comes with it.
The aim of this treaty? To put an end to a crisis that threatens our health, biodiversity and climate. The world has never needed an ambitious agreement more.
📉 Why take action?
If nothing changes, plastic production and waste could triple by 2060, with devastating consequences, particularly in developing countries, where waste management systems are saturated.
Microplastics are now found everywhere: in our organs, our placentas, and even in our circulatory system, amplifying the risks to our health.
🌎 The stakes of the treaty :
A group of over 60 countries, including Rwanda and Norway, is calling for ambitious measures:
✅ Massive reduction in plastic production.
✅ Ban on single-use plastics and toxic chemicals.
✅ Global approach to the entire life cycle of plastics, from manufacture to end-of-life management.
⚡ A huge challenge:
Divergences persist, notably with plastic- and oil-producing countries. However, progress is possible if leaders like China and the United States make a firm commitment.
💬 Anne Beathe Tvinnereim, Norwegian Minister for International Development and co-chair of the High Ambition Coalition, sums up the urgency of the situation:
“We won’t have a perfect treaty, but it’s urgent to move forward. The world needs leadership and good news.”
We are at a historic turning point. Together, let us raise our voices of hope and action for a future without plastic pollution.