Hello, plastic-free oceans!

Do you produce, sell, provide, buy or use any types of plastics in Sweden? Or have you been waiting for the plastics market in Sweden to change? Then, this is the podcast for you! Come and join in on the ride towards a circular plastics economy in Sweden. Yes! We are moving away from taking, making and wasting together with the market on plastic products and packaging!  CreditsArtwork: Giancarlo MitidieriJingle: Frans Sjöberg

Malin discusses the global plastic pandemic and how plastic credits could be used for approaching a net circular plastics economy with the Plastics Lead of Verra, Maggie Lee. The talk is framed around these questions:   Q1: What is your take on the elephant in the room, our consumption? (01:22)Q2: Why are we even thinking about plastic credits? (02:24)Q3: What would net plastic circularity mean in practice? (03:47)Q4: Why are business slow at moving away from plastics? (05:12) Jane sums it all up with three keywords: plastic footprint mapping, reduction and plastic crediting. Tip! Learn even more about how to use plastic credits: https://verra.org/project/plastic-program/ and enter the marketplace for credits: https://www.circularactionhub.org/ CreditsArtwork: Giancarlo Mitidieri  Jingle: Frans Sjöberg

Malin explores the reasons to why we are leaking and how it’s connected to the plastic problem in Sweden with the CEO of the Keep Sweden Tidy Foundation, Johanna Ragnartz. The talk is framed around these questions: Q1: If I'm a business, how do I know if I'm leaking? (01:42)Q2: How are plastic products and packaging a problem in Sweden? (03:09)Q3: What’s behind the cause of plastics ending up in nature? (05:03)Q4: Do you have any examples of what are business doing today to stop the leakage at source? (06:24) In the end, Jane sums it up by emphasising the need to keep the leakage perspective central.  CreditsArtwork: Giancarlo MitidieriJingle: Frans Sjöberg

Malin discusses the two Rs – reuse and recycle – what it means in practice and the different material streams there are to it with the national plastics coordinator of the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency, Åsa Stenmarck. The talk is framed around these questions: Q1: Would you prefer a closed-loop recycling scheme or an open-loop recycling scheme if you were a business? (01:30)Q2: Do you think that we will need to have the open loop and the closed loop system separate, or would they be blended in the future? (03:28)Q3: We need to increase recycling from today's 8% to recycling a lot more into new raw materials. How will that affect existing easy-to-recycle streams? (04:30)Q4: Would it be possible to avoid sorting, and would that then mean to have closed loop systems? (06:33)Q5: All those streams on packaging that we have, do you think it would be possible for them to go reuse? (08:34)Q3: Do you have any tips on how a business could approach reuse schemes? (10:39) Jane shares some audience questions on single-use plastics and recycling that we will cover in the coming episodes and sums up three key take-aways.  CreditsArtwork: Giancarlo MitidieriJingle: Frans Sjöberg

Malin and Jane reflect on the notion of a circular plastics economy, and how tight it is connected this episode's name. We said what? Call To Action: submit your favorite circular plastic solutions as voicemail to oceanalliance@hsr.se Credits Artwork: Giancarlo Mitidieri Jingle: Frans Sjöberg 

Malin dives deep into the unknown of recycling, what barriers there are to the increase of it and how co-creation plays a role in overcoming the challenges with Lena Stig, Sustainable Plastic Use at the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The talk is framed around these questions: What is the current status on material recycling in Sweden? (00:55)What is the one thing we just don’t get, aiming for a circular plastics economy? (03:12)Do we have a material recycling gap? (05:07)Why is there a difference between being recyclable and being recycled? (06:25)What is needed to close the recycling gap? (07:14)To scale up the transformation towards a circular plastics economy, what do you see is essential to keep in mind? (08:47) Learn morePlastic in Sweden - facts and practical adviceInnovation competetion for sustainable plastic use CreditsArtwork: Giancarlo MitidieriJingle: Frans Sjöberg

Malin explores the misconception about plastics that’s something that would say poof and then disappear, together with Johanna Ragnartz, CEO of the Keep Sweden Tidy Foundation.  Call to action:What’s the worst plastics-myth you know? Send us a text or voicemail to oceanalliance@hsr.se and let's debunk the myths together! Credits Artwork: Giancarlo Mitidieri Jingle: Frans Sjöberg 

Malin talks about how the roadmap for sustainable use of plastics could help businesses in the transformation towards a circular plastics economy, together with the national plastics coordinator Åsa Stenmarck, at the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency. The talk is framed around these questions Q1. What priority areas are there? (00:23)Q2. How big of a leap does it mean for me as a producer? (02:41)Q3. How could businesses approach the ambition to stop the leakage? (05:24)Jane sums it all up with the question we should keep on top of our minds - about the very existence of the products put on the market.  Credits Artwork: Giancarlo Mitidieri Jingle: Frans Sjöberg 

We’ve got to close the loop on plastics, eliminate the leakage and ramp up the way we use resources repeatedly.  But,  how will we change the way our system is functioning today, going from a linear setup to a fully circular plastics economy? This is the first live seminar in a series of six, where Malin Leth and Anders Milder introduce the game plan for making large scale change in just a few years. LinksWatch the live seminarListen to the episode "Plastics loop"Sign up for our newsletterApply to join the Ocean AllianceDownload: RoadmapDownload: Live scribe summarising key outputs CreditsArtwork: Giancarlo Mitidieri Jingle: Frans Sjöberg 

Malin explores what the SUP directive means in practice for business and what some of the first steps to be taken are to be aligned with the Directive, with Frida Änghede, Public Affairs Manager at the Keep Sweden Tidy Foundation. And also, speaking of actions, Malin and Jane are sharing a tool to get a snapshot of some of the things to consider when approaching the SUP directive and sustainable use of plastics. The talk is framed around these questions:Q1: Could you explain the SUP directive like I’m five? (01:40)Q2: If you were a business affected by this, what would be your long term ban game plan? (02:09)Q3: If you were a business not really affected by this, what would you do? (04:15) LINKSLive scribe summarising the plan of the banTool: rapid quid check Credits:Artwork: Giancarlo Mitidieri Jingle: Frans Sjöberg 

Malin discusses the importance of plastic crediting standards and the role it plays in the bigger picture with the Plastics Lead of Verra, Maggie Lee. The talk is framed around these questions:  Q1: In the broader perspective, why are plastic crediting standards of importance? (01:18)Q2: Looking at systems change and the leakage of plastics, what can a business do? (03:20)Q3: How does a business account for the plastics used? (04:30)Q4: How could that help to reach a net plastic circularity? (05:28)Q5: How does the purchasing of credits help in the bigger picture? (05:52)Q6: What makes a project eligible? (06:22)Q7: Do you have any examples of the application of EPR schemes and plastic crediting? (07:45)Q8: How is plastic crediting connected to the polluters pays concept? (09:07) LINKSVerra Plastic Waste Reduction ProgramPodcast episode "Plastics loop"Roadmap Credits Artwork: Giancarlo Mitidieri Jingle: Frans Sjöberg  

Malin discusses how the Single-Use Plastics (SUP) Directive was landed in Sweden with Anna Cedrum and Malin Johansson, responsible for the implementation of the SUP in Sweden and working at the Ministry of Environment. The talk is framed around these questions: Q1. What’s the base for the directive? (01:24)Q2. For how long did the negotiations run? (01:54)Q3. What followed then after the negotiations? (03:10)Q4. So putting it in the Swedish context, what did you do? (03:50)Q5. So, it’s been a long process of defining the how and getting to the output level of where we are today? (05:09)Q6. Have you been dealing with a lot of different inputs and opinions? (07:07)Q7. It seems like it is a short time frame in Sweden? (07:45)Q8. How does it work when you go to the parliament? (08:54)Q9. Are there any steps left for implementing the SUP directive? (09:46)Q10. How is the SUP directive linked to business? (10:28)Q11. How does awareness-raising work in the SUP directive? (11:56)Q12. Does all of this go through the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency? (13:15)Q13. What about the fine that’s quite unique for Sweden? (13:52) CreditsArtwork: Giancarlo MitidieriJingle: Frans Sjöberg

Malin and Jane explore the impact of lost, discarded or abandoned fishing gear and what action is taken from a global to local scale to stop it with Inger Melander, Expert Fisheries and Market at WWF. The talk is framed around these questions:  Q1: How is lost or abandoned fishing gear a problem? (01:16)Q2: Do you know of any initiatives working to reduce the amount of lost or abandoned fishing gear globally? (03:04)Q3: What are some of the most common reasons to lose, discard or abandon fishing gear? (04:40)Q4: How could it be prevented? (06:30)Q5: How could the EPR (extended producer responsibility) be applied in this context, reduce marine plastic pollution?  07:20)Q6: What are the most common ways of operating fish farms in the Baltic Region? (08:36)Q7: What kind of waste and litter could you expect from an aquaculture facility in the Baltic Sea? (10:13) LINKS AND SOURCESFrameworksEPR fishing gear (position paper IUCN)Best-practice framework for the management of aquaculture gear ReportsStopping Ghost Gear | Projects | WWF (worldwildlife.org)New Report from WWF Says Addressing Abandoned Fishing Gear Must be Central in the Fight Against Plastic Pollution | Press Releases | WWF (worldwildlife.org) Stop Ghost Gear: The Most Deadly Form of Marine Plastic Debris | Publications | WWF (worldwildlife.org)Stoppa plastföroreningarna! - Världsnaturfonden WWFPlast i havet - WWFRemoval of derelict fishing gear | WWF (panda.org)MARELITT BalticGlobal Ghost Gear Initiative EU SUP Directive -- EU’s Directive on single-use plasticsSingle-use plastics (europa.eu)EUR-Lex - 32019L0904 - EN - EUR-Lex (europa.eu)EU Council Regulation No.1224/2009 (article 48): EUR-Lex - 32009R1224 - EN - EUR-Lex (europa.eu) International Agreements and ConventionsUnited Nations Convention of the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS): UNCLOS - Table of ContentsMarpol: MARPOL (imo.org)London Convention and Protocol: Convention on the Prevention of Marine Pollution by Dumping of Wastes and Other Matter (imo.org) Non-binding Guidelines and ResolutionsFood and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO), The Code for responsible Fisheries (CCRF 1995): FAO Fisheries & Aquaculture - Code of Conduct for Responsible FisheriesInternational Guidelines on Bycatch Management and Reduction of Discards (2011)International Plan of Action to Prevent, Deter and Eliminate Illegal Unreported and Unregulated Fishing (IPOA-IUU; 2001) FAO Voluntary Guidelines on the Marking of Fishing Gear (VGMFG; 2019) CreditsArtwork: Giancarlo Mitidieri  Jingle: Frans Sjöberg

Malin discusses the circular flow of one of the materials used in cars; plastics, and the development of plastic circularity with Andreas Frössberg, CEO of the Swedish Car Recyclers Association. The talk is framed around these questions:  Q1. If we look at the car as a product in a circular flow, how would you describe it, Andreas? (01:26)Q2. How much of the car is made of plastics, in general? (05:19)Q3. What is the development regarding plastics in cars? (07:11)Q4. Are there any initiatives or projects you could tell us about to increase the recycling and reuse of plastics in cars? (10:48)Q5. What action do you think would be needed to reduce the number of plastics in the car industry that is not yet recirculated? (12:30) CreditsArtwork: Giancarlo Mitidieri Jingle: Frans Sjöberg

Malin and Jane explore the plastic pollution situation in the Baltic Sea, together with Eva Blidberg, Marine litter expert at the Keep Sweden Tidy Foundation and Per Normark, scuba instructor and chair of Global Underwater Explorers (GUE) Sweden. The talk is framed around these questionsQ1. What have you learnt from a decade of litter measurements along the coastlines? (00:30)Q2. What sources are there to plastic pollution in the Baltic Sea? (01:07)Q3. How bad is it below the surface? (04:13)Q4. What have you learnt from locating and removing ghost fishing gear around shipwrecks in the Baltic Sea? (05:00)Q5. What has surprised you the most? (06:40)Q6. What is the one thing that we often don’t get, talking about the current status of the Baltic Sea? (08:45) LinksGUE Sweden, project: removing ghost fishing gear CreditsArtwork: Giancarlo Mitidieri Jingle: Frans Sjöberg 

Malin and Jane discuss the coming episodes with Evelina Lundqvist, that’s all about sharing insights from businesses that are rethinking plastics. Working on our first-ever whitepaper on this topic, Evelina has a lot of audio and written material in the making!Learn more about the report "Hello, businesses rethinking plastics!" here CreditsArtwork: Giancarlo Mitidieri Jingle: Frans Sjöberg 

This episode is one of many interviews made as a part of the work on our first-ever whitepaper, where we say hello to businesses that are rethinking plastics. This time, Evelina discusses the work behind building strong communities and forming partnerships to drive environmental change with Xenia Brundin, co-founder of Ribban Beach Camp.  LinksRibban Beach Camp websiteReport: Hello, businesses rethinking plastics!the Keep Sweden Tidy foundation on Linkedin CreditsArtwork: Giancarlo Mitidieri Jingle: Frans Sjöberg 

This episode is one of many interviews made as a part of the work on our first-ever whitepaper, where we say hello to businesses that are rethinking plastics. This time, Evelina explores the recycled content mix in sound absorbers with Patric Gustafsson, site managager at Akustikmiljö in Falkenberg and Emma Hagman, sustainability strategist at Götessons Design Group.  LinksAkustikmiljö websiteGötessons Design Group websiteReport: Hello, businesses rethinking plastics!the Keep Sweden Tidy foundation on Linkedin CreditsArtwork: Giancarlo Mitidieri Jingle: Frans Sjöberg 

Evelina discusses the concept of superior flowability and the development of FibraQ and localised production with Sara Georgsson, Head of Business Development and Sales at Bio Fibertech. Linkshttps://www.fibra-q.com/ CreditsArtwork: Giancarlo Mitidieri Jingle: Frans Sjöberg 

Evelina discusses the reuse of cups and food containers with Annelise de Jong, project manager and senior researcher at the Swedish Environmental Research Institute (IVL) LinksAbout the reuse projectReport, "Hello, businesses rethinking plastics!"Follow us on LinkedIn CreditsArtwork: Giancarlo MitidieriJingle: Frans Sjöberg