Planet v. Plastic: Earth Day 2024

In 1969, responding to an oil spill in Santa Barbara, US senator and environmentalist Gaylord Nelson led a national teach-in on the environment. The aim was to send a message to politicians in Washington that the American public wanted the environment to remain firmly on their agenda. 

This idea would go on to spark environmental activism around the world. First celebrated in 1970, Earth Day (falling on April 22nd every year) aims to mobilise billions of people around the world to take environmental action. 

Never have the environmental challenges facing the planet been so pronounced. Last year global concentrations of carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide (the three gases contributing most acutely to global warming) reached record levels. 

A huge contributing factor to global environmental degradation is plastic production and usage. The theme of this year’s Earth Day aims to raise awareness of how damaging plastics are, and the unrelenting speed at which they continue to be manufactured and consumed. 

Plastic pollution has now grown to more than 380 million tons per year, with more plastic produced in the last 10 years than across the entirety of the 20th century. Just 9% of plastic ever produced has been recycled, meaning the vast majority remains in landfill, or as rubbish left behind in fragile ecosystems. 

The issue is especially acute in the developing world, where waste collection systems are often inefficient or simply non-existent. 

Plastic pollution impacts all ecosystems, but its impact is especially pronounced in the world’s oceans, with around 8 million tonnes of plastic waste escaping into the oceans from coastal nations annually. This is equivalent to setting five garbage bags full of trash on every foot of coastline around the world. 

The end product of plastic production is highly environmentally damaging. But the production process itself also has environmental implications that shouldn’t be overlooked. Making a single use plastic water bottle requires six times as much water as the bottle itself will ultimately contain. The entire industry is hugely polluting, with experts estimating that by 2060 emissions from the plastics lifecycle will double to 4.3 billion tons of GHG emissions. 

The need to combat the environmental challenge of plastics is obvious, as is the urgency with which action needs to be taken. Earth Day’s organisers are calling for a 60% reduction in the production of plastics by 2040, with the ultimate goal of building a plastic free future for generations to come. 

So what can be done? 

This year’s theme is ‘Plastic v. Planet’, but we would suggest that the most powerful force against plastic pollution is people, and collective action. In Kenya, we’ve worked with communities to organise beach and forest clean ups, as well as supporting initiatives to protect sea life from harmful plastic pollution. Over 250,000 turtles have been hatched under the scheme, helping to preserve coastal ecosystems.

Another key focus of work is ensuring that wherever possible single use plastics are reused for agricultural purposes. From greenhouses produced entirely from plastic bottles, to irrigation systems built from repurposed materials. Our team in Kenya continues to innovate to reduce the amount of plastic waste that ends up in landfill. 

Plastic pollution can seem an impossibly steep challenge to tackle, but it is one of the few environmental areas where individual action can drive change. Being more conscious about purchasing single use plastics, properly recycling, buying second-hand clothes and not fast fashion, all put pressure on institutions to enact change. 

To learn more about how our team is marking Earth Day in Kenya, follow us across our socials.