Circular Economy for Plastics 2019

CIRCULAR ECONOMY FOR PLASTICS (IIT BOMBAY on 15th March, 2019)

"Plastics and polymers have played a key role in our progress as a society, and thus, life without plastics has become almost unimaginable. Plastics have exceptionally good characteristics of use as a material, but their extensive use has resulted in environmental disasters such as pollution of water bodies due to micro-plastics, and human health issues due to plastic additives and by-products.

For example, one study in 2017 suggests that there will be more plastic, by weight, than fish in the ocean by 2050! As a result, there is a backlash against plastics, culminating in strong regulatory measures such as the ban on select plastics in India. However, it is prudent to explore a sustainability-based approach that can provide long-lasting solutions.

Circular economy is one such approach that can balance growth with sustainability. Taking inspiration from nature, where the waste of one organism is a valuable resource for another, the concept of circular economy promotes conservation of energy and materials throughout the entire economy.
Recycling is not sufficient alone as an approach, because only 9% of the plastics produced globally are recycled! On the other hand, creating circularity and closed loop systems reduces the net consumption of virgin resources and generation of waste. Making circular economy effective and operational is the challenge that this symposium will begin to address."

OBJECTIVES :
•Identify key challenges in enabling circular economy of plastics
•Shortlist the most promising approaches for solving challenges
•Discuss the scientific methods for quantifying sustainability of circular economy
•Recommend research/policy/funding initiatives in this area
Who will benefit This symposium will be of interest to leaders, practitioners in industry, government, academia and anyone wishing to contribute to the nation’s sustainable development.

WHO WILL BENEFIT :
This symposium will be of interest to leaders, practitioners in industry, government, academia and anyone wishing to contribute to the nation’s sustainable development.

Symposium