The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) channels $270 billion in tax credits for climate investments but raises concerns about incineration—a false solution to waste disposal that could generate 637.7 million tonnes of CO2e emissions over two decades, further harming the environment and disadvantaged communities. This resource highlights the key points of our recent article, including available funds for EJ organizations.
Fact Sheet: Inflation Reduction Act
We are a group of organisations from at least a dozen countries in the Latin American and Caribbean region, working in direct contact with the communities most affected by plastic pollution, as well as in networks at local, regional and global levels to influence public policies related to environmental protection from plastic pollution.
The Regional Agreement on Access to Information, Public Participation and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters in Latin America and the Caribbean (known as the “Escazú Agreement”) was adopted in Costa Rica on 4 March 2018. It is a legally binding instrument derived from the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20), which aims to: “(…) guarantee the full and effective implementation in Latin America and the Caribbean of the Escazú Agreement.)
We are writing to express our disagreement with the restrictions on civil society participation in the INC-2 negotiations process, and with the rejection of all requests for the co-organization of INC-2 side
events submitted by Latin American organizations, including those that contemplated the participation and leadership of Indigenous Peoples of the region.
The global plastics treaty presents Africa with a historic opportunity to address the unique challenges the continent faces from the adverse impacts of the full lifecycle of plastics. At its first session, the intergovernmental negotiating committee (INC1), requested the secretariat to prepare, for consideration by the committee at its second session, a document with potential options for elements towards an international legally binding instrument, based on the submissions of member states, to which 14 African countries submitted individual inputs in addition to the African Group submission on what will form the foundational objectives; core obligations, control measures and implementing elements for the global plastics treaty.
Green hydrogen refers to hydrogen produced through electrolysis, powered by renewable energy sources such as solar and wind. The term is sometimes conflated with so-called “waste-to-hydrogen,” however, when there’s nothing green about burning waste to produce hydrogen. This advocacy brief gives an overview of what “waste-to-hydrogen” is and why it is problematic in terms of greenhouse gas emissions, toxic byproducts, and energy and material efficiency.
Zero waste is both a goal and a plan of action. The goal is to ensure resource recovery and protect scarce natural
resources by ending waste disposal in incinerators, dumps, and landfills. The plan encompasses waste reduction, composting, recycling and reuse, changes in consumption habits, and industrial redesign. But just as importantly, zero waste is a revolution in the relationship between waste and people. It is a new way of thinking that aims to safeguard the health and improve the lives of everyone who produces, handles, works with, or is affected by waste—in other words,
all of us.
GAIA Asia Pacific, in partnership with Mother Earth Foundation (MEF) Philippines, has been conducting a capacity-building workshop to capacitate members of the network and government officials to implement a community Zero Waste program since 2017.
Called Zero Waste Academy (ZWA), the workshop is an immersive 10-day course aimed at capacitating members and other stakeholders on how to implement a Zero Waste program in their respective cities and communities. Putting emphasis on experiential learning, the course provides a well-thought out mix of lectures, hands-on exercises, site visits and community engagements, demo-sessions, and networking opportunities.
Thus far, five in-person ZWAs have been conducted from 2017 to 2019.
In 2020-2022, GAIA Asia Pacific and MEF conducted other iterations of the academy, albeit virtually because of the lockdowns imposed by governments. Yaksa Pelestari Bumi Berkelanjutan (YPBB) Bandung likewise held other Zero Waste Academies on their own to support AZWI members in implementing Zero Waste in their communities.
As in any workshop, an essential measure of success of the workshop is how the graduates apply in their own contexts the lessons and skills they gained from their participation. GAIA Asia Pacific is immensely proud that five years since the first in-person ZWA, and three years since the last one, many of our graduates continued to champion Zero Waste in their own communities and countries, and many of them even spearheaded innovative and impactful Zero Waste initiatives and/or led campaigns such as plastic-free and anti-waste-to-energy (WtE) campaigns.
This publication is an initial attempt to document our graduates’ work to understand the academy’s impact on their work and their communities. This volume is not exhaustive — our intention is to periodically check on our graduates to celebrate their success in their own communities.
May you be inspired by our initial offering. Our graduates, without a doubt, are making the world a better
place. But do not take our word for it; read the pages of our publication and see for yourself!
A publication highlighting the work and realities of waste pickers in India.