Ocean Recovery Alliance becomes a signatory of the UNEP Global Tourism Plastics Initiative

Ocean Recovery Alliance and its Plastic Disclosure Project (PDP) program, is proud to be a signatory of the Global Tourism Plastics Initiative led by the United Nations Environment Programme and the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), in collaboration with the Ellen MacArthur Foundation.

“The tourism industry is a significant information vector, education opportunity and engagement network for reducing plastic pollution at scale, both via the operations of the participants, and in beautifying the communities they serve, so we are excited to be sharing our PDP methodology with companies who are on the road to greatly reducing their plastic footprints,” said Douglas Woodring, Founder of Ocean Recovery Alliance and the PDP.

As a signatory of the Global Tourism Plastics Initiative, we endorse the common vision to address the root causes of plastic pollution. We commit to eliminate the plastic items we don’t need; innovate so all plastics we do need are designed to be safely reused, recycled, or composted; and circulate everything we use to keep it in the economy and out of the environment.

In the framework of the Global Tourism Plastics Initiative, Ocean Recovery Alliance commits to:

• Encouraging our affiliated organisations and businesses or partners to join the Global Tourism Plastics Initiative and providing a number of services, programs and knowledge which the tourism sector can benefit from.

• Advising and guiding affiliated organisations and businesses or partners to better manage plastics in their operations through practices, criteria, standards and/or policies, and support them to implement their commitments to the Global Tourism Plastics Initiative when applicable, by pursuing the Plastic Disclosure Project (PDP) which is a tool for the tourism sector to use in order to reduce the plastic footprints and waste impacts of its constituents and the communities they work in.

• Sharing success stories, case studies and examples, when approved by the party in focus, on social media, its websites and speaking about their engagements on the topic.

To see our full media release click here

Global Tourism Initiative Press Release July 2021.pdf

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Thai Partnership Launches Commitment to Plastic Footprint Reduction

The Solid Waste Management Association, Thailand (SWAT) is launching their Plastic Footprint Reduction Project under the framework of the United Nations Environment Programme’s SEA circular project. One of the cornerstones of the SWAT’s Plastic Footprint Reduction Project is reducing the use of plastic, increasing recovery and recycling of plastic waste to support a circular economy.

SWAT works with companies and organisations representing key sectors in Thailand: food & beverage, plastic manufacturing and packaging, hotels and hospitality, municipalities as well as universities and schools. Ocean Recovery Alliance, an environmental organisation based in the US and Hong Kong, is providing support and training in the methodology for measuring plastic footprints based on the world's first plastic footprinting methodology, the Plastic Disclosure Project (PDP).

See the full article on CIRCULAR

For more information on SWAT

The Soul of Business - Saving our Ocean

Join Claressa Monteiro, as she speaks to Douglas Woodring, Founder of Ocean Recovery Alliance about the environmental problems our ocean currently faces, and some of the major problems that could arise if not addressed soon. He also shares the steps his organisation has taken to amend the damage caused by sea pollution, which include the use of the Plastic Disclosure Project (PDP) for companies, municipalities and other institutions such as airports, hospitals, stadiums, and universities.

The interview was also in honor of "Skyscraper", the Whale, which was on exhibit for two months at the ArtScience Museum of Marina Bay Sands, which was organized by Ocean Recovery Alliance. The huge sculpture, standing over 11m tall, and made from plastic in the ocean, was made by StudioKCA in New York, and helps to draw awareness about our use and disposal of plastic material, asking "Have We Breached the Limit?"