Jakarta, 28 October 2021: The East and Southeast Asian regions are recognised today as the biggest contributors of marine plastic pollution due to rapid economic growth and a lack of solid waste management infrastructure. In response to this, ERIA and the ASEAN Secretariat (ASEC) organised the ASEAN on Point Public Forum: How Policies can Support the Private Sector in Combatting Marine Plastic Debris.
Plastic is ubiquitous in our everyday lives as it is versatile, resistant, lightweight, and inexpensive to produce. However, the amount of plastic waste released into the environment and its negative effects on our marine ecosystem have attracted increasing scientific concern in recent years.
Alarmed by this situation, in 2019 the ASEAN Member States (AMS) welcomed the ASEAN Framework of Action on Marine Debris, and adopted the Bangkok Declaration on Combating Marine Debris in the ASEAN Region. Although much remains to be studied, particularly the long-term impacts of plastics on our marine ecosystem and their potential harm to human health through the food chain, there is a wide international consensus to take urgent preventative actions before further damage is done.
Echoing these concerns, ERIA established the Regional Knowledge Centre for Marine Plastic Debris (the Centre) in 2019 to provide the ASEAN+3 Member States with support in addressing emerging challenges associated with marine plastic debris.
Given the multitude of roles plastic plays in our society, responses to marine plastic pollution will need to involve a wide array of stakeholders, from governmental and non-governmental organisations, to research institutions, international actors, the business sector, and the general public. The need has never been greater to collectively investigate integrated solutions that move away from a linear take-make-dispose economy, into a more circular and sustainable one.
Through the ASEAN on Point Public Forum Series, ERIA and ASEC are focusing on the important role played by the private sector, especially in tackling plastic waste from upstream production. Leading private companies in the ASEAN+3 region have paved the way for the development of products, technologies, and services that significantly reduce plastic waste generation and, by consequence, prevent those plastics from leaking into the marine environment.
One of the important missions of ERIA and ASEC is to acknowledge efforts undertaken by businesses, and to shine a light on their accomplishments in the hope of further promoting this positive shift. ASEAN on Point was an occasion for participants to not only to learn about innovative business practices conducive to plastic waste mitigation, but also to provide policy recommendations that will be shared with policymakers across the region.
ERIA presented the Centre and its activities, which was established under ERIA in October 2019 to address marine plastic pollution in ASEAN+3 Member States. The goals of the Centre are to: create a regional network and raise awareness regarding marine plastic debris (MPD), promote innovative actions in each member country, and facilitate national and regional cooperation.
Capacity development and information sharing are the two chief pillars underpinning the Centre’s work. Partnering with the private sector to promote the implementation of good practices is one of its most important ongoing activities. As a result, an online platform to support private sector initiatives to reduce plastic waste and marine plastic debris was launched in 2021.
The platform collects and disseminates private companies’ business activities which are conducive to marine plastics mitigation. Inspired by these activities, it was hoped the forum would attract a larger number of private companies to take part in this initiative and join forces in the fight against marine plastics.
Over 200 participants joined the conversation with a panel of experts:
● Ms Supatchaya Techachoochert, co-founder, Refill Station, Thailand
● Mr Tommy Tjiptadjaja, co-founder and CEO, Greenhope, Indonesia
● Mr Kentaro Inukai, President, Pana Chemical, Japan
● Ms Iris Chang, Director of Social Impact and Sustainability, Grab, Singapore.
Moderated by:
● Mr Dwight Jason Ronan, Senior Officer, ASEAN Secretariat
● Mr Michikazu Kojima, Research Fellow, ERIA.
Read the report: ASEAN on Point Public Forum: How Policies can Support the Private Sector in Combatting Marine Plastic Debris
Communication Desk
Jakarta, 28 October 2021: The East and Southeast Asian regions are recognised today as the biggest contributors of marine plastic pollution due to rapid economic growth and a lack of solid waste management infrastructure. In response to this, ERIA and the ASEAN Secretariat (ASEC) organised the ASEAN on Point Public Forum: How Policies can Support the Private Sector in Combatting Marine Plastic Debris.
Plastic is ubiquitous in our everyday lives as it is versatile, resistant, lightweight, and inexpensive to produce. However, the amount of plastic waste released into the environment and its negative effects on our marine ecosystem have attracted increasing scientific concern in recent years.
Alarmed by this situation, in 2019 the ASEAN Member States (AMS) welcomed the ASEAN Framework of Action on Marine Debris, and adopted the Bangkok Declaration on Combating Marine Debris in the ASEAN Region. Although much remains to be studied, particularly the long-term impacts of plastics on our marine ecosystem and their potential harm to human health through the food chain, there is a wide international consensus to take urgent preventative actions before further damage is done.
Echoing these concerns, ERIA established the Regional Knowledge Centre for Marine Plastic Debris (the Centre) in 2019 to provide the ASEAN+3 Member States with support in addressing emerging challenges associated with marine plastic debris.
Given the multitude of roles plastic plays in our society, responses to marine plastic pollution will need to involve a wide array of stakeholders, from governmental and non-governmental organisations, to research institutions, international actors, the business sector, and the general public. The need has never been greater to collectively investigate integrated solutions that move away from a linear take-make-dispose economy, into a more circular and sustainable one.
Through the ASEAN on Point Public Forum Series, ERIA and ASEC are focusing on the important role played by the private sector, especially in tackling plastic waste from upstream production. Leading private companies in the ASEAN+3 region have paved the way for the development of products, technologies, and services that significantly reduce plastic waste generation and, by consequence, prevent those plastics from leaking into the marine environment.
One of the important missions of ERIA and ASEC is to acknowledge efforts undertaken by businesses, and to shine a light on their accomplishments in the hope of further promoting this positive shift. ASEAN on Point was an occasion for participants to not only to learn about innovative business practices conducive to plastic waste mitigation, but also to provide policy recommendations that will be shared with policymakers across the region.
ERIA presented the Centre and its activities, which was established under ERIA in October 2019 to address marine plastic pollution in ASEAN+3 Member States. The goals of the Centre are to: create a regional network and raise awareness regarding marine plastic debris (MPD), promote innovative actions in each member country, and facilitate national and regional cooperation.
Capacity development and information sharing are the two chief pillars underpinning the Centre’s work. Partnering with the private sector to promote the implementation of good practices is one of its most important ongoing activities. As a result, an online platform to support private sector initiatives to reduce plastic waste and marine plastic debris was launched in 2021.
The platform collects and disseminates private companies’ business activities which are conducive to marine plastics mitigation. Inspired by these activities, it was hoped the forum would attract a larger number of private companies to take part in this initiative and join forces in the fight against marine plastics.
Over 200 participants joined the conversation with a panel of experts:
● Ms Supatchaya Techachoochert, co-founder, Refill Station, Thailand
● Mr Tommy Tjiptadjaja, co-founder and CEO, Greenhope, Indonesia
● Mr Kentaro Inukai, President, Pana Chemical, Japan
● Ms Iris Chang, Director of Social Impact and Sustainability, Grab, Singapore.
Moderated by:
● Mr Dwight Jason Ronan, Senior Officer, ASEAN Secretariat
● Mr Michikazu Kojima, Research Fellow, ERIA.
Read the report: ASEAN on Point Public Forum: How Policies can Support the Private Sector in Combatting Marine Plastic Debris
Communication Desk
