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Circular Economy

Why Plastic Waste is a C Suite Issue

September 8, 2020

Why is plastic waste a C-suite issue, and how can corporate leaders have a positive impact on plastic waste reduction, while potentially benefiting their businesses?

Audrey Choi, CSO & CMO at Morgan Stanley, says that from a business perspective, our use of single-use plastic is offensive. In this talk, Choi goes around the board room table and explains why every C-suite member has a stake in reducing our plastic use.

People care about the issue, but they often say they can't do anything to address it, Choi says. "I agree to that no one of us alone can solve the issue. It's a global, economy-wide issue," she continues. "But the fact that it is everywhere should inspire us to action, precisely because plastic is woven into virtually every industry in the world."

Plastic waste reduction is not only an environmental issue. It is an economic one. Indeed, every C-suite officer has a reason to care about plastic waste reduction, and can benefit by trying to address the problem. Even companies who are not a traditional part of the plastic value chain can play an important role. Last year, Morgan Stanley made a firm-wide commitment, the Morgan Stanley Plastic Waste Resolution, to facilitate the prevention, reduction, and removal of 50 million metric tons of plastic waste from rivers, oceans, landfills, and landscapes by 2030. Across other industries, and all around the C-suite table, business leaders can play an important part in building a more sustainable plastics economy that can deliver benefits for sustainability, for brand and for profits.