Women Leading the Plastic Revolution

Katherine Lugar
President & CEO, American Beverage Association

"We all know that if you 'want something done, ask a busy person.' Or as Margret Thatcher said—and I agree, 'ask a woman.' Moreover, diversity of thought and experiences always brings more effective solutions—especially when it comes to protecting and preserving our environment. As a mom of two young women who care deeply about our earth, having women on the front lines in the fight to keep plastic out of nature is instrumental in addressing climate change. By doing so, we can help leave behind a more sustainable planet for the generations that follow."

Learn about the Every Bottle Back initiative

Annie Weisbrod, Ph. D.
Principal Scientist, Global Sustainability at Procter & Gamble

"I remember a conversation at a 1995 professional society meeting (SETAC) about the necessity of environmental scientists to collaborate to address human impacts on the environment. I have committed my career to working in genuine partnership with other scientists from many organizations; I don't know why but significantly more than half of those collaborations are with women, and we become true friends. We find common ground and focus together on developing and applying sound science to enable meaningful progress.

"Despite what some media soundbites may infer, such work is not simple, straightforward, or quick. 'The environment', ecology and human societies, are incredibly complex and constantly shifting. I've read in social sciences literature that a dominant trait in the culture of women is to 'tend and befriend', indicating that we use our emotional intelligence as well as our intellectual intelligence to work together in times of crisis. There are too many places in this world where we are seeing a crisis in species loss, resource depletion, chemical and physical pollution, social challenges, etc. Now is the time for women and men to dig into the complexity of what's happening, with wisdom and empathy, and step forward together in new ways to transform how we humans manage in this world."

Ellen Martin
Chief Impact Officer at Circulate Capital / Director of Programs and Insights at The Circulate Initiative

"I have learned so much from the many 'women of waste' in my life and continue to be inspired by them every day. I feel very lucky to work alongside them in the fight against plastic pollution and toward a more inclusive, circular economy."

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Ellen Jackowski
Chief Sustainability and Social Impact Officer, HP

"Women are at the forefront of the fight against climate change, bringing a unique perspective as it particularly relates to addressing plastic pollution. Deep rooted gender inequities place women at greater risks from the impacts of a warming climate, such as flooding and droughts. Women also serve in a large portion of informal sector jobs, such as waste collection, where they experience firsthand the growing urgency to address the volume of plastic flowing into our waterways. And, women often make purchasing decisions in their homes where they face the challenges of dealing with single-use plastic waste associated with products and packaging. Women are brilliant, capable problem solvers and, drawing from this full-spectrum of experiences, are ideally positioned to lead a systemic transformation that will eradicate issues like plastic pollution and create a better future for all generations. These women demand to be heard."

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Bridget Croke
Managing Director, Closed Loop Partners

"While gender equity across professions is still a work in progress, I've observed women playing an outsized role in the climate, circular economy and impact space throughout my 25-year career. These roles are highly relational roles seeking to connect a complex web of levers for change. In my experience, this is a skillset many women excel at."

Read Bridget's Bio

Kate Daly
Managing Director, Closed Loop Partners

"Women control more than 70% of purchasing decisions in the United States. We are a powerful economic force and our consumer preferences as well as our increasing numbers in the C-suite and on the front lines of climate activism will drive more sustainable design choices and business models. Collectively, we're demanding more transparency about where the products we use come from, and where they will end up, and it's been gratifying to see women's and girls' voices at the forefront of climate and waste issues and the circular economy."

Read Kate's Bio

Chelsea Rochman, Ph. D.
Assistant Professor in Aquatic Ecology, Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at University of Toronto

"Women scientists today are being granted opportunity to lead in scientific inquiry as men have for centuries. This has not come easily, and it is in part due to the many women scientists before us that fought for our equality in academia. The idea that we have reached a time where women are granted their well-deserved equal role in science and discovery is apparent in the field of plastic pollution, where many women have emerged as leaders in scientific discovery, innovation and political leadership."

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Imari Walker
Graduate Researcher at Duke University

"Women leading the fight against plastic pollution is inspirational! It will lead to strong mentorship for future generations, unique perspectives, and change in more ways than one."

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Anna Cummins
Co-founder of 5 Gyres

"Women—especially black, indigenous and women of color—have long been leading the charge when it comes to protecting community health, work that only recently is being recognized by mainstream sustainability voices. We are seeing this shift in the plastic pollution movement, where frontline women leaders who have been fighting petrochemicals, toxic pollution, fracking, etc., are now being centered and uplifted by the plastic pollution movement. Whether we're banning plastic bags, or fighting for oil and gas setbacks in neighborhoods, we are all working towards a just transition off of fossil fuels. And we can’t do it alone."

Read Anna's Bio

Winnie Lau
Senior Manager, Preventing Ocean Plastics at The Pew Charitable Trusts

"Women today are leading companies, governments, and organizations, where they are setting the agenda with innovative approaches to address complex challenges, like plastic pollution. And these women bring their skills as problem solvers, entrepreneurs, researchers and community leaders to forge an inclusive, just, equitable and diverse path forward. Plastic pollution is a global threat to people and nature, and everyone will have a role to play in solving it. I am optimistic that by working together we will solve this challenge in the next two decades."

Read Winnie's Bio

Taylor Maddalene
Faculty and Ph. D. student at Jambeck Research Group, University of Georgia

"I have been extremely fortunate that my work in plastic pollution has taken me around the world—from the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean, to rural villages in India and Bangladesh, to urban hotspots in Europe and South America—and everywhere that I have gone I have met inspiring women who have dedicated their lives to this issue. It always gives me hope to see women, especially young women, getting involved in and bringing their skills to the fields of conservation and science. The issue of plastic pollution, however, benefits from this even more so—it requires an incredible diversity of ideas, solutions and perspectives to tackle, making the contribution of global female leaders even more critical. I think the current surge of female leaders in this field signals progress and collaboration ahead."

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Emily Woglom
Executive Vice President, Ocean Conservancy

"Women are experts at balancing multiple perspectives and tackling problems from all different angles. Having women leaders in this fight gives me confidence that we'll be able to find solutions that address its many facets—as an engineering problem, a supply chain puzzle, and a concern for our communities, families, and individual well being."

Read Emily's Bio

Nina Butler
CEO, Stina Inc. (Formerly DBA MORE Recycling)

"The transition from a linear economic system to a circular one requires more than getting material back into a manufacturing system. It requires society to address its fundamental inequity problems. One of the key conclusions I got from my graduate studies at Duke University is that we must elevate women’s roles in decision making if we are to move into a more sustainable existence. The Earth needs nurturing and those who live in harmony with nature must be recognized as our leaders—both women and men. Our company’s vision is to harmonize human behavior with the natural world."

Read Nina's Bio

Jill Boughton aka "The Trash Lady"
CEO, Waste 2 Worth

"I still find that many situations in which I am the only women in the room (oh, the stories I could tell...). It's important to have women in this space because we tend to excel at managing complexity and building relationships, both of which are important to problem-solving on this issue. It's not that men don't have those qualities, it's that perhaps women tend to lead with that important mindset."

Learn about Jill

Sonia Maria Dias, Ph. D.
Global Waste Specialist at Women in Informal Employment Globalizing and Organizing (WEIGO)

"The informal economy is a key contributor to city waste management and generates income for Millions of people globally. Creating effective urban waste management systems is one of the most important actions to prevent plastic pollution. Waste pickers are essential workers who play a fundamental role in the value chain by redirecting materials to recycling and reuse providers thereby expanding the lifespan of city landfills and protecting the marine environment. WIEGOs Gender & Waste Project have been building capacity of women waste pickers leaders as frontline workers against plastic pollution and key contributors to future inclusive and sustainable waste management systems."

Read Sonia's Bio

Natalie Betts
Circular Economy Program Manager for the City of Austin

"In my career, I have worked mostly with other women to create a greener and more circular economy. It's fantastic, but not surprising, to see women standing at the forefront of the fight against plastic pollution. Unfortunately, like a lot of fields led by women, this work has historically been undervalued in favor of the 'Move Fast and Break Things' kind of innovation and work. The fight against plastic pollution is a fight to slow down, find common ground, and collaborate so we can stop breaking things.

"I read a great quote from Sandra Goldmark in a New Yorker interview a few months ago that I find myself reflecting on often: 'We live in a society that drastically undervalues care of all kinds, from repairing toasters to maintaining subways to caring for children.' I see that starting to change as we see the impacts of this underinvestment. Women have always been on the front lines of the caring economy. It's work I am proud to be a part of, and it's rewarding to see a cultural shift take place where we are more broadly recognizing the importance of this kind of work to clean up, maintain, and care for our natural world and, by extension, ourselves."

Learn about the Circular Economy Program

Sea F. Briganti
CEO, Chief Visionary, and Co-Founder at LOLIWARE

"For the longest time, women's inventions have been sitting on the sideline—undervalued, underfunded, and underdeveloped. But this is changing. Women are now leading the fight against plastic pollution across the entire plastic value chain, especially at its source. Most importantly, we are witnessing a wave of women innovators collaborating and supporting each other to drive the big, systemic change needed to tackle plastic pollution at scale."

Learn about LOLIWARE

Bharati Chaturvedi
Founder and Director, Chintan

"Women have always been fighting environmental damage in India, but globally, we are learning to open our eyes to the work of women as scientists, doctors, academics, lawyers, activists, ecologists, consultants, and a reveal of other roles. I think this is a very positive development not only because women's contribution to sustainability is being globally honoured and respected, but women are also bringing to the plastics movement the fundamental understanding that plastic pollution is not merely physical pollution, but chemical pollution: one that harms their bodies, harms children, and changes women's lives as they deal with long-term ill-health at home."

Read Bharati's Bio

Lauren Phipps
Director & Senior Analyst on Circular Economy at GreenBiz Group

"We need the bold leadership of women to untangle this intricate web of systemic failure and address the global plastic pollution crisis. We need leadership that is unabashedly feminine and feminist: grasping at the root and centered on connection, compassion and community."

Read Lauren's Bio

Miro Korenha
Co-founder & Publisher at Our Daily Planet

"When it comes to plastic pollution, women as mothers, consumers, and voters, are in a unique position to help drive the policies and practices that will protect our planet now and for future generations. We're finding the power of our collective voice, and companies and politicians are listening. This is how we move from incremental action on the plastic pollution crisis to big, structural change (to borrow from a woman leader I admire!)."

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Kristin Hughes
Director of the Global Plastic Action Partnership and Member of the Executive Committee at World Economic Forum (WEF)

"I am personally thrilled that women are being increasingly recognized and appreciated for the work they do to combat plastic pollution, both visibly and behind-the-scenes, at the highest level of government and on the ground in communities. In countries like Indonesia, Egypt and Nigeria, women ministers and researchers are directing and shaping forward-leaning policies that are shifting society away from the take-use-dispose model and towards a circular economy for plastics.

"In the private sector, women executives in both multinationals and at start-ups are championing innovation with a gender and equity lens. And in communities around the world, women are dominating the informal sector, collecting plastic waste from the streets and earning an income for their families, often at great personal risk to their health and wellbeing, and even more so during these challenging times. I believe that women's expertise, perspectives and personal experiences will continue to play a greater role in shaping the important decisions, initiatives and investments that will enable us to eradicate plastic pollution."

Read Kristin's Bio

Keefe Harrison
CEO of The Recycling Partnership

"When I started my career in this field women were outnumbered. But as the years have passed, it has become clear that being an action agent isn’t about being a man or a woman, it's about having the interest and passion to make change. We all have a role to play in fixing our broken recycling system, so it is important that our leadership and workforce reflect the diversity of the audiences we need to reach. As the mother of a daughter, I also realize the incredible impact women in leadership can have on engaging and inspiring the next generation of female change makers, so I am humbled by the role I play and excited to see a future workforce that benefits from the dynamic and innovative thinking of more women."

Read Keefe's Bio