Dear John,

I am back home after an incredible Climate Week in NYC, where I was joined by Plastic Pollution Coalition (PPC)’s Advocacy and Engagement Manager Jackie Nuñez, Youth Ambassador Hannah Testa, and members, partners, and allies from around the world. Stay tuned to PPC channels for a wrap-up blog of NYC Climate Week 2025 to learn more.

PPC just released a new report in partnership with Habitable that shows how plastics fuel wildfires and how communities can build back better with non-toxic, plastic-free, fire-safe materials. We also launched a petition urging California Housing Agencies to build fire-safe, non-toxic homes without plastic pollution. This is an opportunity to avoid the harms of toxic burning plastic during wildfires, and create healthier, more resilient communities. Sign here.

To keep the solutions momentum going, we invite you to join us on Friday, November 7 in Santa Monica, California, for our first-ever Plastic Pollution Solutions Expo, featuring leaders and innovators, including PPC Business Members Cruz Foam, GOB, Ettitude, LOLIWARE, and others. Register here.

We’re hosting a livestream of TEDxGreatPacificGarbagePatch, happening on Saturday, November 8, also in Santa Monica. The event features sessions with global thought leaders addressing the question: How Do We Solve Plastic Pollution by 2040? We’ll explore solutions to the plastic pollution crisis—strong policies, culture change, and business solutions, including corporate accountability, regenerative materials and product design, responsible finance and investing, and reuse and circular systems. Be sure to sign up to join the TEDxGreatPacificGarbagePatch livestream and to receive information about the archived talks post-event.

PPC is committed to telling the truth about plastic pollution and leading with real solutions, and we’re incredibly excited to celebrate our 16th anniversary coming up in October! All of us at PPC are deeply grateful to our amazing network for helping to support the systemic change we need to stop plastic pollution. We’re taking a moment to honor all that we’ve accomplished, while acknowledging that there’s still much more work to be done, and that we are even more powerful and impactful when we work together.

Onward,

Julia Cohen, MPH
Co-Founder & Managing Director
Plastic Pollution Coalition

P.S. Please support us—every dollar matters and helps fund our critical work.

★ New Report Shows How Plastics Fuel Wildfires—and How Communities Can Build & Rebuild Better
Our new report authored in partnership with Habitable, “How Plastics Fuel Wildfires & How to Rebuild Better,” is intended to inform those in the architecture, building, design, engineering, and policy spaces about the links between plastics and wildfires, and how communities at risk of and/or affected by wildfires could build and rebuild better with safer, plastic-free materials. The report presents key findings about the links between plastics and wildfires, focusing on the case study of the January 2025 wildfires that burned through Los Angeles, California—an example of our increasingly plastic cities. Read the report.

★ CA Housing Agencies: Build Fire-Safe, Non-Toxic Homes
6,928. That’s how many wildfires have been reported in California so far in 2025. Wildfires are nothing new in California, but their severity is dramatically increasing as the climate crisis escalates. To make matters worse, today most homes, buildings, and furniture are made of plastic. While these plastic materials—like all plastics—pollute throughout their entire existence, they pose even greater hazards to human health and the environment during wildfires. Sign the petition to urge CA to build back better.

★ Pot’s Plastic Problem: How Can Weed Truly Go Green?
A booming industry, a booming plastic packaging problem: cannabis may be natural, but with most pot packaged in plastic, can the weed industry truly go green? Read more here.

★ Filters for DC: Provide Safe Water without Lead or Plastic
Over 42,000 households remain at risk in Washington, DC from lead pipes, and residents shouldn’t be forced to rely on toxic, costly, and polluting plastic bottled water as an alternative. Tell Mayor Bowser and the Council of the District of Columbia to distribute water filters to ensure safe drinking water and cut plastic pollution. Sign the petition.

➤ Find more Latest News on our website.

★ 2025 Plastic Pollution Solutions Expo | November 7, 1–4pm PT, Santa Monica, CA
Come join us on November 7, 1–4pm PT, for our first-ever Plastic Pollution Solutions Expo. This open-format, walk-through event is designed to bring together a diverse audience to stimulate knowledge sharing and provide exposure for upstream solutions. From regenerative materials for textiles and packaging to stainless steel reuse systems, you’ll engage with leaders and innovators like PPC Business Members Cruz Foam, GOB, Ettitude, and LOLIWARE. We’ll even have light bites with Haute Mobile Disco DJ mixes throughout the day. Register today.

★ TEDxGreatPacificGarbagePatch livestream, Nov. 8, 9am–5pm PT
On November 8, from 9am–5pm PT, TEDxGreatPacificGarbagePatch will be livestreamed from Santa Monica, CA, featuring sessions with global thought leaders addressing the question: How Do We Solve Plastic Pollution by 2040? Topics include microplastics and human health, environmental justice, climate change, and much more. Take part in this exciting event from wherever you are in the world! Even if you can’t watch live, be sure to sign up to receive information about the archived talks after the event. Sign up.

★ Algalita Marine Research and Education’s 2025–2026 Student Mini Grant
Algalita is launching its 2025–2026 Student Mini-Grant application on October 15. Open to students ages 11–25 worldwide who are leading or developing projects that address the root cause of plastic pollution, each Student Mini-Grant provides $500. Apply here.

➤ Visit our website for more Resources, Events, and Ways to Take Action.