Plastics & Health: What We’re Not Talking About | Health Diplomacy House

The world is facing a growing plastics crisis. Plastic pollution is now found across the globe – from the deepest oceans to the air we breathe. At every stage of their lifecycle, plastics negatively affect both people and the environment: from production, through manufacturing and use, to recycling, disposal, and environmental degradation. These impacts are wide‑ranging, with increasingly clear consequences for human health.

As noted by Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director General of WHO, in the margins of the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in January 2023, the link between plastic pollution and health has not received the attention it deserves. He emphasized that while research gaps remain, existing evidence already demonstrates that plastics affect human health throughout their entire lifecycle. Dr Tedros underscored the urgent need to review available studies, communicate their findings more effectively, and support the development of a legally binding international plastics treaty.

“We cannot wait until we have more research. While doing more research, we should also make use of what we have — which already indicates problems throughout the lifecycle of plastics. A toothbrush can break down in 500 years, if at all. It’s not about us, it’s about the many generations to come.”

This growing recognition was reflected at the Seventy-sixth World Health Assembly (WHA76), held in Geneva in May 2023, where Member States adopted a resolution on the impacts of chemicals, waste, and pollution on human health. Initially tabled by Peru, Canada, Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Mexico, Monaco, Switzerland, Uruguay, and the European Union and its Member States, the resolution calls for scaling up work on plastics and health. It also encourages contributions to the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) mandated UNEA Resolution 5/14 to develop a legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, including in the marine environment. The resolution further acknowledges related multilateral processes, including those under the Human Rights Council.

Since then, WHO has called for the highest attainable standard of human and environmental health to be a core objective of the plastics treaty. WHO has highlighted the need to address both known and anticipated health risks associated with plastics, including chemicals and additives, as well as microplastics and nanoplastics, across all stages of the plastics lifecycle.

This event will feature Lightning Talks – five-minute presentations (PechaKucha format) – by diplomats, scientists, policymakers, and other experts. These talks will highlight why it is essential to communicate more clearly, consistently, and effectively about the health impacts of plastic pollution, and why health must be placed at the centre of global action on plastics.

More information: https://www.genevaenvironmentnetwork.org/events/plastics-health-what-were-not-talking-about-health-diplomacy-house/

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