Austin has a foodware problem! 6,656 total pieces of trash were observed and picked up by 168 volunteers in Austin over three weeks in Summer 2021. The largest categorized non-compostable, unrecycled, and discarded trash found was “Food and Drink” items. A total of nearly 70% of all the trash collected was plastic!
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Get the Dirt on Plastic!
Join us for the "State of the Science" on Oct 19th for a fascinating conversation with scientists Timnit Kefala and Ezra Miller, moderated by 5 Gyres' scientist Lisa Erdle, about the potential impacts of microplastics and chemicals on soil and plants. While many of us are well familiar with plastics' impacts on watersheds and land, the issue of “agri-plastics” - miles of plastic sheeting across fields - is less understood. Do microplastics impact our soil structure, microbes, and even plants? Is there any uptake of chemicals by plants or nanoplastics in soil?
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Big wins in California!
Governor Newsom signed legislation that tackles plastic pollution, promotes a more sustainable and renewable economy, and protects the public from toxic chemicals.
🍴 AB 1276: requires restaurants and food delivery platforms to only provide single-use foodware accessories upon request #SkiptheStuff
♻️ AB 962: paves the way for beverage producers to create reusable glass bottle systems
Other bills include SB 323, which bans the chasing arrows symbol on non-recyclable items, and AB 881 that prohibits plastic waste exports to other countries being counted as recycling.
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Turn off the tap!
Artist Benjamin Von Wong created a three-story tall giant faucet releasing plastics uncontrollably over the environment to bring to life how important it is for us to turn off the plastic tap. And now, he's inviting the world to join him.
1️⃣ Artists and creatives, create a remix of the Giant Plastic Tap using Ben's inspiration and toolkit
2️⃣ Take action suggested by the biggest nonprofits in the industry, including 5 Gyres! Our challenge? Combat plastic misinformation by taking the plastic Masterclass through Trash Academy!
Watch the video of the creation of this inspiring artwork here.
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Support the North Atlantic Challenge!
5 Gyres Ambassador Peter Harley, a 61 year old extreme sports enthusiast, will set off on a 4,000-mile journey from Virginia Beach, Virginia to La Trinite’ Sur-Mer, France in Spring 2022. This route has never been attempted or completed!
Join the fundraiser on November 6th at Brick Los Angeles for the "Wild Ride Workout Of the Day.'' Teams challenge themselves to an intense workout that channels what Peter does on a weekly basis to train for the row.
Register here to join the challenge!
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Fall for this fundraiser!
Bake a holiday galette! A fundraiser for 5 Gyres presented by Board Member, Pam Marcus.
Date: 11/14
Time: 10-11:30am
Suggested donation: $10
Register here: https://bit.ly/3j3W2pC
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Partner Updates
- Moen's partner's day is on October 29 and Peach/Grove Collaborative's is on November 3! Follow us on social to catch all the action!
- Assembly Bill 818 (and several other HUGE wins) was signed by Governor Gavin Newsom last week! Our partners, Natracare, have a truly flushable solution to help you transition out of using plastic-based wipes.
- Join us at 'The Boochyard' on 10/23 from 3-7pm with Local Roots Kombucha to celebrate 5 Gyres' special flavor of hard kombucha! We will have a table set up with a few goodies to giveaway, so come say hi if you are in the San Diego area.
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