International congress presents the latest scientific research results into the health effects of plastic
The second Plastic Health Summit will be held on 21 October in Amsterdam. The congress is being organised by the Dutch NGO Plastic Soup Foundation and the Plastic Health Coalition.
The speakers include leading scientists, legal experts and environmental activists from Indonesia, Malawi, Greenland, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Apart from presentations on the latest scientific research results, avenues to have plastic pollution recognised as an offence under ‘ecocide’ will also explored. Plastic pollution is a human rights issue, especially as it mostly affects poor and indigenous communities. Millions of children in low-income countries work on burning mountains of plastic waste.
The theme of the congress is ‘One Health’, given that environmental and human health are inextricably linked. The diverse presentations will discuss the impact of plastic on the environment and on human health during its entire life cycle, from production through consumption to the waste phase.
The congress has three main foci.
1. The latest scientific research into the relationship between health and plastics/microplastics, microfibres and chemical additives.
2. The effects of plastic pollution on humans and the environment, for us and the generations to come.
3. Ecocide and environmental legislation as potential instruments against plastic pollution.
Maria Westerbos, founder and Director of the Plastic Soup Foundation says “We are now at a critical tipping point. We only have 10 years in which to solve the plastic crisis.”
Jo Royle, CEO of Common Seas says “There is increasing evidence that plastic is negatively affecting our health. We have the right to know what it does to the human body. The Plastic Health Summit is important to bring the body of evidence together and call on industry, governments and philanthropists all over the world to fund more research into the health effects of plastic.”
Professor Susan Shaw, Professor of Public Health at the State University of New York in Albany, says “the exposure of vulnerable children to the deadly impact of the plastic waste economy is a violation of human rights.”
The location is the Theater Amsterdam. Under the current corona restrictions, there is capacity for 350 visitors. The congress can also be followed digitally by up to 10,000 people.
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