Health and Safety Waste pickers risk their lives to stop plastic pollution – now they could help shape global recycling policies by Patrick O'Hare & Lucia Fernandez These workers do more than any other people to prevent plastic contaminating the environment, yet their work is rarely valued and they struggle to earn a decent living
Collection An arms race over food waste by John Martin Sydney cockatoos are still opening kerb-side bins, despite our best efforts to stop them
Circular Economy With better standards, we could make plastics endlessly useful – and slash waste by Qamar Schuyler We also need stronger incentives to reduce plastic in manufacturing and design
Health and Safety Waste pickers in Lagos tell their stories about a dangerous existence by Olanrewaju Dada Waste pickers often work without protective gear, unassisted, and without access to primary care or first aid and employment regulations
Litter We studied 40,000 pieces of litter to find out where it all comes from – here’s what we discovered by Thomas Stanton, Antonia law, Guaduneth Chico & Matthew Johnson some litter has clear sources and pathways, discernible from its function and packaging labels, from which the brand that made the item can be easily identified
Plastics African digital innovators are turning plastic waste into value – but there are gaps by Seun Kolade & Muyiwa Oyinlola Growing numbers of NGOs and innovators across the continent are developing digital solutions to reduce plastic waste generation, and promoting reuse and recycling of plastic products
Food Waste reduction Scrapping use-by dates could prevent huge amounts of food waste – here’s what else could help by Lingxuan Liu Studies show that consumers often both fail to understand the environmental consequences of food waste, and are rarely held accountable for it
Fast fashion: why your online returns may end up in landfill – and what can be done about it by Patsy Perry Getting rid of returns often constitutes the most cost-effective decision
Batteries Can electric vehicle batteries be recycled? by Serge Pelissier What resources are involved? What are the environmental impacts of extracting them? Can they be recycled?
Micro-plastic Why pineapple leaves are a promising candidate to replace plastic materials used in single-use masks by Dwi Umi Siswanti & Tiara Putri Pineapple leaves contain high levels of cellulose, and thus can be a good alternative to plastic fibres