Trinseo | Trinseo’s Let’s Do Recycling! Program Premieres its First Webinar

October 08, 2020

Trinseo’s Let’s Do Recycling! Program Premieres its First Webinar

Trinseo launched the Let’s Do Recycling! Program in 2019 with an initial aim of advocating the circularity of polystyrene (PS) which in turn helps to reduce plastic waste. The program touts PS as an infinitely recyclable, safe, and sustainable food packaging material through an alliance of manufacturers, restaurants, consumers, waste collection, and recycling associations.

Today, the Program encompasses two main initiatives: the Sustainable PS Packaging Program and the PS Waste Management Program. The recent pandemic has resulted in the reemergence for an awareness in the importance of single-use plastics, such as PS food packaging, which has proven to be one of the most hygienic and environmentally preferable options.

Recently, Trinseo worked with Kemasan Group, the co-founder of the program in organizing the “Waste Management in Indonesia Webinar Series 2020/2021” (conducted in Bahasa, Indonesia). The Series consists of 12 educational webinars dedicated to discussing the recycling of single-use plastics, waste processing, and the environment.

The first webinar in the series kicked off on September 29, 2020, in which it asks, “Is Single-Use Plastic Ban the Perfect Solution for Environmental Problems in Indonesia?” The moderator and panelists discussed why the Indonesian government should reconsider banning single-use plastics, especially during the pandemic, as well as the impact on the economy, workforce, and sanitation.

Other details include:

Moderator

Mr. Hanggara Sukandar, Director of Sustainability, Responsible Care^® Indonesia Site Leader, Merak Site, PT Trinseo Materials Indonesia

Panelists

Mr. Wahyudi Sulistya, Director of Kemasan Group
Dr. Kardiana Dewi, Sp.KK, medical practitioner
Dr. Jessica Hanafi, Life Cycle Assessment technical expert, Life Cycle Indonesia
Mr. Prispolly Lengkong, Chairman of the Indonesian Scavenger Association

Webinar screenshot

It was concluded in the webinar that single-use plastic waste is just waste left in the wrong place, and we should not penalize useful plastic materials because of anti-social behavior. An example would be disposable surgical masks which are made of single-use plastic materials. All packaging leaves an environmental footprint regardless of material type. It takes energy and raw materials to produce, transport, and recover or dispose of all materials. Therefore, it is important to measure all of these impacts throughout the entire lifecycle of the product.

Another key message the webinar strives to deliver is that responsible human behavior relating to waste disposal and a proper solid waste management system are of prime importance. The webinar attracted hundreds of participants in Indonesia, including 47 national and regional media groups, 17 organizations (e.g. environmentalists, etc.), national and local government officials, and ministries, with university academics and students being the majority. Both the discussions and the Q&A session were very well received. There were more than 49 media outlets covering the event, aside from a broadcast of the webinar on Brava Radio on October 1, 2020.

At Trinseo, sustainability is intrinsic to who we are and what we do on a day to day basis. With the heavy involvement of subject experts in various professional areas, the Let’s Do Recycling! Program will continue its pursuance in organizing the “Waste Management in Indonesia Webinar Series” to help educate stakeholders, and to help make Indonesia green again.

To learn more about the Let’s Do Recycling! Program or the Waste Management in Indonesia Webinar Series 2020/2021, please click click here.