Film Screening and Eco Gift Wrapping!

Plastic-Free MKE is partnering with the Urban Ecology Center  - Riverside Park Branch to host an eco-gift wrapping and film screening event. We'll provide examples and ideas for inspiration, a few materials, popcorn and sparkling water, and invite you to bring other snacks to share! We will have a short introduction followed by time to wrap your gifts during our screening of the film, Gift! Gift is a wonderful film inspired by the book, The Gift: Creativity and the Artist in the Modern World by Lewis Hyde, that shows a different perspective on the culture of gift-giving.

Register Here 

Attend: Mermaid Echo's Live Show, River Heroes!

This fall, the Brookby Foundation has partnered with the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee’s School of Freshwater Sciences to fund Pierce VanValkenburg's (aka Mermaid Echo!) work to promote freshwater literacy. This has allowed their lessons to expand to kindergarten - 9th grade with a project called, “A Whimsical Solution: Connecting K12 kids to aquatic conservation through “edutainment.” To support Milwaukee Riverkeeper and Mermaid Echo's residency, attend one of the live shows at Discovery World on December 16th at 11 am or 12:30 pm. 

Mermaid Echo Live!

Take Action: Support an Effective Plastics Treaty

We call on governments to ensure that the Plastics Treaty meaningfully addresses all aspects of the plastics crisis for it to effectively reverse the tide of plastic pollution and contribute to the end of the triple planetary crises of climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution. Sign the petition to support an effective Plastics Treaty below. For more information on the Plastics Treaty click here.

Sign the Petition

Watch: Coke Knew Their Plastic Would Trash the Planet…And Did It Anyway

The Story of Stuff Project sheds light on how the iconic Coca-Cola bottle evolved into a harmful plastic. They used to use glass bottles with a deposit system that allowed customers to return their bottles and get two cents back. Now, Coca-Cola has become one of the largest plastic polluters in the world producing " …a quarter of a million plastic bottles every minute." 

Watch Here

Listen: A 'trash audit' can help you cut down waste at home. Here's how to do it

Kavitha George discusses ways to reduce waste inspired by the resourcefulness of her mother. Kavitha talks individual actions to eliminate unnecessary waste with Isaias Hernandez who is an environmental educator based in LA and runs the @queerbrownvegan Instagram. His content is filled with information on plastics and waste, environmental science, and promoting sustainability.  Check out all of these useful tips to reduce plastics! 

Listen Here

Microplastics detected in clouds hanging atop two Japanese mountains

“The findings highlight how microplastics are highly mobile and can travel long distances through the air and environment. Previous research has found the material in rain, and the study’s authors say the main source of airborne plastics may be seaspray, or aerosols, that are released when waves crash or ocean bubbles burst. Dust kicked up by cars on roads is another potential source, the authors wrote."

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Massive new database on how plastic chemicals harm our health

"The database allows users to “map” science papers by plastic chemicals, health outcomes and geography and drill down further by year of publication, population, age and other variables. An accompanying journal article in Environment International outlines how the database came together."

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NC State researchers engineer 'promising' plastic-degrading microbe to help polluted oceans

“To help address the pollution problem, researchers engineered an organism that combined features of two different bacteria species. They took DNA from a microbe known to eat PET that did not grow well in salt water, and they put it in Vibrio natriegens, a rapidly reproducing saltwater microbe.”

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Dumped, Not Recycled? Electronic Tracking Raises Questions About Houston’s Drive to Repurpose a Full Range of Plastics

"All of the tags led them to an open-air site run by Wright Waste Management 20 miles northwest of downtown Houston, Dell said. Arriving at the location, she found the traced plastic bags and other plastic waste tossed alongside a fence—a fire hazard in the city’s triple-digit summer heat, she noted with concern."

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