Fighting the Global Plastic Crisis with Aditya Siroya, rePurpose Global

Welcome back to Planet & Purpose —a bi-weekly LinkedIn Newsletter featuring professional insights and personal experiences from ocean and climate ecopreneurs, investors, and advocates by Daniela V. Fernandez , Founder & CEO of Sustainable Ocean Alliance (SOA).?

Earlier this month, world leaders representing over 175 countries gathered in Nairobi, Kenya for the third session of negotiations with the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (also known as INC-3) to develop an international, legally binding agreement on plastic pollution by the end of 2024.

That means progress is actively underway on the highly anticipated global treaty to end plastic pollution.

Why is this so important and specifically, how will it impact the marine environment?

Scientists estimate that more than 14 million metric tonnes of plastic enter the ocean every year — that is roughly equivalent to dumping two garbage trucks full of plastic into the ocean every minute.?

Currently, plastic consumption is on track to more than double by 2050 and experts warn that if we continue at the present rate, there will be more plastic in the ocean than fish . That is a tough plastic pill to swallow.?

The plastic industry and major fossil fuel-producing countries are distracting from their real goal to sustain and increase plastic manufacturing by pushing for negotiations to focus strictly on “ending plastic pollution,” which needs to be paired with curtailing its ongoing production.

But across sectors, innovators are now reaching policymakers and treaty negotiators with a different narrative: there are solutions to plastic. That’s why I’m so pleased to welcome Aditya Siroya , the Chief Impact Officer and Co-Founder at rePurpose Global , to share insights into this and more.

Read on below and stay tuned for the final edition of Planet & Purpose for 2023 in December!

Daniela: Welcome to Planet & Purpose , Aditya! I’m looking forward to your updates from the Global Plastics Treaty negotiations but first, let’s introduce readers to you and your work.?

Let’s begin with what industry rePurpose Global is actively working to disrupt, and why?

Aditya: Thank you for sharing your platform, Daniela! Simply put, the mission of rePurpose Global is to end plastic waste.?

The existing global systems are not working. As you mentioned, more and more plastic is being generated and wasted than ever before. We work to disrupt the way that plastic is produced, consumed, and disposed of—and to support innovations in order to combat global plastic pollution.

Our flagship offering is our ‘Verified Plastic Recovery ’ program that cultivates an impact portfolio for businesses to collect, recover, and verify plastic waste. At the same time, we also provide safer, fairer, more dignified work for waste workers in an otherwise exploitative and dangerous industry—especially in developing countries that are more impacted by pollution than others.?

By developing a greater understanding of these issues and support for existing solutions, together we can reduce waste, enhance livelihoods, and restore nature’s balance.

Daniela: We are so proud to have an incredible company like yours in the Ecopreneur Network at SOA! There is a great deal of synergy between our models since we both seek out and support solutions to ocean issues.?

Now, can you share some background on what inspired you to co-found rePurpose Global?

Aditya: Six years ago, my co-founders Peter Wang Hjemdahl , Svanika Balasubramanian , and I found ourselves in Asia’s second-largest landfill—the Deonar East Landfill in the outskirts of Mumbai, India. What we saw that day remains imprinted on all of our minds to this day.?

On one side, we saw endless mountains of plastic waste; and on the other, the glistening skyline of India’s financial capital. That was a defining moment that really crystallized our determination that something had to be done about the plastic waste crisis.?

We knew we had to bridge the gap between these two drastically different realities—and rePurpose Global was born.

Daniela: I’d love to hear more about your journey from there. What challenges did you face along the way, if any?

Aditya: After that moment at the landfill, it was—and to a large extent continues to be—a winding path, for sure.

After graduating, we immersed ourselves in the world of waste in India—and our first proposed ‘solution’ (as stereotypical millennials) was to develop an app for the waste sector.?

Surprise, surprise—that didn’t go anywhere.?

In fact, we tried several ‘startup’ experiments, including teaching school children about waste and exploring microfinance solutions for waste pickers.

In this process, we had a humbling, but much-needed, realization.

We realized we were not (and nor did we need to be) the ‘innovators’ in this space.?

Daniela: Intriguing, what exactly do you mean by that and how did you overcome these setbacks?

Aditya: We didn’t need to create something entirely new—efficient and ethical waste management systems were already being built by amazing individuals and organizations.?

We realized we were (and are) best situated within the industry to both channel private sector finance and resources to where they’re most needed (including across India and the Global South), and to launch bespoke plastic recovery projects.?

Since then, we have come quite a distance. In each of our locations, our expert team creates or fixes waste management value chains for plastic pollution. All projects follow our high sustainability, verifiability, and ethical standards, ensuring that we have a positive environmental impact above a business-as-usual scenario. And, we offer measurement and reduction solutions to empower businesses to tackle plastic waste from all angles.

Since solidifying our ‘winning’ path, we have brought together consumers, businesses, and innovators into this global movement to end plastic waste. In the process, we have recovered almost 50 million pounds (21 million kilograms) of nature-bound plastic waste through rePurpose Global ’s plastic recovery projects.

Daniela: There are so many amazing lessons in your origin story.?

One—failing forward. I’ve talked about this a lot but oftentimes what you perceive as failure in the moment is merely redirection to what you’re meant to be doing.?

And, two—you don’t have to have to originate a disruptive idea to make a difference. You can join forces to support innovators by using whatever connections, skills, or resources you have!?

Speaking of joining forces, can you detail how rePurpose Global is involved with advancing the Global Plastics Treaty?

Aditya: rePurpose Global has been independently advocating for strong action on plastic pollution at the INC meetings, aiming for zero plastic pollution by 2040.?

On top of that, we co-convened the Innovation Alliance for a Global Plastics Treaty (IAGPT) in partnership with The Ocean Cleanup . We are honored to have SOA as a founding member !?

We realized that many solutionists, entrepreneurs, and innovators who are working directly to solve the plastic waste crisis were absent from treaty negotiations—and we wanted to fix that.?

While big corporations can gain access to these meetings through trade groups and lobbyists, smaller for-profit and nonprofit businesses are often excluded from the global discourse—including those who are face to face with the plastic waste crisis on a daily basis.?

So we decided to come together to form an Alliance.

Daniela: As a solution-oriented organization, it is truly amazing and rewarding to be champions of the IAGPT at SOA—knowing that together, we have secured a seat for those on the frontlines of the crisis at the negotiation table.

Aditya: Exactly—forming the IAGPT aims to ensure that the Global Plastics Treaty is pragmatic and inclusive as we bring the collective knowledge of over 100 innovators to the forefront of these discussions.?

Members in the IAGPT that are already working to fight plastic pollution span the entire plastic action value chain, including: refill/reuse programs for waste reduction, waste management service providers, technological systems, alternative material developers, grassroots cleanup projects, and knowledge sharing of those working on the ground.

By bridging this accessibility gap, we can inform policymakers and negotiators to ensure the regulatory instruments of the Global Plastics Treaty are future-proof and will end plastic pollution—for good.

Daniela: Please keep us posted as the treaty negotiations continue into 2024! In the meantime, are there any other recent initiatives and outcomes you’d like to share with readers?

Aditya: Absolutely! Beyond our work towards a Global Plastics Treaty, our Plastic Action Platform actively enables businesses around the world to measure and reduce their plastic footprint.

Separately, and this one is close to my heart, the Plastic Reality Project is a unique expedition we first launched last year. It creates first-hand experiences of the realities of the plastic crisis—much like the one my co-founders and I had in Deonar that catalyzed our founding of rePurpose Global .

We hosted the second iteration of the program this year, bringing together business and sustainability leaders to interact with the impacts, solutions, and people at the heart of these issues.

We were grateful to have welcomed SOA team members (shoutout Doreen Wong and Camila Vega !) to participate in the project for the last two years—and for SOA’s ongoing support of this effort.?

Daniela: We’ve been honored to support and participate in these first two cohorts and look forward to the positive outcomes of this initiative. I know attendees will benefit from the unique educational expeditions, corporate training programs, and peer mentoring networks the Project champions.

Daniela: Final question, is there an early career insight that might help others who are beginning their journey in the ocean impact space?

Aditya: Absolutely. As I mentioned, when we were navigating the direction that our company would take and its potential evolution, it became apparent that we could be a ‘bridge’ between two disparate worlds.?

We have since grown to provide many bridges, from offering corporate plastic footprint accounting to our industry-leading Verified Plastic Recovery program I mentioned previously.

So for others beginning their journey in the impact space, it’s worth considering that your biggest contribution might be as an ally, a bridge, an advocate, or a connector for something that already exists.

Daniela: Aditya, I can’t thank you enough for your advice to readers on how to positively impact the planet. I agree that sometimes connecting the dots can establish the best path forward.

Aditya: My pleasure. Thank you for having me, Daniela!

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CAREER OPPORTUNITIES WITH REPURPOSE GLOBAL

Interested in a purpose-driven career within the sustainable blue economy??

rePurpose Global currently has 7 open positions to join their team! Remote/hybrid roles are available, with many team members located in Miami, NYC, London, Bangalore, Delhi, and Mumbai.?

Learn more and apply here → https://bit.ly/rpg-jobs

About Planet & Purpose:

Planet & Purpose is a LinkedIn Newsletter featuring professional insights and personal experiences from ocean and climate ecopreneurs, investors, and advocates brought to you by Daniela V. Fernandez , Founder & CEO of Sustainable Ocean Alliance (SOA).