Many Ways to Be a Catalyst

Dear Readers?

Catalyst. It’s a significant word. Something is a catalyst when it makes something else happen more swiftly, or ignites change. And this is really the theme of this update. The stories you will read here are about just that: an Alliance project that’s changing the landscape and future of a community, project funding that will propel projects into higher levels of impact, and playbooks to accelerate impact. ?

We are now in the next phase of our Bersih Indonesia project. The aim – as with all our projects – is to create a financially sustainable solution that can be scaled and replicated. This waste management project is a milestone for many reasons. ?

For me, though, it’s not only about the large numbers who will benefit: some 1 million residents and more than 230,000 households will receive bins in which to separate their trash, and enjoy regular waste collection. And not only about the 1,400 jobs created. It’s also about building a solution that works for everyone, together with the community. It starts with efforts to gradually clear existing waste-with-nowhere-to-go with the community pitching in. It’s about the vision of effective waste management that brings hands and hearts together, and enabling lasting change by deploying infrastructure solutions hand in hand with behaviour change. ?

That’s exactly what we are doing with Malang H.E.B.A.T.S. (‘terrific’), a community engagement and education programme. See for yourself and watch the video here.

I deeply respect the thinking behind 世界银行 ’s newly issued Plastic Waste Reduction-Linked Bond. It’s a much-needed innovation in which private capital will be secured to support, among others, two collection and recycling projects – one in Ghana and the other in Indonesia. Both projects have benefitted from early Alliance financing and technical support. ?

Traditionally, the challenge has been that outcomes must be achieved before funding can come in. This can take years, leaving those along the plastics value chain unable to scale up, and informal waste pickers struggling to eke out a living in spite of their hard work.??

The new bond addresses this “timing mismatch”, and generates upfront financing from investors. This funding will enable scaling up for both projects: more waste collection and recycling centres will be built, staffed, and managed in Accra, Ghana; efforts to reduce ocean-bound plastics in Surabaya, Indonesia will be increased. Hats off to this bond which addresses ground realities effectively – this to me is its strongest point. ?

Read our LinkedIn post here.?

I’m really proud to share that the Alliance’s first two Solution Model playbooks are ready. These playbooks focus on two critical components of the plastics value chain: Engaging Households in Segregated Municipal Waste Collection and Unlocking Value Through Basic Manual Sorting of Municipal Waste.??

The playbooks describe the challenges, how they were addressed, lessons learnt, and successes. They also include necessary enabling conditions, from policy levers to ecosystem conditions, business models, and innovation. We worked with the 波士顿谘询公司 to create them, and we’ll continue to update them as the solutions are strengthened.?

We develop, deploy, and de-risk solutions, and we share whatever we learn to inspire others to act and to accelerate our common impact. Guided by the first of many Solution Model playbooks, we hope that leaders use what we’ve learned to adapt, replicate, and scale. This can only accelerate the work of preventing plastic waste from entering the environment. ?

See the playbooks here.??

All of the above – from changing behaviours and mobilising financial support, to openly sharing knowledge and lessons learnt – are important catalysts in bringing about systems change and only possible through collaboration. ?

I look forward to sending you more updates soon. Meanwhile, please let us know if the playbooks are useful to you, and feel free to share your thoughts and feedback with us in the comments below. ?

Kind Regards,

Jacob

President & CEO