Plastic is on the forefront of a passionate debate about our planet and how we use it’s resources. The UN is pushing change , and the EU is driving new thinking on single-use plastic (think forks, straws, etc) in an effort to tackle persistent ocean debris. This is sparking some excellent work around material solutions that are creative, surprising, and aspire to shift packaging more completely into the circular economy. I admit to having felt a bit numb on this topic; a bit overwhelmed and perhaps even defeated. But the more I research it, the more I appreciate the possibility for innovation to solve for these environmental challenges. There are some cool developments on the horizon that bring me hope and inspire me to more deeply consider possibilities. I hope they do the same for you. So, in this challenge there are two lanes of attention needed: 1) Get much better at recycling, and 2) Get better at using materials that degrade quickly and easily after their useful life