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Igniting Change Podcast Season 3: Episode 4
Tom Jackson, Founder of Honest Ocean, joins us to discuss career changes, failed start-ups, and pivots that all led to him setting up a recycling infrastructure in South East Asia to remove plastic from the ocean.
3 min read
News
At this point in our collective concern over the growing climate crisis, we know what needs to be done but it’s an entirely different matter of how to make that necessary change happen. We see the immense power that technology yields in this battle and are the biggest proponents of utilizing it. This holds especially true when it comes to the potential technology poses in supporting the transition to a circular economy model.
But what exactly is a circular economy?Â
Glad you asked!
A circular economy is part of the solution to breaking the mold of our current linear system where products are simply made, used, and binned off. In a circular economy, products, services, and systems are designed to maximize their value and minimize waste. ​It’s an all-encompassing approach to life and business, where everything has value and nothing is wasted. Simply put, it can be explained as ‘make, use, remake’ as opposed to the current system that is wreaking havoc on our environment.
By 2050 there will be more plastic than fish in the sea. Something’s gotta give.
On this week’s episode, Rich and Gabby sit down with Tom Jackson to learn more about the incredible work he does to create a recycling economy and infrastructure for ocean plastic waste in South East Asia.
Meet Tom
With a background in manufacturing, Tom was always interested in the sourcing and collection of materials that went into making products. Combined with spending the last 10 years of his life on the ocean, seeing the direct impact of plastic pollution, made him realize he wanted a change.
This interest led him to look into how he could create a sustainable waste management supply chain across Indonesia. It is his mission that Honest Ocean will provide accurate traceability of materials for its customers and for a more sustainable and cleaner future.
About Honest Ocean
Tom and Angus, Founders of Honest Ocean had a simple idea – change the flow of ocean plastic waste in South East Asia.
They started by looking into some of the worst affected areas by plastic waste, such as Indonesia, and found that there was extremely poor infrastructure in place to combat the overflowing plastic pollution. This is not only caused by South East Asian countries, but by all western countries, who have been exporting their plastic waste for 20 years to countries like Indonesia.
They have concentrated on creating a closed loop 360 plastic supply chain, turning plastic waste into a commodity, whilst also educating and empowering local communities to help in the fight against ocean plastic waste.
The goal is never to collect material in the ocean and move it to landfill, it's how do we use every type of plastic material, back into another new products. For true circularity!
Listen to the full episode here
To hear more of the conversation with Tom listen now using the links below!
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Published on March 30, 2023, last updated on April 17, 2023
