Sustainability Insights

A partnership to give new life to plastic waste

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Plastic Odyssey is a global project to reduce plastic pollution in the ocean by creating a worldwide network of local recycling initiatives. Co-founder Simon Bernard introduces the project and its partnership with FORVIA.

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Giving new life to plastic waste is an important part of society’s transition to a circular economy.  At Plastic Odyssey, we are on the frontline. 

Oceans represent the planet’s main reservoir of biodiversity: preserving and restoring them is essential in the fight against climate change. Currently, five billion tons of untreated waste materials are floating in the ocean. By recycling one out of every two waste items in the 30 coastal countries most affected by this plastic pollution, we could avoid 40% of global pollution.

Our laboratory ship left Marseille in October 2022 for a three-year, three-continent expedition across the world, navigating to the regions most affected by plastic pollution. 

The aim is to identify innovative and practical solutions for recycling plastic waste and test scalable models for replication. Our goal is also to foster economically viable local businesses that transform existing plastic waste into resources.

“As experts in materials, FORVIA, as part of a partnership signed in June 2023 between the FORVIA Foundation and Plastic Odyssey, provides an industrial perspective that will help us refine recycling processes for plastic waste and optimize the quality of recycled materials – a key lever to give them a second life.”

Simon Bernard
Co-founder of Plastic Odyssey

Simon Bernard