Quezon City Mayor Josefina “Joy” Belmonte’s commitment to environmental protection can be traced to the aftermath of the worst storm to hit the Philippines in decades. 

When Typhoon Ketsana struck in 2009, it unleashed ferocious downpours and floods that submerged roads and forced residents onto their rooftops for refuge. As the floodwaters receded, they left a river of plastic bags, sachets and other litter in their wake. 

That sight left a lasting impact on Belmonte, who successfully ran for vice mayor of Quezon City in 2009 before becoming its mayor in 2019.

“I'm a good governance advocate,” Belmonte told the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). “Good governance involves good stewardship of the environment.” 

Only the second female mayor in the history of Quezon City, home to 3.1 million, Belmonte has pursued a raft of policies to end plastic pollution, counter climate change and green the city.

For her efforts to transform Quezon City into an environmental trailblazer, Belmonte has been named the 2023 Champion of the Earth for Policy Leadership, one of the UN’s highest environmental honours.

"Mayor Josefina Belmonte’s passionate leadership and policy achievements exemplify how local authorities can solve global environmental problems,” said Inger Andersen, Executive Director of UNEP. “Cities can be the dynamic engines of change we need to overcome the triple planetary crisis of climate change, nature and biodiversity loss, and pollution and waste – and mayors can help to lead that charge.

Fighting the throwaway culture 
Quezon City was the Philippines’ capital for 27 years until the title returned to Manila in 1976. Today, it is the country’s most populous city and is part of Metro Manila.

Belmonte’s connections to this place run deep. Not only was she born and raised here, but her father, Feliciano “Sonny” Belmonte, was its ninth mayor.

Despite an early exposure to politics, Belmonte’s interests initially led her elsewhere – including to a career as an archaeologist. But in the end, the call to public service proved too strong. 

“If you can be in a position where you can be a source of inspiration to others and become the root of positive change for millions of people, then it is worth it,” she said.

For Belmonte, positive change means prioritizing action on the environment to create a liveable, green and sustainable city.

Under Belmonte’s leadership, Quezon City has focused on reducing plastic pollution and extending the life of plastic products already in circulation.

“Plastic pollution is a major problem in the Philippines, as in many parts of the world, because of the throwaway culture,” Belmonte said. “Plastics clog our drainage systems and end up in the oceans. We know that plastic waste becomes microplastics that can be consumed in the food we eat, the air we breathe and even in the water we drink, which affects our health.”

Globally, humanity’s addiction to short-lived plastic products has created an environmental catastrophe . Around 19 to 23 million tonnes of plastic annually leaks into aquatic ecosystems, polluting lakes, rivers and seas. To stem that flow, experts say the world must fundamentally alter its relationship with plastic by using less of the material, eliminating single-use products, reusing what plastics are produced and finding environmentally friendly alternatives.

Under Belmonte, Quezon City has banned single-use plastic bags, cutlery, straws and containers in hotels, restaurants and fast-food chains for dine-in customers, as well as single-use packaging material.

Since 2021, residents have been able to trade in their recyclables and single-use plastic products for environmental points that can be used to buy food and pay electricity bills under the “Trash to Cashback” scheme. City authorities have even started a “Vote to Tote” programme to turn tarpaulins used in election campaigning into bags.

Still, millions of single-use plastic sachets are thrown away every day in the Philippines, which is a major source of ocean plastics. Though sachets allow households more affordable access to essentials for cooking, hygiene and sanitation, they cannot be recycled effectively, causing serious environmental harm, experts say.

“Sachet culture really gets to me. It really is something that makes me angry because it is there because we are a poor country,” Belmonte said. “Major manufacturers need to do their part and change the way they package products to make them more environmentally friendly.”

To combat plastic pollution, Belmonte launched in 2023 an initiative to help put refill stations for essentials, such as washing-up liquid and liquid detergent, in convenience stores across the city. With products that are often less expensive than their packaged counterparts, the stations have been received positively and will be piloted in over 6,000 stores next year, Belmonte said.

Last year, a historic UN resolution was passed to develop a legally binding international instrument to end plastic pollution. Belmonte has been vocal about the need for a “truly ambitious” global instrument.

“Mayors want to be part of the negotiating table because we have very practical experience to bring,” she said. “The real work is at the level of cities. We already know that when change happens at the level of cities, it happens much more rapidly.”

Earning trust

Under Belmonte, Quezon City has also developed an ambitious plan to reduce its carbon emissions by 30 per cent in 2030 and reach net-zero by 2050. It has declared a state of climate emergency to unlock spending, amounting to 11–13 per cent of the city’s annual budget, on programmes that mitigate the impacts of the climate crisis.

There are plans to double the number of parks in the city, introduce more electric buses and almost quadruple the network of bike lanes by 2030 to fight pollution. Other green initiatives include promoting urban farming and deploying equipment that allows community farms to transform organic waste into methane gas that can be used for cooking.

Although Belmonte has worked hard to forge her own path, she considers one piece of advice from her father to be priceless: “Always spend time with the people. Especially go to the poor communities, because when you go to the communities and you see how difficult life is for people in the grassroots, you'll never think of abusing power.”

It is advice that has shaped her political approach, helped her to build public trust and contributed to her popularity among voters. She was re-elected mayor in 2022 and regularly scores the highest approval ratings among metro Manila’s mayors.

“People will buy into your vision if you value what they have to say. That is the best way to get all of our environmental issues across,” Belmonte said.

About the UNEP Champions of the Earth

The United Nations Environment Programme’s (UNEP)Champions of the Earth honours individuals and organizations whose actions have a transformative impact on the environment. The annual Champions of the Earth award is the UN’s highest environmental honour. #EarthChamps 

About the #BeatPollution campaign

To fight the pervasive impact of pollution on society, UNEP launched #BeatPollution , a strategy for rapid, large-scale and coordinated action against air, land and water pollution. The strategy highlights the impact of pollution on climate change, nature and biodiversity loss, and human health. Through science-based messaging, the campaign showcases how transitioning to a pollution-free planet is vital for future generations. 

Ellen MacArthur was only 24 when she secured a place in the history books by becoming the youngest person to sail solo around the world in 2001. Four years later, she broke the record for the fastest solo circumnavigation of the globe, taking just over 71 days to complete the voyage.

Her account of battling squally gales, skirting icebergs and narrowly avoiding a collision with a whale enthralled millions. The mental and physical exertion of sailing, the freedom of the high seas, the thrill of being immersed in the breathtaking power and beauty of the ocean were all MacArthur ever dreamed of. 

Then, at the peak of her career, she retired from competitive sailing and changed course entirely. 

Time spent alone at sea, surviving on limited supplies of food, water and fuel, had given MacArthur an acute awareness of what it meant to live with finite means. She saw a parallel with humanity, which was consuming beyond what the Earth could provide. 

“You cannot use up finite resources in a world with a growing population. It just cannot work,” MacArthur told the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). “We need to rethink and redesign our entire economic model.”  

In 2010, the trailblazer set up the Ellen MacArthur Foundation to rally support for a more circular global economy focused on eliminating waste and pollution – including from plastics –promoting the reuse of products and materials, and regenerating nature. 

For its efforts, the Ellen MacArthur Foundation has been named 2023 Champion of the Earth for Inspiration and Action, one of the United Nations’ highest environmental honours.

“We need a systemic transformation to address the plastic pollution crisis,” said Inger Andersen, Executive Director of UNEP. “The Ellen MacArthur Foundation has been instrumental in engaging businesses and decision makers, enabling large-scale solutions that can steer us toward a future unblighted by plastic pollution.”

From a straight line to a circle 
Since the launch of its first report in 2012 at the World Economic Forum gathering in Davos, Switzerland, the foundation has radically shifted the discourse of some of the most powerful global corporations and helped governments understand the changes needed to create more sustainable economies. 

It has spearheaded global initiatives on plastics, fashion and food, while creating a network of business leaders, policymakers and academics to pilot sustainable practices. This year, it launched the Circular Startup Index, a public database featuring more than 500 start-ups accelerating the transition to a circular economy. The foundation has also helped to develop the curriculum for the first-ever Master of Business Administration focused on this model.

Today, 430 million tonnes of plastic are produced every year, two-thirds of which quickly becomes waste. Plastic pollution causes between US$300 billion and US$600 billion a year in social and economic costs and has precipitated what has been called an environmental catastrophe by UN Secretary-General António Guterres.

When the Ellen MacArthur Foundation was launched in 2010, few were talking about plastic pollution.

In 2016, the foundation produced the first big global study on plastic packaging. Its findings, which immediately captured headlines around the world, were a wake-up call. The report concluded that most plastic packaging is used only once and that 95 per cent of the value of plastic packaging material, worth a staggering US$80 billion to US$120 billion annually, is lost to the economy.

A follow-up report in 2017 showed that, without fundamental redesign and innovation, about 30 per cent of plastic packaging will never be reused or recycled.

“Plastics are very high volume, low value. They are the ultimate linear economy example,” MacArthur said. “If we really want to shift from a linear to circular economy, then this is a really good place to start.”

By 2040, a shift to a lifecycle approach could reduce the volume of plastics entering the environment by over 80 per cent, slash virgin plastic production by 55 per cent and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 25 per cent. Redesigning how humanity produces, uses, recovers and disposes of plastic could also save US$4.5 trillion by 2040.

In collaboration with UNEP, the Ellen MacArthur Foundation leads the New Plastics Economy; Global Commitment. It unites more than 1,000 organizations – including consumer goods giants such as H&M, PepsiCo and the Coca-Cola Company – as well as governments representing 1 billion people behind a common vision to stop plastic from becoming waste.

Lessons and data from the Global Commitment offer valuable insights as negotiators push for an international legally binding instrument to end plastic pollution by 2024.

A third round of negotiations on the instrument’s draft document is due to start in Nairobi on 13 November. Observers say the final instrument could be the most significant multilateral environmental pact since the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change. 

For the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, the deal must prioritize the shift from single-use to reusable plastic products.

Discussing the future, MacArthur hopes that the lifecycle approach will one day be so normal that the foundation will no longer be needed.

“One thing that ocean racing and record-breaking teaches you is the importance of the goal,” MacArthur said. “You have to be driven, and you have to understand exactly where you're trying to get. I see the circular economy as an opportunity. It's such a fantastic place to get to.”

About the UNEP Champions of the Earth

UNEP’s Champions of the Earth honours individuals, groups and organizations whose actions have a transformative impact on the environment. The annual Champions of the Earth award is the UN’s highest environmental honour. #EarthChamps

About the #BeatPollution campaign

To fight the pervasive impact of pollution on society, UNEP launched #BeatPollution, a strategy for rapid, large-scale and coordinated action against air, land and water pollution. The strategy highlights the impact of pollution on climate change, nature and biodiversity loss, and human health. Through science-based messaging, the campaign showcases how transitioning to a pollution-free planet is vital for future generations. 

在中国浙江省沿海，渔民们每天怀揣渔获满仓的期待，天不亮就出门拖网捕鱼，这一景象几代人未曾改变。

如今，他们大多数人拖着装满塑料的渔网，如同拖着鱼一样满载而归返回岸上。 

这一变化源自2019年，“蓝色循环”环保项目为浙江的渔民、沿岸社区群众提供酬劳，鼓励他们收集塑料袋、瓶子和废弃渔网等塑料垃圾。

“蓝色循环”旨在运用先进的智能设备和区块链技术，清理和管理浙江省6600公里海岸线上的塑料污染，同时造福当地社区。

自“蓝色循环”启动以来，已有10240艘船、6300多名渔民和当地群众参与，回收近2500吨塑料。

浙江省生态环境厅（海洋处）陈渊处长表示：“我们希望‘蓝色循环’的海洋塑料废弃物治理模式能走出国门，走向世界，鼓励更多的人采取行动，遏制海洋塑料污染。”

“蓝色循环”获选2023年“地球卫士奖”-商界卓识奖，表彰其应对塑料污染所做的杰出贡献，该奖项是联合国最高级别的环保荣誉之一。

“人类对塑料的依赖正在威胁着地球的健康、我们的福祉和繁荣。”联合国环境规划署（环境署）执行主任英格·安德森说，“为确保公正过渡和改善民生，我们必须拥抱创新。蓝色循环展现了科技与可持续性相结合带来的可能性。”

创新解决方案 

“蓝色循环”由浙江省生态环境厅和浙江蓝景科技有限公司共同创建，是中国最大的海洋塑料垃圾回收项目。

“蓝色循环”搭建数字平台，利用区块链技术和物联网追溯每一件塑料（回收再生）的各个环节。

通过收集船只、港口、仓库和生产线的实时信息以及交互式地图，“蓝色循环”对塑料回收再生（信息）进行归纳整合，让人一眼看清产品中的塑料原料是 “谁运的、存哪里、谁再生、谁制造”。经过认证的海洋塑料制成的商品上印有二维码，消费者可以扫描二维码，获取这些信息。

“蓝色循环”对区块链技术和网络的应用让我们惊喜地看到未来环保行动的可能性。

浙江蓝景科技有限公司海洋事业部总经理陈亚红在接受环境署采访时表示：“我们已经创建了一个可以供全球参考学习的数字平台。”

“蓝色循环”计划在2025年向全球开放数字化系统，扩大规模，让各类企业（包括小规模企业和非正式部门企业在内）、政府和公益组织共同参与到这个项目。

人类对塑料的“生产-使用-丢弃”做法正在引发一场环境灾难。超过90%的塑料制品只使用一次就被填埋、焚烧或泄漏到环境中。这种目光短浅的做法占到实现《巴黎协定》最具雄心的气变目标所允许的全球温室气体排放量的近五分之一。

造福渔业社区

除种植茶叶和养殖丝绸外，渔业也是浙江乡村的经济支柱。不过，由于沿海地区的人口老龄化，这一行业已今非昔比。

为帮扶低收入人群，“蓝色循环”推出了一系列经济激励和福利计划。当地居民每收集一个塑料瓶，就可以获得2毛钱，这大约是市场价格的7倍。

“蓝色循环”成员可以通过数字平台获得来自银行和农村信用社提供的基础型社会保险和低息贷款。截至目前，金融机构已累计发放1.3亿元人民币的贷款。

该项目还设立了一个“蓝色共同富裕基金”，资金来源于向制造公司出售塑料所得收益。通过该基金，塑料垃圾收集者每月可增加1200多元人民币的收入。通过与政府和企业合作，“蓝色循环”已经为沿海地区的6000多名低收入居民和渔民提供了支持。

陈渊说：“浙江通过政府、企业和公众合作，全面实施各领域环境保护，不仅能促进经济增长，还能保护海洋生态系统，浙江人民渴望优美的自然环境和优质的生态空间。”

在全球范围内，环境署与发展中国家在内的各国政府和企业合作，促进塑料的公正过渡。这需要确保以公平、包容的方式实现塑料的可持续生产和消费，覆盖每一个人，包括拾荒者和塑料价值链中的其他工人。此外，专家表示，这种做法不仅可以创造体面的工作机会，对于确保包容性也至关重要，而包容性正是实现这一目标的关键因素。

与自然和谐共生

中国的塑料产量仍占全球的30%左右，但中国一直在采取措施解决塑料污染及其对环境的影响。

中国自2018年起实施塑料垃圾进口禁令，阻止发达国家的塑料废料进入中国。最近，中国政府还公布了在2025年内逐步淘汰所有一次性和不可生物降解塑料的计划。

中国生态环境部认为“蓝色循环”的做法值得在全国推广。在各级政府部门的进一步支持下，“蓝色循环”有望在2025年内大幅扩大活动范围，覆盖九个沿海省份和两个直辖市的289个港口。

浙江省生态环境厅的陈渊表示，“蓝色循环”的成功很大程度上得益于该行动与渔业社区间的相互促进：渔民增加了收入，沿海水域也更清洁。

他还提到了浙江省过去在环境保护方面取得的成绩。2018年，浙江省“千万工程”荣获“地球卫士奖”。习近平主席担任浙江省委书记期间，曾于2003年考察满山苍翠的安吉，并强调保护自然的重要性，他指出：“绿水青山就是金山银山。”此次考察为浙江的绿色发展注入了强大动能。

陈渊说：“人们确实亲眼见证了绿水青山就是金山银山。”

关于环境署地球卫士奖

联合国环境规划署“地球卫士奖”旨在表彰对环境产生变革性影响的个人、团体和组织。一年一度的“地球卫士奖”是联合国最高级别的环保荣誉。#地球卫士#

关于#战胜污染#运动

为消除污染对社会的普遍影响，环境署启动了#战胜污染#战略，旨在针对空气、土地和水污染采取快速、大规模的协同行动。这项战略强调了污染对气候变化、自然环境和生物多样性丧失以及人类健康的影响，并通过科学的信息宣传，展示了向无污染地球过渡对于子孙后代的重要性。

It was only when José Manuel Moller began living on the outskirts of Santiago in a low-income neighbourhood that he experienced what is known as "poverty tax" – the extra costs people incur due to their economic circumstances.

A university student at the time, Moller was in charge of buying groceries for the house he shared with friends. Unlike in more affluent areas of the Chilean capital, there were few big supermarket chains in the area. So, most residents relied on local convenience stores that sold smaller quantities of essentials like cooking oil, beans and detergent – but at a premium.

Moller estimates he was paying up to 60 per cent more than if he had bought the same goods in bulk, and that plastic packaging was both inflating prices and creating an environmental problem.

"You realize that something unfair is happening," Moller told the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). "We are pushing lower-income consumers to pay more for packaging that ends up being a problem for sustainability and waste in the same neighbourhoods. The equation is wrong but to change this, you need to change the system."

To address what is a global issue, the 35-year-old founded Algramo (meaning "by the gram" in Spanish) in 2012. The social enterprise works with a range of retailers, from local shopkeepers to global brands, to encourage customers to use prefilled and refillable plastic containers for basics, such as dish soap and washing-up liquid. These household staples can be bought by the gram, with consumers paying the same per unit no matter how much or how little they buy.

Since 2020, Algramo customers have reused more than 900,000 pieces of packaging, keeping more than 100 tonnes of plastic from becoming waste.

For his efforts, Moller has been named the 2023 Champion of the Earth for Entrepreneurial Vision , one of the United Nations' highest environmental honours. Moller also works to galvanize the zero-waste movement through his role as vice chair of the United Nations Advisory Board of Eminent Persons on Zero Waste, an initiative set up in March 2023. The board helps raise awareness of the need to prevent, reduce and sustainably manage waste.

"How humanity produces, consumes and disposes of plastic has created a disaster," said Inger Andersen, Executive Director of UNEP. "José Manuel Moller's work shows us that reusing plastic can enable a range of economic, social and environment benefits, which is crucial to transforming our relationship with this material."

Driving the refill revolution 
Less than10 per cent of plastic ever produced has been recycled. The rest is buried, burned or leaks into the environment, usually after just a single use. That plastic infiltrates land and sea and often makes its way into the human food chain.

To end the plastic pollution crisis , experts say it is crucial to find solutions that tackle the negative impacts of plastic products at all stages of their life cycle.

For Moller, encouraging consumers to make more sustainable choices is a key part of that process.

"The challenge around sustainability is not only about technology, it is also about consumer behaviour. I started thinking about how I could make people fall in love with an empty bottle,” Moller said. 

In Chile, Algramo has partnered with convenience stores to allow shoppers to buy products in reusable bottles, with consumers returning their old containers when they do. At large retailers, Algramo has installed dispensing stations where customers can refill their own receptacles. The business is aiming to have more than 50 dispensing locations in the country by the end of the year.

Customers can also pay for orders via a phone app. Each container is fitted with a radio-frequency-based tag, a kind of smart barcode linked to an online account. The account tracks purchases and customers are rewarded every time the container is reused with a cash incentive. The money pops up in a virtual wallet, which can then be used as a discount on future purchases.

"Algramo believes that the solution to plastic pollution must not only be for high-income millennial vegetarians," said Moller. "This should be designed for everyone, who, at the end of the day, make decisions based on price. So, the approach of Algramo has always been affordability."

An ambition to change the world 
For refill systems to become truly mainstream, Moller knows the importance of operating on a larger scale.

In recent years, Algramo has focused on expanding into other countries, including by providing expertise and software to other start-ups. Its greatest achievement, Moller said, has been convincing some of the world's biggest consumer goods companies to offer refill services for some products.

"Algramo has an ambition to change the world, not to offer detergent," Moller said. "I'm not excited about selling powder detergent or laundry detergent, I'm excited about changing the industry to move the needle on packaging and solving the poverty tax."

In Indonesia, Algramo is trialling a project in collaboration with Nestlé for two of its products, including a chocolate beverage. It is preparing to enter the Mexican market, having embarked on partnerships with Walmart and Target in the United States. It also has a partnership with a Lidl retail store in Birmingham, England, that allows customers to refill laundry detergent.

Despite the best efforts of social enterprises like Algramo, Moller admits there is a limit to what they can achieve. Ultimately, government regulation is needed to counter the rising tide of plastic pollution, he says.

"How do we push companies to do more than what the regulations are asking them to do?" Moller asks. "That is one of the main problems that we have today."

Moller says he feels an urgent need to shift consumer habits and make reusing plastics part of daily life. That drive stems from the fear that time is running out to avert the worst impacts of the climate crisis, he told UNEP.

In its latest report, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change warned that if greenhouse gas emissions continue to grow at current rates, the planet would be on track to breach the most ambitious targets of the Paris Agreement between 2030 and 2035.

Addressing plastic pollution is critical to countering the climate crisis, experts say. The production, use and disposal of conventional fossil fuel-based plastics is responsible for more than 3 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions a year.

"Reducing plastic pollution is relevant, it is urgent, and we are running late," Moller said.

About the UNEP Champions of the Earth

UNEP's Champions of the Earth honours individuals, groups and organizations whose actions have a transformative impact on the environment. The annual Champions of the Earth award is the UN's highest environmental honour. #EarthChamps 

About the #BeatPollution campaign

To fight the pervasive impact of pollution on society, UNEP launched #BeatPollution , a strategy for rapid, large-scale and coordinated action against air, land and water pollution. The strategy highlights the impact of pollution on climate change, nature and biodiversity loss, and human health. Through science-based messaging, the campaign showcases how transitioning to a pollution-free planet is vital for future generations.