Plastic Collective relates to a programme which begun owing to Louise Hardman initiatives in 2016. The plastic created from the onset of mass production is estimated to weigh over 8billion tonnes (Eriksen et al. 2014). In Australia, the bags used which are made of plastic are 6.9 billion in total. Moreover, such pollutants which fill landfills annually are evaluated at 36,700 tonnes. Plastic bag recycling only occurs at 10% in Australia. The outcome is that the nation’s government is forced to incur over $4 million in expenses to ensure that its surroundings are adequately cleaned-up (Wilcox, Van Sebille and Hardesty 2015). Plastic collective is part of the organizations operating in Australia to ensure that the government can achieve its mandate. The research endeavors to evaluate Plastic Collective’s initiative in the application of strategies geared toward the achievement of sustainability. Moreover, the research will also include some recommendations which can be implemented by Plastic Collective to improve the outcomes anticipated.
The background and importance of the Plastic Collective and the Australian and international business landscape
Plastic Collective main purpose is to foster some positive improvements environmentally by eliminating waste. As a result, The Shruder was created to facilitate plastic shredding and extrusion (Vince and Hardesty 2017). As a unit which can be used for processes which relate to the recycling of plastics, The Shruder is a machine characterized by mobility. The invention requires a generator which makes use of 2kW. Its size provides the allowance for its transportation to be facilitated by a trailer with a height of 6×4 ft (Eagle, Hamann and Low 2016).
The initiate portends numerous benefits for the communities in which it is implemented. For example, training packages were developed to educate different communities living remotely (Seltenrich 2015). The populace living locally is allowed to access tools as well as equipment which can modify wastes to provide some resources which are valuable to pave the way for the acquisition of the income desired. The initiative provided the opportunity of ascertaining that waste could be transformed into items which could be regarded as valuable. The initiative’s mission pertains to fostering some preventive measures concerning plastic leakages into the surroundings.
Plastic Collective is important as it ensures that actual measures can be taken for the protection of marine life as well as the Great Barrier Reef. Currently, it is estimated that 100,000 creatures living in Australia’s marine areas succumb annually to death as a result of their entanglement in plastic (Yeo et al. 2015). Plastics also affect seabirds. It is approximated that yearly, 1 million of the birds die yearly owing to the introduction of pollutants into their surroundings. Through Louise Hardman invention, plastics are drastically reduced from the environment. The outcome anticipated is that the efforts undertaken can help to ensure that conservation is possible concerning Australia’s most valuable resources. Moreover, the rate at which greenhouse gases can be emitted into the environment can be drastically reduced.
Plastic collective has greatly contributed to the business landscape that exists in Australia and internationally (Cózar et al. 2014). More specifically, the programme aims at contributing towards an economy which is circular in nature. Plastic items are being recycled to ensure that products which are long-lasting can be obtained. Hence, Louise Hardman makes use of entrepreneurial perspective by making use of technology to ascertain that the environment is adequately monitored. The processes through which items are remolded ascertain that unique uses can be developed concerning plastic waste. Such products include printer filaments which are in 3d, construction materials, and furniture. The implication is that incomes can accrue to the communities involved in the processes carried out by Plastic Collective.
Internationally, the corporations are compelled to reconsider the strategies they apply to conduct business (Wilcox et al. 2016). The Plastic Neutral Programme offers the possibility for businesses such as Coca-Cola to fund the efforts undertaken by Plastic Collective. Hence, the corporations facilitate the delivery as well as the operation of Shruder machines. The programme also targets representatives from different sectors in the Pacific Islands as a result of their extensive annual production of waste whose recycling related efforts are not efficient.
The focus of sustainability strategies is to ascertain that environmental principles can be developed with the objective of creating long-lasting value (Haward 2018). Practices geared towards sustainability are often anticipated to pave the way for changes which can be considered as transformational. Hence, collaboration is necessary for different actors to guarantee that the improvements evident are continuous. Moreover, sustainability should be among the considerations central to the activities that organizations can carry out. Therefore, policies advocating for sustainability should be embedded into the procedures that enterprises utilize. For example, a reduction in the amounts of plastic pollutants evident in a corporation’s environment can be possible where the items are recycled to ensure their maximum use.
Programmes can also be formulated to ascertain that the perspective that the environment is among the subsets that should be used to propagate commerce is eradicated (Willis et al. 2018). For example, The Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund strives to ensure that communities residing in Pennsylvania and New England can adopt regulations aimed at modifying the status accorded to ecosystems. Hence, Plastic Collective can also seek to implement such initiatives to ensure that the prospects for marine life in Australia and other ecosystems existing naturally are adequately safeguarded.
Regardless of the measures adopted to ensure that sustainability is attained, some issues should also be anticipated (Paterson and Dunlop 2018). Most enterprises do not allocate some funds towards their endeavors meant to achieve some sustainability environmentally. Programmes geared towards environmental conservation often feature some expenses that most corporations may not be ready to assume. Moreover, the benefits which immediately accrue from implementing initiatives which are sustainable are not immediately evident to the corporations involved.
Divergent priorities hinder initiates aimed at paving the way for an environment which is sustainable (Syberg et al. 2018). Teams working towards the achievement of sustainability are bound to express different objectives as compared to the parties responsible for an enterprise’s well-being. More specifically, difficulties arise particularly where the risks emanating from company activities and the expenses required for mitigating negative outcomes cannot be effectively quantified.
Plastic Collective’s Shruder breaks down plastic for reuse. The operation of the machine demands simple training for the operators involved. The debris removed from marine areas is estimated to weigh 176,000 kilograms (Xanthos and Walker 2017). Since 2009, Libby Edge who is the founder of Eco Barge has spear-headed such initiatives requiring the input of over 5000 volunteers. The Shruder offers unique possibilities for the collected, disposed plastics. Hence, 50kgs of plastics which were categorized for single use before disposal can not only be shredded but also molded into various products.
The Shruder provides an effective method for ascertaining that wastes are eradicated. The project depends on the initiative undertaken by corporations to purchase the Shruder (Bauer-Civiello, Loder and Hamann 2018). Where organizations provide some funds for 10 of the machines, particularly where their propensity to use plastics is high, they ascertain that their footprint where plastics are concerned is drastically reduced (Duckett and Repaci 2015). The endeavor to minimize the prevalence of wastes in respective communities also paves the way for employment opportunities to arise particularly where the locals are offered jobs that pertain to ensuring sustainability. For example, Plastic Collective is working with Starboard as well as Ocean Recovery Alliance -stationed in Hong Kong- to help the enterprises develop plans which are holistic with regards to offsetting their respective plastic footprint.
Regardless of the positive outcomes which can be anticipated from the use of the Shruder, the machine is mostly unaffordable to the communities that might need to use them. Each machine can be purchased at a sum of A$25,000 whereas annual management requires a sum of A$10,000 (Blettler et al. 2018). Hence, Plastic Collective should seek to partner with numerous stakeholders to ensure that several Shruders can be deployed to regions with huge amounts of waste pile-up.
Large operational New Wales companies have banned the utilization of plastic bags to ensure that their environment is not only clean but also healthy (Plasticcollective. n.d.). Currently, Australia has adopted some policies geared towards encouraging locals to make use of reusable to foster the reduction of the wastes especially when they arise from plastics categorized under single use. Plastic Collective should also partner with the government in Australia indicating the strategies which can be applied by communities to reduce their negative impacts on their surroundings. Moreover, collection points can also be developed to ensure that plastics can easily be recovered for recycling.
Plastic Collective should partner with companies to ascertain that the plastics released into the environment can be quantified. The outcome is that it would become easier for the initiatives efforts to be evaluated to determine the efficiency with which it operates. For every kilogram of waste which accrues to Starboard’s commodities, the base price is set at 50 cents (Shah 2017). The outcome is that the rate at which enterprises would seek to make use of plastics which have been recycled is bound to increase extensively.
In conclusion, the feasibility of the plans made by Plastic Collective depends on the company’s ability to foster collaboration among various stakeholders. They include companies that make use of plastics for their products or even for packaging. The government can also facilitate the efforts made by developing policies geared towards ascertaining that the environment is adequately safeguarded.
Planning ensures that strategies are developed by the respective organization and even governments to ensure that objectives which are inclined towards sustainability are attained. Plans are symbolic of an organization’s commitment to ascertain that any issues which might be evident in the environment are adequately dealt with. The outcome is that the provisions highlighted in the sustainable theory can be adhered to. Plastic Collective’s plans elaborate on the outcomes anticipated from the utilization of the Shruder and the benefits which are bound to accrue to respective communities (Ahmad 2018). The concept emphasizes that the ability of communities to ascertain that their needs are catered for should not inhibit similar prospects for other generations. As a result, the plans are made for the achievement of some prosperity economically while maintaining an environment which can be deemed as healthy. The plans made concerning practices intended to foster sustainability are anticipated to ensure that enterprises can attain the profits they desire over the long-haul. Through planning, the activities that an organization may choose to undertake can align with measures aimed at ensuring sustainability in the environment. Planning also underscores the partners with whom an enterprise should seek to collaborate with. The result is that an enterprise can be better positioned to develop its capital socially. Moreover, strategies through which benefits can be fostered for surrounding communities can also be developed.
Organizing makes it possible for the strategy implemented by Plastic Collective with regards to the performance expected financially to align with the measures applied to ascertain sustainability. Moreover, systems which are inclusive can also be developed to ascertain that the guidelines set by respective nations can be adhered to (Business 2017). The parties responsible for ascertaining that practices which are sustainably related are adhered to can also be effectively underscored. Organizing sustainability practices can focus on three dimensions. Initiatives focusing on the environment can be accorded the support necessary to ensure that their support for life is continued. Stakeholders in respective communities can be accorded some treatment which can be considered as equitable. Economically, organizing the practices aimed at fostering sustainability ensures that livelihoods are improved for current as well as the generations which are to come in the future (Schuyler et al. 2018). The essence of the efforts undertaken is to guarantee the stability which can be attributed to ecosystems. As a result, its resilience can be improved concerning the changes portended for the system’s structure.
Leading in sustainability mandates an understanding of the interconnections which exist among systems. Plastic Collective pioneers the invention set to pioneer how plastic waste is addressed in Australia. The impacts which are bound to culminate from the actions undertaken by the enterprise should also be evaluated (Dunn 2018). The implication is that measures which can be taken to ensure people, as well as nature, is protected can be applied. Leadership is sustainability primary entails the actions an enterprise can undertake which would culminate in operations which can be deemed as exemplary. As a role, leading where sustainability is involved requires an identification of the changes evident where environmental as well as social trends are involved. Furthermore, activities undertaken by peers to revolutionize the model adopted by their enterprises can also be scrutinized. The outcome is that cost accounting which is environmentally or even socially inclined can be conducted to determine the strategies that would be most suitable for an organization’s operations. The approaches which must be adopted to facilitate sustainability must be holistic to ensure that albeit the easy access to the resources available, they can be subject to various uses which are characterized by the responsibility of the enterprise.
Sustainability necessitates that control measures are undertaken by an organization’s management. Control practices, as well as information systems aimed at providing details with regards to sustainability, often paves the way for compliance with respective laws as well as regulations (Dauvergne 2018). In most cases the concept mandates enterprises to account for the measures taken to ascertain sustainable operations. Management control for sustainability requires intra-corporate planning while assessing various indicators which are social, economically and also environmentally inclined. The outcome is that the resulting tasks can be effectively coordinated to ensure that the surroundings are sustainable. Moreover, the implementation of sustainability strategies which are integrated becomes a possibility owing to the control measures adopted. Hence, enterprises can build the confidence that clients have towards their operations resulting in an edge which can be used against competition.
Conclusion
Plastic Collective is among the programmes devoted to ascertaining that waste can be safely managed. Moreover, it fosters the desired improvements for the communities involved by ensuring that some income is attainable from the initiatives geared toward fostering the desired environmental improvements. Regardless of the remote regions where respective communities might be located, Plastic Collective ensures that any assistance they might require is provided for the conservation of their environment.
Plastic Collective should strive to create demand for the products obtained from recycling. Increased demand would culminate in remolding plastics into items which can serve clients. However, various publics must be educated concerning the importance of the purchases that they can make from items which are recycled.
Plastic neutrality should be extensively advocated for to ascertain that plastics are adequately used. Plastic Collective can encourage enterprises operating in Australia to indicate the plastics they require for use to facilitate some comparison to the wastes generated. The implication is that the recycling needs for enterprises can be determined to facilitate appropriate actions.
Moreover, waste banks can also be developed in Australia. Hence, solid wastes can be deposited at specific areas for easier retrieval by Plastic Collective. This would help to curb the negative effects which have been consistently evident for Australia’s marine animals.
References
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