MAKING A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE FOR PLANET OCEAN

Introducing Pitchfest Partner WWF Australia and our podcast guest on Episode 22: Richard Leck

Our guest on episode 22 of The Ocean Impact Podcast is Richard Leck, the Head of Oceans and the National Manager for Marine Conservation and Sustainable Development at WWF Australia. A former divemaster, marine researcher and lifelong environmentalist, Richard has spent over 17 years at WWF where he has used his passion for the ocean and skills in leading highly effective campaigns and programs to further ocean conservation around critical issues such as: destructive fishing; protecting coral reefs, reducing agricultural pollution, preventing plastic pollution and stemming climate change. He was instrumental in achieving the commitment from the Australian Government in 2003 to expand protections on the Great Barrier Reef from 4.6% to 33%.

In this episode, Tim takes a deep dive into the history of WWF and how this leading organisation pursues its mission; “to stop the degradation of the planet's natural environment and to build a future in which humans live in harmony with nature”. In particular, Tim and Richard discuss contemporary approaches to supporting innovation and working with proactive businesses and partners to further sustainable development and influence government policy.

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WWF - Leaders in the Fight for Planet Ocean

Established back in the 60’s, WWF is now one of the world’s most robust, influential and iconic organisations in the conservation sector. After landing in Australia in 1978, WWF Australia is now the country’s largest conservation organisation with over 500,000 supporters operating across a multitude of projects.

Several crucial landmark achievements in our environmental fight here in Australia have been won through WWF Australia’s hard work and expanding influence. In 1991, WWF Australia and it’s partners secured a 50 year moratorium on mining in Antarctica, and in 1999, they were instrumental in the achievement of the planet’s most comprehensive biodiversity conservation laws, in the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act.

In addition to successfully preventing harmful commercial developments from being carried out in high biodiversity areas all around the region, WWF Australia have developed and implemented a myriad of programs to protect and manage marine biodiversity, successfully pressured the Australian government to increase protections for the Great Barrier Reef, Ningaloo Reef, and Tasmania’s Tarkine region, and been responsible for the creation of several crucial and expansive Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). In 2016, WWF and partners oversaw the establishment of the world’s largest MPA in the Ross Sea region of Antarctica.

Plastic Revolution to Reality Report

Recently, a report commissioned by WWF and prepared by Boston Consulting Group (BCG) titled Plastic Revolution to Reality was released, examining the issue of single-use plastic entering the marine environment in Australia and its impacts on marine wildlife. Identifying the six most problematic types of single use plastic, the report set out recommendations for state, territory and federal governments to act on the issue.

The six categories of single use plastics, which account for over half of the single use plastic entering the environment each year include plastic bottles; soft plastics; disposable foodware; disposable packaging; cigarettes; and microbeads. While by volume, plastic bottles are the highest waste product that enter the environment, 35% of this waste is recovered, and there are recycling systems for plastic bottles in place in every state and territory. It was found that 50% of cigarette waste leaks into the Australian environment, equating to roughly 8 billion cigarettes a year.

Three actions proposed to all levels of government to reduce the consumption and disposal of these six plastic categories include - the need for a clear road map, with discernable milestones to reduce annual consumption of single-use plastics by 85,000 tonnes, and leakage by 9,000 tonnes; broader regulations, to manage those plastics that can’t yet be phased out; and the incentivising, through grants and other means, of development of sustainable alternatives to single-use plastic.

While there are ambitious targets being set in Australia, significant gaps remain. The report argues that we need to scale up innovation to address the plastics issue in the production phase of the life cycle, presenting as case studies several industry-led design and disposal solutions for plastics. One featured enterprise is Evoware, a company based in Jakarta, Indonesia which produces seaweed-based packaging as a plastic alternative.

The effectiveness of regulations can also be complemented by education and grassroots action. The report recommends that as consumers, we need to reduce our consumption of the most problematic single-use plastics by a quarter; double the rate of recovery of these plastics for recycling; and half the leakage of them into the environment. According to the report, in Australia, 130,000 tonnes of plastic leaks into the marine environment each year, which equates to five kilograms per person per year - three times the global average. As an ocean-loving nation, this should shock us into action.

The report contains some startling statistics about the current state of the plastic crisis. We encourage you to download and read the report here.

Richard Leck is one our esteemed judges for Pitchfest 2020

We are pleased to announce that Richard Leck is part of the esteemed judging panel who will help select the Runners Up and Winner of The Ocean Impact Pitchfest 2020. We are proud to have WWF Australia as a partner for Pitchfest 2020 and to have Richard’s skills and insights on the judging panel.

Stay tuned towards the end of the podcast to gain some insights from Richard into what he is hoping to see from applying startups and businesses.

Applications are now open for The Ocean Impact Pitchfest 2020 and close on 5th October 2020. More information here.