Working Toward a Better System for Reducing Plastic Waste
SC Johnson X WWF Partnership
Bringing research, experience and diverse perspectives together to help inform better solutions for reducing plastic waste.
WWF and SC Johnson are working together to bring business experience, public perspectives and environmental expertise into the conversation about reducing plastic waste. Through research, thought leadership, public dialogue and policy engagement, the partnership is contributing evidence and experience to help inform decisions about how the system can deliver better environmental and economic outcomes.
Our Work Together
The work on this page brings together different perspectives on the challenge. Each helps answer a piece of the same question: What will it take to make meaningful, lasting progress on plastic waste?
Research & Evidence
Bringing economic analysis and public perspectives into the discussion to help inform better decisions.
Ideas & Perspectives
Exploring what research, policy and business experience can tell us about where the system is working and where it needs to change.
Panels & Discussions
Bringing together perspectives from business, environmental NGOs, researchers and other stakeholders through panels, podcasts and other discussions.
Policy & Engagement
Sharing evidence and experience with policymakers, media, partners and the broader public.
Research & Evidence
WWF and SC Johnson are supporting economic and public-opinion research to bring new data to the discussion about plastic waste. The findings look at questions ranging from costs and economic impacts to recycling access and what Americans expect from the system.
Understanding the Economics of a National Approach to EPR
RTI International analyzed the potential economic implications of a national packaging EPR framework, including effects on businesses, infrastructure investment, jobs and broader economic activity. The analysis offers insight into what a more consistent approach could mean for communities and the recycling system.
What Americans think about plastic waste and what they expect from the system
Harris Poll research looks at how Americans experience recycling and packaging waste, how gaps in the system affect them and how they believe responsibility for improving it should be shared. The findings offer insight into public priorities, including access, affordability, clearer rules and better environmental outcomes.
The Findings at a Glance
Explore key insights from the research through two infographics that show how a more harmonized approach to packaging EPR could reduce fragmentation, strengthen recycling and reuse, and create benefits for communities, businesses, workers and the environment.
Through perspectives from WWF and SC Johnson, this series looks at what is holding progress back, what we are learning from research and experience and where there are opportunities to deliver better outcomes.
Explore the WWF + SC Johnson Blog Series
The Path Forward for Federal EPR
Why Businesses Are Increasingly Supporting Federal EPR
A Circular Solution: How EPR could finally turn the tide on plastic pollution
Why Addressing Plastic Waste Requires a National Framework
WWF and SC Johnson take part in panels, podcasts and other discussions that dig deeper into the issues, examine tradeoffs and consider what different approaches could mean in practice.
WWF Nature Breaking Podcast
A Business Perspective on Moving the Plastics System Forward
Trellis Impact 26 Panel Discussion
Making the Economic Case for a National EPR Framework
WWF and SC Johnson engage policymakers, stakeholders, media and others on packaging EPR and greater consistency across the U.S. Through these conversations, the partnership brings research and practical experience into the policy discussion.
U.S. Senate Hearing on Extended Producer Responsibility for Consumer Packaging
SC Johnson Chairman and CEO Fisk Johnson, WWF Vice President Erin Simon and AMERIPEN Executive Director Dan Felton testify before the U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee on packaging EPR, including the need for greater consistency, stronger recycling systems and approaches to reducing plastic waste.
Frequently Asked Questions
The partnership is focused advancing understanding and dialogue about practical approaches to reduce plastic waste and improve the systems used to manage packaging and materials.
The goal is not to suggest that any one organization has the answer. It is to bring together research, experience and different perspectives that can help inform better decisions and move the broader system forward.
Because what happens at the end of a product’s life is shaped by decisions made throughout it, from design and material choices to collection, sorting, recycling, markets and policy. Improving one part without considering the others can limit how much progress we make.
Packaging Extended Producer Responsibility, or packaging EPR, is an approach that gives producers greater responsibility for funding and managing the collection and recycling of the packaging they put on the market. Just as important, the system can create incentives to prevent waste in the first place by rewarding better packaging design, using less material, expanding reuse and refill, increasing recycled content and making packaging easier to recover. The goal is not simply to manage waste better. It is to create less waste and keep more materials in use.
Questions about plastic waste and recycling often involve assumptions about what people want, what different policies might cost and who could benefit. Research helps put evidence behind those conversations. By examining public attitudes and potential economic implications, the work can help policymakers, businesses, NGOs and others make more informed decisions.
States have played an important role in advancing packaging EPR, but different definitions, reporting requirements and program designs can also create complexity. A more consistent framework could establish common rules in key areas while allowing states to make decisions based on their own infrastructure, communities and needs.
The partnership is focused on the broader case for a more consistent federal framework for packaging EPR and on the principles that could help make such an approach effective. WWF and SC Johnson each bring their own perspectives to specific legislation or policy proposals. This page brings together the research, ideas and engagement that form the shared work of the partnership.