Causes: Arts & Culture, Cultural & Ethnic Awareness, Environment, Natural Resources Conservation & Protection
Mission: Upstream sparks innovative solutions to plastic pollution by helping people, businesses and communities shift from single-use to reuse.
Results: Over the last 3 years, all of our policy objectives helped lead to: * 15 Reuse for On-Site Dining Laws covering 11,708,669 people* 1 Reuse at Events Ordinance covering 896,047 people * 3 State Skip the Stuff Laws covering 56,010,000 people* 19 Larger City (100K+) Skip the Stuff Laws covering 13,941,373 people* 36 Smaller City Skip the Stuff Laws covering 1,280,977 people* 3 EPR laws with minor reuse provisions covering 11,300,000GRAND TOTAL: After removing double counting (subtracting all CA population numbers from STS laws as State Law now supersedes), Upstream has helped develop models and supported the passage of 77 Reuse Laws covering 86,305,116 people.
Target demographics: Our work focuses on accelerating this change and reducing single-use through massively expanding source reduction and reuse efforts by businesses, city governments, and community leaders.
Direct beneficiaries per year: Communities, venues, schools and restaurants transition from single-use to reuse. We shared and amplified the stories of the reuse movement's heroes: entrepreneurs, community leaders, businesses, and elected officials leading the way.
Geographic areas served: U. S.
Programs: Our solutions put people to work, save businesses money, and solve plastic pollution at the same time. Last year was the biggest year yet for the US plastic pollution movement. A nationwide survey was released showing that two out of three Americans were very concerned about plastic in the environment. Campaigns were launched all over the country. Big corporations made major commitments. And cities started to focus on reducing single-use and setting up reuse systems instead of just recycling. But then the coronavirus pandemic hit. While the rest of us were busy keeping our loved ones safe and figuring out how to stay in business, the plastics industry saw an opportunity. They quickly moved to exploit the crisis to roll back plastic bag bans and other laws - and to promote a narrative that single-use plastics are safe and sanitary, while reusables aren’t. With all the confusion circulating about how the virus is spread, policymakers and businesses have been rightly focused on how to keep us all safe. But because of this, they’re especially vulnerable to misinformation. We know that the result of coronavirus cannot be to open the floodgates to more plastic pollution. While now is the time to focus on keeping everyone safe, fed and employed, we can also continue conversations and work to create the future we all want to live in. For us, that’s a future where people, the planet, and our communities are seen and treated as indisposable. Where single-use is history and real and reusable the new norm. Right now, so many of the innovations are out there and in the process of scaling. They put people to work, save businesses money, protect health and solve plastic pollution at the same time. Our work focuses on accelerating this change and reducing single-use through massively expanding source reduction and reuse efforts by businesses, city governments, and community leaders. Join us as we leverage business innovation, policy and culture change to co-create a better way than throw-away.
Mission: Upstream sparks innovative solutions to plastic pollution by helping people, businesses and communities shift from single-use to reuse.
Results: Over the last 3 years, all of our policy objectives helped lead to: * 15 Reuse for On-Site Dining Laws covering 11,708,669 people* 1 Reuse at Events Ordinance covering 896,047 people * 3 State Skip the Stuff Laws covering 56,010,000 people* 19 Larger City (100K+) Skip the Stuff Laws covering 13,941,373 people* 36 Smaller City Skip the Stuff Laws covering 1,280,977 people* 3 EPR laws with minor reuse provisions covering 11,300,000GRAND TOTAL: After removing double counting (subtracting all CA population numbers from STS laws as State Law now supersedes), Upstream has helped develop models and supported the passage of 77 Reuse Laws covering 86,305,116 people.
Target demographics: Our work focuses on accelerating this change and reducing single-use through massively expanding source reduction and reuse efforts by businesses, city governments, and community leaders.
Direct beneficiaries per year: Communities, venues, schools and restaurants transition from single-use to reuse. We shared and amplified the stories of the reuse movement's heroes: entrepreneurs, community leaders, businesses, and elected officials leading the way.
Geographic areas served: U. S.
Programs: Our solutions put people to work, save businesses money, and solve plastic pollution at the same time. Last year was the biggest year yet for the US plastic pollution movement. A nationwide survey was released showing that two out of three Americans were very concerned about plastic in the environment. Campaigns were launched all over the country. Big corporations made major commitments. And cities started to focus on reducing single-use and setting up reuse systems instead of just recycling. But then the coronavirus pandemic hit. While the rest of us were busy keeping our loved ones safe and figuring out how to stay in business, the plastics industry saw an opportunity. They quickly moved to exploit the crisis to roll back plastic bag bans and other laws - and to promote a narrative that single-use plastics are safe and sanitary, while reusables aren’t. With all the confusion circulating about how the virus is spread, policymakers and businesses have been rightly focused on how to keep us all safe. But because of this, they’re especially vulnerable to misinformation. We know that the result of coronavirus cannot be to open the floodgates to more plastic pollution. While now is the time to focus on keeping everyone safe, fed and employed, we can also continue conversations and work to create the future we all want to live in. For us, that’s a future where people, the planet, and our communities are seen and treated as indisposable. Where single-use is history and real and reusable the new norm. Right now, so many of the innovations are out there and in the process of scaling. They put people to work, save businesses money, protect health and solve plastic pollution at the same time. Our work focuses on accelerating this change and reducing single-use through massively expanding source reduction and reuse efforts by businesses, city governments, and community leaders. Join us as we leverage business innovation, policy and culture change to co-create a better way than throw-away.
info@upstreamsolutions.org
PO Box 1352, Damariscotta, ME 04543
181-344-5898
Arts & Culture
Damariscotta
