The End Plastic Pollution International Collaborative (EPPIC) has launched, with $15 million in initial U.S. funding.  EPPIC is a public-private partnership to catalyze governments, NGOs and businesses to support innovative solutions to the plastic pollution crisis–supporting projects around the world to make the full life cycle of plastic more sustainable, starting with efforts to change the design and use of plastic products.

The plastic pollution crisis impacts biodiversity, health, food security and economies. To tackle this problem, EPPIC will drive commitments and raise funds to deploy pilot solutions and exchange best practices for combating plastic pollution. EPPIC will also run prize competitions for initiatives that make the design, production and management of plastics more circular. It will fund training for communities around the world that have been disproportionately impacted by plastic pollution to help them monitor and report on plastic pollution and advocate for local, regional and national-level solutions.

As a multistakeholder effort, EPPIC complements and builds on USAID’s work with countries to combat plastic pollution under the Save our Seas Initiative and Clean Cities Blue Ocean, which have made significant investments around the world to improve plastic waste management at the local level.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature is hosting the EPPIC partnership, and the Aspen Institute, the Ocean Foundation and Searious Business are initial partners.  Other NGOs, foundations and businesses are expected to join in the coming months.

Learn more here.