Multi-disciplinary scientists are ready to solve global chemical pollution
Are governments ready to act?
The world is facing a growing crisis of chemical pollution and waste mismanagement. In January the World Health Organisation said that ‘in 2016 around 13.7 million deaths in the world – 24% of all fatalities – were linked to modifiable environmental factors, including chemicals, waste and pollution’.
From microplastics in our oceans and our bodies, to toxic substances accumulating in our ecosystems, the challenges are vast and complex. Scientific expertise must be at the heart of finding solutions. How that expertise is structured and accessed will determine the success of both the UN’s new Science-Policy Panel (SPP) on Chemicals, Waste and Pollution Prevention and the UN Global Framework on Chemicals (GFC).