The Deputy Foreign Minister of Ecuador, Luis Vayas Valdivieso, was the guest speaker at two meetings hosted by ANCLAS, in collaboration with the Embassy of Ecuador, on 2 September. The events focussed on the Deputy Minister’s experience as a member of the Bureau of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) mandated by the UN Environmental Assembly in March 2022 to draft a legally binding global agreement aimed at reducing and eventually eliminating plastic pollution.

The first event was a round-table meeting of academic experts from ANU. Dr Jennie Mallela and Professors Simon Haberle and Don Rothwell outlined the environmental, socio-economic, and legal considerations to be taken into account by the INC in drafting the agreement. They highlighted, in particular, the importance of an integrated approach covering the full lifecycle of plastics, the need for consultation with the full range of stakeholders, and the imperative of a rigorous compliance mechanism.

The second event was a public forum. Kate Lynch (from the Department of Climate Change, Environment, Energy and Water) outlined the Australian government’s approach to plastic pollution and Dr. Sascha Fuller from the University of Newcastle shared the perspective of Pacific island states. Deputy Foreign Minister Vayas gave a keynote address in which he referred to the scope of the problem of plastic pollution and the imperative to act urgently at the global level to address it. He suggested the formation of an expert group to ensure the INC negotiations drew on scientific evidence and put the case for ambitious legally binding commitments.

A full recording of the forum can be viewed at the following link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YfE1HSvUAOs