The Plasticology Project Podcast

On this episode of the Plasticology Project Podcast I speak with Mutumba Faisal. Mutumba is based in Uganda, on the shores of the mighty Lake Victoria. Lake Victoria is the largest lake in Africa, the world’s largest tropical lake, and the world’s second-largest freshwater lake by area. The lake supports a fishing industry that helps feed a population of around 40 million. Mutumba has taken on the enormous task of trying to repair the degraded environment of Lake Victoria and create a better future for this environmental asset. Mutumba spends his days leading the Uganda Junior Rangers travelling to some of the 985 islands of Lake Victoria collecting discarded fishing nets, ghost nets and plastics. Mutumba’s mission is to educate the next generation of Ugandans and encourage them to love the environment. I caught up with Mutumba just after he stepped off a boat, returning from a morning trying to resolve one of the other great challenges of the lake – invasive weeds. We join the conversation as Mutumba explains to me how these invasive weeds are impacting the lake, and how plastic is a part of this story.

On this episode of The Plasticology Project Podcast I speak with Sarah-Jo Lobwein. Sarah-Jo has been a plastic pollution campaigner in Sydney’s Sutherland Shire for many years. Sarah-Jo was one of the founders of SO Shire – Sustainable Organisations of the Sutherland Shire. Marine biology is a passion for Sarah-Jo and this led to a desire to help improve the coastal ecosystems off eastern Australia. As an environmental educator and plastic pollution warrior, Sarah-Jo has led hundreds of beach clean-ups, and regularly provides workshops for schools and community groups. In addition to SO Shire, Sarah-Jo is also known under banner of Ocean Tidings, a platform for environmental sustainability education. I had the great pleasure of speaking with Sarah-Jo via video call, where we discussed the curious case of white sticks that started washing up on Sydney beaches. Sarah-Jo describes the environmental forensics approach that led to the discovery of the peculiar origin of these sticks.

On this episode of The Plasticology Project Podcast I speak with Peter Puskic. Peter is a PhD student at the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies at the University of Tasmania. Peter’s work is focussed on understanding the physiological impacts of plastic ingestion on organisms. By studying marine birds, primarily shearwaters, Peter has made some startling discoveries about just how much plastic is out there in the marine environment, and what impact this is having on marine life. I caught up with Peter from the research institute in Hobart, Tasmania.

You can find out more about Peter's research by following his work on social media. Simply search Peter Puskic.

On this episode of The Plasticology Project Podcast I speak with Tarryn Johnston, founder of the non-profit organisation Hennops Revival. Tarryn started Hennops Revival in 2019 after a river clean-up with her daughter changed the entire direction of her life. Seeing the state of the water and environment of the Hennops River in South Africa left a lasting impression on Tarryn, and triggered a desire to do more. Since completing the first river clean-up in 2019, Tarryn and Hennops Revival have removed 1.5 million kilograms of trash from the river in over 76,000 rubbish bags. Hennops Revival runs off the dedication and drive of volunteers. Through their effort the Hennops River is slowly beginning to breathe new life. I caught up with Tarryn via video call from her home near the Hennops River, South Africa.

On this episode of The Plasticology Project Podcast I speak with Harry Chan Tin Ming. Harry is diver in Hong Kong and has become known as the Ghost Net Hunter. Harry’s mission is to raise awareness about the fate of the global oceans through drawing attention to one of the forgotten ocean pollution problems – ghost nets. Harry started his mission over ten years ago after a visit to the beach with a friend changed his perception of the oceans. Harry was awarded the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region medal of honour in 2020 for his work. Harry is an ambassador for Ocean Park Conservation Foundation Hong Kong. I caught up on the phone with Harry from his home in Hong Kong.

On this episode of The Plasticology Project Podcast I talk with James Wakibia. An environmentalist, activist and photo journalist based in Kenya. James has been instrumental in the helping to fight plastic pollution in Africa. In 2013 James began raising awareness about the plastic pollution in his home town Nakuru, about 150 km away from the Kenyan capital of Nairobi. By 2015 James had started a Twitter campaign to capture global attention, using the hashtag banplasticsKE. In 2017, single-use plastic bags were banned in Kenya, and James is largely credited for that success. I caught up with James to chat about the future of plastic pollution in Africa.

Welcome to the Plasticology Project Podcast. In this podcast series Dr Paul Harvey, environmental scientist, activist and author takes listeners on a journey to discover the greatest plastic pollution challenges facing our world, and the incredible plastic pollution warriors doing their bit to solve the problem. In this episode Dr Paul shares his passion for the natural environment and speaks about the path to writing The Plasticology Project book.