Rethink – Then Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. In that order.
Plastics are responsible for environmental damage throughout their life cycle, emitting harmful chemicals and damaging ecosystems. And yet, the alternatives to plastic can often be worse, particularly from a climate perspective. My work in this area attempts to put the environmental impacts of plastic in context, to avoid potential tradeoffs or unforeseen consequences associated with eliminating plastic.
Current Projects
Common Misperceptions of Plastic
What is the environmental impacts of plastic relative to other materials?
Plastic and Food Packaging
How are plastic use and food waste related?
Human Dimensions of Plastic (Re)use
How does consumer behavior impact whether or not a product has environmental benefits?
Featured Research
Full list of publications on Google Scholar
Life cycle analysis of plastic
Five misperceptions surrounding the environmental impacts of single-use plastic (PDF)
The capabilities and deficiencies of life cycle assessment to address the plastic problem
Plastic and packaging
A comprehensive evaluation of Michigan’s bottle deposit system (PDF)
Environmental impacts of plastic packaging of food products (PDF)
Life cycle assessment of plastic film waste
Comparison of life cycle environmental impacts from meal kits and grocery store meals (PDF)
Media Releases
Misperceptions of plastic
Mythbusting: 5 common misperceptions surrounding the environmental impacts of single-use plastics
Reusable alternatives
Is reusable always best? Comparing environmental impacts of reusable vs. single-use kitchenware