Plastic harms our oceans, ecosystems and wildlife, contributes to the climate crisis and poses risks to peoples’ long-term health. Each year, 145,000 tonnes of Australia's plastic leaks into the environment … that amounts to 250kg of plastic leaking into the environment every minute.¹

Australians care about the damage that plastic is causing our ecosystems, wildlife, oceans and health - and want big companies to do more to take responsibility for their plastic pollution.

That's why SIX is teaming up with Australian Marine Conservation Society (AMCS) and sustainable super fund Future Super, to get big business to stop fuelling plastic pollution!

Help spread the news by liking & sharing the campaign announcement on your favourite social media channel/s: Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, LinkedIn, YouTube.

The more we’ve learned from AMCS (who have campaigned on this issue for years) plus the research from our ESG team, the more we’ve recognised this is the next big issue Australian shareholders need to speak up on.

> The amount of plastic we produce is firmly linked to the amount of plastic pollution; the more we produce, the more ends up in our rivers, creeks, waterways and oceans.²  

> Packaging is the single largest use of plastic globally, and here in Australia - making up 41% of the 3.2 million tonnes of plastic that was disposed of in Australia in 2023-24.¹

> Plastic production further fuels the climate crisis. Most plastic is derived from fossil fuels (like oil and gas), which further drives the climate crisis including extreme weather events like floods, fires, heatwaves and droughts.³

Australian companies have the opportunity to lead by example to keep unnecessary, disposable plastics off our shelves and more towards a circular economy, including:

> Disclosing how much plastic they are producing and using to shareholders, customers and the broader community.

> Setting public targets for plastic reduction and reporting annually on their progress.

> Advocating for action from governments that would help make transitioning to a circular economy easier for all businesses.

SIX plans to meet with a range of companies - retail, healthcare, food & beverage and more - to explore which actions they are already taking, celebrate the leaders, and encourage everyone to go further.

To kick it off, SIX’s ESG team is currently deep in research into the largest ASX-listed companies leading and lagging in their management of plastic pollution - to shine a spotlight on those we can learn from and those that need to do much better.

Follow the campaign in the SIX app to stay all across the latest news with our campaign research, company engagement, events with our partners, shareholder resolutions, and other campaign activities.  

[1] O’Farrell, K., Harney, F., & Chakma, P. (2021). Australian Plastics Flows and Fates Study 2019-20. National Report. Prepared for the Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment.

[2] Cowger, W. et al (2024). Global producer responsibility for plastic pollution. Vol. 10, no. 17. Science Advances.

[3] AMCS, WWF-Australia, & Blue Environment (2023). Climate impacts of plastic consumption in Australia.