Research Proposal Presentation Title

An Evaluation on Government's Plastic Strategy

Student researchers

Freda Fu, Raymond Gu, Jack Nguyen, Kray Wang, Xinchun Li

What is your research question?

What might be the Feasible Plastic Strategy for Canadian Citizens?

Research proposal keywords or concepts

Additional plastic strategies; Canadian citizens; A survey-based quantitative approach

How would you summarize your proposed research idea?

In the past few decades, plastics’ production and usage have grown dramatically, leading to increased plastic waste (Shah, 2008). In this research project, we aim to discuss the negative consequences of plastic waste, the importance of environmental education content, trouble for disabled people caused by plastic ban, and executable plans about the plastic issue in the future.

Where is the literature gap and how does your proposed research attempt to fill that gap?

Most studies in the field of plastic strategies have focused on the positive effect of the plastic ban. However, Jenks & Obringer (2020) indicate that the negative effect of the plastic ban on the disabled has been underestimated. In order to know the most popular plastic strategy among non-disabled and disabled Canadians, the present proposed study will follow a survey-based quantitative approach.

Why is this gap worthy of research?

This proposed study will offer a place to support the health of people with disabilities. More importantly, understanding the link between the plastic ban and disabled people may help the Canadian government to seek more effective and viable plastic solutions, and therefore avoiding conflict with citizens.

What future change could this research possibly contribute to, related to sustainability?

The findings of the present study could have important implications for improving plastic strategy and resolving the problem faced by the disabled. We are dedicated to using the government's power to minimize plastic waste, reduce financial losses, create a greener planet, and benefit all species on the planet.

What made your group interested in and/or what excites you about your proposed topic?

Our main reason for choosing this topic is that plastic waste has posed a significant threat to the environment and people's health. Because of the environmental risks and financial benefits, most of the world's plastic waste ends up in low-income and developing countries since the late 1990s (Wen et. al, 2021). However, the Chinese government has imposed a ban on imports of plastic waste from developed countries in January 2018 (Huang et. al, 2020). This behavior has thrown the global waste management system into disarray. Therefore, Canada can no longer heavily rely on exporting plastic waste. It is time for the Canadian government and citizens to manage plastic waste properly！

References

Huang, Q., Chen, G., Wang, Y., Chen, S., Xu, L., & Wang, R. (2020). Modelling the global impact of China’s ban on plastic waste imports. Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 154, 104607. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2019.104607

Jenks, A. B., & Obringer, K. M. (2020). The poverty of plastics bans: Environmentalism’s win is a loss for disabled people. Critical Social Policy, 40(1), 151-161. https://doi.org/10.1177/0261018319868362

Shah, A. A., Hasan, F., Hameed, A., & Ahmed, S. (2008). Biological degradation of plastics: A comprehensive review. Biotechnology Advances, 26(3), 246-265. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biotechadv.2007.12.005

Wen, Z., Xie, Y., Chen, M., & Dinga, C. D. (2021). China's plastic import ban increases prospects of environmental impact mitigation of plastic waste trade flow worldwide. Nature Communications, 12(1), 425-9. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-20741-9