Why No (Plastic) Treaty Might Be a Good Thing

The latest rounds of global plastics treaty negotiations (Busan in December 2024 and Geneva in August 2025) ended without an agreement. Two major opportunities, two stalemates, and yet, perhaps, an important lesson.

Better No Deal Than the Wrong Deal

In Geneva, the divide was stark. Over 100 countries, including the EU, small island states, and many nations in Africa and Latin America, pushed for binding caps on plastic production and strict controls on toxic chemicals.

Meanwhile, major petrochemical producers such as the U.S., Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait blocked binding measures, advocating for a treaty limited to voluntary recycling and waste management. The result: no treaty.

At first glance, this outcome is disappointing. After all, plastic pollution continues to escalate, harming oceans, ecosystems, and communities around the world. Yet, there is a silver lining: the deadlock demonstrates that watering down ambition will not solve the problem. A weak treaty that focuses only on managing or recycling plastic would have entrenched incremental fixes while ignoring the root cause: uncontrolled plastic production.

This is where prevention becomes the central strategy. Recycling and waste management, while necessary stopgaps, are not the solution. True progress lies in designing systems that prevent waste before it exists: rethinking packaging, shifting to reusable models, and embedding circular principles into product design. Prevention avoids the entire cycle of disposal, treatment, and recycling, making waste management almost obsolete.

stop putting bandaids on once the damage is done

Governments Stalled. Who Will Lead?

Even in the absence of a global treaty, change is possible. Businesses, cities, and communities can lead the way by embracing prevention-focused strategies. Innovations in reusable packaging, change in consumer behaviours, extended producer responsibility, and zero-waste systems are already demonstrating that a future without plastic pollution is feasible.

The negotiations may have stalled, but ambition need not. If anything, the impasse reinforces that we should aim higher: not for compromises that dilute impact, but for solutions that address the root cause of the crisis. Prevention over management. Reduction over recycling. Bold action now can shape a world where plastic pollution is no longer inevitable.