“It is not just about meeting recycling quotas or lowering figures in international reports. It is about building a production model grounded in science and technology that turns a global problem into an engine of local development. Every venture that manages to add value to waste not only reduces pollution, it also energizes the economy, creates quality jobs and strengthens the country’s independence from outside interests.”
A solemn auditorium, a treaty that seemed imminent and, suddenly, the uncomfortable silence of a negotiation that fails to reach port. That is how the recent Geneva summit on plastics ended, a scene that reflects the fragility of international consensus in the face of economic interests that weigh more than any environmental urgency. It was not just a diplomatic failure: it was a mirror that confirmed that waiting for the major powers to solve a global problem can be an exercise as endless as it is fruitless.
So what now? The answer will not come from a new treaty; it is emerging from the ground up, in the regions, in academia, in the ventures that dare to rethink the fate of a ubiquitous and problematic material. The real revolution against plastic is not taking shape at global summits, but in local laboratories, innovation workshops and entrepreneurial ecosystems that are taking the challenge seriously.
The scale of the problem is staggering. More than 75% of the plastic produced since the mid-20th century has become waste. That is 7 billion tons now saturating landfills, beaches, oceans and even the digestive systems of the species we eat. Meanwhile, we still rely on mechanical recycling, a strategy that, while useful, has clear limits: not all plastics are recyclable, and the material loses quality with every cycle. The equation is simple: production grows, reuse degrades and waste piles up.
Chile has tried to tackle this challenge with the Extended Producer Responsibility (REP) Law, which requires companies to take charge of the waste they generate. Although it is a necessary step, its implementation has revealed cracks: difficulty collecting materials in optimal condition and regulations that focus too heavily on mechanical recycling. This narrow view leaves out a range of solutions that could change the rules of the game.
And this is where innovation takes center stage. Plastic, after all, is nothing more than a complex hydrocarbon. Why limit ourselves to shredding and reprocessing it, when we can turn it into energy or higher-value materials? Inspiring steps are already being taken in Chile: at the Universidad de Concepción, researchers are studying how to convert plastics into aviation fuel; startups such as Bluera turn them into fuel gas. These examples show that we are not doomed to an endless accumulation of waste, as long as we dare to look through the lens of science and creativity.
The State is also starting to move pieces in the right direction. Programs such as Corfo’s Transforma Economía Circular, the establishment of a Circular Economy Technology Center in Los Lagos and the inclusion of sustainability in innovation funds are encouraging signs. But the hardest part is still missing: bringing the entire ecosystem together. Waste managers, management systems and companies themselves need clear incentives to adopt technologies that are currently seen as risky or unprofitable.
This opens a historic opportunity for Chile: to build sustainable sovereignty. It is not just about meeting recycling quotas or lowering figures in international reports. It is about building a production model grounded in science and technology that turns a global problem into an engine of local development. Every venture that manages to add value to waste not only reduces pollution, it also energizes the economy, creates quality jobs and strengthens the country’s independence from outside interests.
The paradox of plastic is that, although it represents one of the greatest environmental challenges of our time, it can also become an unprecedented source of innovation. If the major global treaties fail, the best response we can give is to show that history can be changed from a university laboratory in Concepción or from a startup born in a garage in Santiago.
The future of plastic is not being decided in Geneva. It is being decided here, in Chile, in every initiative that chooses not to wait for permission from above and bets on the power of local innovation. And in that move lies the possibility of turning global frustration into concrete hope.
Alonso Ureta
Portfolio Manager
Read the original column at https://www.paiscircular.cl/opinion/el-fracaso-de-la-politica-global-y-el-futuro-del-plastico-una-apuesta-por-la-innovacion-local/
