Trash talking: High-stakes UN plastics negotiations unfold in Ottawa

The House

There’s a lot of garbage talk happening in the nation’s capital, as representatives from 176 countries try to hammer out a global deal on plastic pollution — one of the planet’s most significant and growing environmental issues. We speak with some of the participants at the conference — from officials, to advocates, to industry members — about the stakes of the negotiations and the odds of success.

But first: The federal government, Ontario government and Honda came to a major agreement this week that will see billions of dollars worth of investment poured into new EV manufacturing facilities in this country. The minister responsible talks about why it’s worth taxpayer dollars, then Honda’s head in Canada discusses the road ahead for electric vehicles — and the jobs that come with them.

This episode features the voices of:

• Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne
• Jean Marc Leclerc, president and CEO, Honda Canada
• Rufino Varea, Scientist Coalition for an Effective Plastic Treaty
• Marian Ledesma, Greenpeace Philippines campaigner
• Lisa Qiluqqi Koperqualuk, president of Inuit Circumpolar Council Canada
• Allen Langdon, CEO, Circular Materials
• Eli Browne, director of corporate sustainability, Sobeys;
• Inger Andersen, head of the UN Environment Programme