Wednesday 7 August 2024

Plastic sustainability conference bursts with innovation

The Global Research and Innovation in Plastics Sustainability Conference (GRIPS) 2024 returns for the fourth year with leading innovations in plastic sustainability.

Set to take place at the University of Sheffield on 19th September, the one-day event is being organised by Innovate UK in partnership with the British Plastics Federation (BPF).

The topics covered will include green chemistry, global plastic initiatives, additives and fillers and artificial intelligence innovation in sorting and detection.

Knowledge Transfer Manager at Innovate UK Business Connect, Prof. Sally Beken, said: 'Plastics play a critical role in industries like healthcare, food preservation, the built environment and so many more. Therefore, finding ways to make plastics as sustainable as possible will be essential as we look to reduce carbon emissions and move towards net zero.

'The GRIPS conference is a fantastic opportunity for academics, industry leaders and the media to learn about the world’s leading innovations and research into more sustainable solutions, with the goal of turning these into real-world applications.'

The keynote session will be delivered by the Grantham Centre for Sustainable Futures’ plastics sustainability experts, Professor Rachael Rothman and Dr Fanran Meng, who will discuss the ongoing challenge of finding alternative materials to plastic that reduce net carbon emissions.