A FRAMEWORK FOR SOCIALLY-RESPONSIBLE
OCEAN-BOUND PLASTIC SUPPLY CHAINSOVERVIEW

There are approximately 20 million waste pickers

This vision is grounded in the framing provided byglobally who manage 50- 100% of waste in many cities,

the ILO Conventions and UN Universal Declaration offilling critical waste management gaps. In 2016, waste

Human Rights and is guided by the principles of:pickers were responsible for 60% of global recycling.
NextWave Plastics member companies are committed•Protection and Inclusion for Waste Workers•Increased Business Transparency

to sourcing ocean-bound plastic (OBP) that not only
protects the ocean from plastic pollution, but also

When the vision is attained, the following key

ensures that social responsibility protections withingoals will be realized:

these innovative supply chains are inclusive of all theworkers involved in waste management.
For this reason, members of NextWave aretaking action by creating the NextWave Plastics
Framework For Socially Responsible Ocean-Bound
Plastic Supply Chains, which provides guidelines tohelp brands and other organizations provide for thesocial responsibility of all workers through to the1 Freely Chosen Employment
2 Fair and Predictable Payment
Beneficial Health and3 Safety Conditions

point of collection by asking the right questions,enlisting the right partners, and seeking the besttools and information.
Our vision is that OBP suppliers, the OBP supply
chain network and end users achieve safe working

4 Prioritized Child Welfare
Strong Business Ethics, Traceability

5 and Documentation

conditions, inclusion, and decent work and livelihoods
for all individuals across the OBP supply chain andthrough to the collection level.

6 Support for Marginalized Populations

A FRAMEWORK FOR SOCIALLY-RESPONSIBLEOCEAN-BOUND PLASTIC SUPPLY CHAINSOVERVIEWIn order to meet these key goals, NextWave

4-Phase Continuous Improvement ProcessPlastics has developed a roadmap to inform

The continuous improvement process lays out thethe practice of progressing toward this vision.

following steps for OBP users and their partners

The roadmap includes:

to foster socially responsible OBP supply chains:

Supply Chain Maturity Map
The maturity map characterizes the real-world
conditions found in the informal waste sector
from low to medium to high maturity.

LOW MATURITY

MEDIUM MATURITY

HIGH MATURITYInsufficient social
supports for asound supply chain

Existing concerns
but high potential for
improvement

Meets the vision
for socially responsible
ocean-bound plastic
supply chains.

Success Metrics
The success metrics provide a tool to evaluate
whether a supply chain has advanced from one
level of maturity to another.

DIAGNOSTICS
Assessing the informal waste sector and the specificsocial, cultural, and environmental conditions in theparticular geography;
PLAN OF ACTION
Developing a plan of action, in collaboration withstakeholders across the OBP supply chain, including
informal workers, to address gaps and reach keygoals;
IMPLEMENTATION
Implementing the plan of action in collaboration
with all members of the OBP supply chain, NGOs,
government, and other relevant partners; andMONITORING, EVALUATION AND FEEDBACK
Monitoring and evaluating progress toward thekey goals in order to learn what is or is not proving
successful and how to adjust the plan of action forcontinuous improvement.

NextWave Plastics is a collaborative and open-source initiative convening multinational companies todevelop the first global network of ocean-bound plastic supply chains. Member companies include: