Brands Unite on Environment Day 2025 to Tackle Plastic Pollution
In line with this year’s World Environment Day 2025 theme “Beat Plastic Pollution”, we have brought together sharp, action-led perspectives from three purpose-driven brands actively working to reduce plastic dependency across their ecosystems.
This theme is a global call to action, a push for businesses, communities, and individuals to rethink the way we produce, consume, and dispose of plastics. The voices below echo that urgency and responsibility, sharing real-world initiatives that show how conscious business choices can drive long-term environmental impact.
1. Manas Raghuvanshi, Director, BN Welfare Foundation
“India generates over 4 million tonnes of plastic waste every year, and a worrying amount of it ends up in our rivers, our forests, and increasingly, in our own bodies. What makes this crisis even more dangerous is how ordinary it feels. Plastic has become part of our daily lives because it’s easy, cheap, and convenient. But that convenience comes at a long-term cost we can no longer ignore.”
“At BN Welfare Foundation, we are working to shift this narrative from awareness to action. During our recent Plogathon at Delhi’s Central Ridge Forest, more than 500 students and community members came together and collected nearly 5,000 kilos of plastic and non-biodegradable waste. It was a reminder that real change begins when communities take ownership.”
“We’re also focused on deeper solutions such as promoting clean energy in schools, eco-alternatives in production, and climate education that moves beyond the classroom. In collaboration with the Ghaziabad District Authority and the River Man of India, Mr. Raman Kant Tyagi, we’ve also taken on the challenge of reviving the Hindon River, a rain-fed waterway that’s been declared ‘dead’ after decades of plastic pollution. This river, forced to carry accumulated waste into the Yamuna and beyond, is a stark reminder of how upstream negligence becomes a downstream crisis.”
“There’s a common assumption that the rains will wash everything away and that rivers will somehow clean themselves. But the reality is, the plastic we leave behind is ultimately making its way into our oceans, posing an even greater threat to life. At BNWF, we believe the solution lies in confronting this mindset, not waiting for the monsoons, but stepping up today, in whatever capacity we can, to clean, restore, and protect what’s still within our reach.”
2. Sanskriti Kapoor, VP, ESG and Impact, Omnivore
“India has a rare opportunity to leapfrog the plastic crisis not by making incremental tweaks to existing materials, but by building a context-aware, diversified ecosystem for circular materials. Across the country, we are seeing remarkable innovations: agricultural residues spun into molded fiber packaging, biomass converted into specialty chemicals, and certain bioplastics deployed only in cities with robust composting infrastructure. These aren’t isolated ideas; taken together, they point to a new materials economy rooted in circularity.
What our portfolio companies have made clear is this: waste isn’t where the story ends, it’s where new value begins. Fibmold, for example, transforms bagasse and husk into durable, compostable trays. AltM is going even further, designing high-performance, industrial-grade materials from waste. These solutions are grounded in India’s realities, not retrofitted from global templates.
The biggest lesson from years of field trials and pilot programs is this: circularity must be local. Materials must be designed for the ecosystem they will operate in, whether that’s a backyard compost pit or a municipal waste stream. When policy, infrastructure, and consumer behavior align, we unlock the full potential of circular design.
At the intersection of waste management and biotechnology lies a massive upcycling opportunity. If India gets this right, we won’t just solve for plastic, we’ll create scalable models for sustainable manufacturing that other economies can learn from.”
3. Jagannath Prasad, CEO, Green Aluminium Recovery & Diversified Metal Recovery Business, Runaya
“Ending plastic pollution is not just an environmental imperative, it’s a social, economic, and ethical one. As we look toward 2025, the urgency is clear: we must transition from intention to action. From innovation in materials to rethinking consumption and waste, it’s time for businesses, governments, and individuals to take bold, measurable steps to eliminate plastic pollution and protect our planet for future generations.”
