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The Global Research & Innovation in Plastics Sustainability [GRIPS] digital conference will bring together leading researchers and practitioners from academic, industry, and government in the UK and beyond to explore the most promising possible solutions to the problem of plastics reaching landfill, incinerators, or becoming fugitive in the environment. Taking place March 16th - 18th, and partnered with UK Research and Innovation, KTN, and UK Circular Plastics Network, the conference will be comprised virtual talks, workshops, showcases, and an exhibition.

Its aim to encourage cross-sector innovations, commercialising of knowledge and expertise, and support real world impacts, GRIPS is sponsored by organisations including the Institute of Materials, Minerals, and Mining, and Sky Ocean Ventures, and features a formidable line-up of speakers from organisations including the universities of Manchester, Plymouth, Portsmouth, Cambridge, Lancaster, Sheffield, Exeter, Hull, Leeds, Bath, Northampton, Brunel, and Minnesota, together with  Queens University Belfast, University College London, Imperial College London, and ETH Zurich, and from BSI, NERC, Ellen MacArthur Foundation, Recycling and Recovery UK, Worn Again Technologies, WRAP, Innovate UK, National Oceanography Centre, US Department of Energy, and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, USA, among others. 

Ahead of the launch of a commissioned report on nano and micro plastics pollution from tyres co-authored by Dr. David Greenfield and myself, we will be presenting some of our findings in a session titled 'A Focus on: Tyre Elastomers', which will take place on March 17th 13:00 - 14:00 GMT. We'll be joined by Hanson Cheng of The Tyre Collective and Graham Wilson, Chief Executive of the British Tyre Manufacturers Association. Our session will discuss the particular problems presented by polymer microparticles in the environment and what the state-of-the-science suggests to be the most viable means of mitigating the issue - spanning disciplines including biomaterials, biomimetic filtration, among other emerging fields.

Find out more and register here.