Morgan Stanley launches broad-based commitment to develop systemic solutions to reduce global plastic waste

Morgan Stanley has launched the Morgan Stanley Plastic Waste Resolution, which will drive and scale the investments, partnerships, programmes and research needed to tackle the growing challenge of plastic waste.

Through these efforts Morgan Stanley will attempt the prevent, reduce, and remove 50 million tonnes of plastic waste from rivers, oceans, landscapes and landfills by 2030.

Tom Nides, Vice Chairman of Morgan Stanley, said: “At Morgan Stanley, we are committed to leveraging our best thinking, our broad capital markets reach, our relationships with innovators, entrepreneurs, corporations and government, and our ongoing commitment to our communities to address this daunting challenge at a systemic level.”

Audrey Choi, Chief Sustainability Officer and CEO of the Institute for Sustainable Investing, said: “Over the last decade, Morgan Stanley and the Institute for Sustainable Investing have focused on harnessing the power of the capital markets to protect the environment and strengthen communities as an integral part of how we do business.”

“The Plastic Waste Resolution continues that commitment by supporting research and thought leadership to enable us to better understand the challenges around plastic waste and the potential solutions, creating sustainable investing strategies to direct capital towards new solutions as they evolve, and encouraging capacity building of the entrepreneurs, innovators, and future leaders of finance to help address this issue at a systematic level.”

Clare Woodman, CEO of Morgan Stanley’s operations across EMEA, said: “We’ve seen a groundswell of interest and action from consumers, corporates and policy makers here in the UK and across Europe and the Middle East. This global commitment is an important signal to our clients and stakeholders that we are here to help them meet their plastic waste goals.”