...their frustration with international and national models of funding for plastic waste management.

Investors + corporations have poured millions of dollars into a 'plastic credit' project in Ghana.

But waste picker workers say they do all the hard work yet remain in poverty.

This is the story of 51-year-old Lydia Bamfo, a waste picker worker for 25 years and head of Accra's tricycle waste workers' association, and 38-year-old Johnson Doe, a waste picker worker for 22 years and head of a landfill workers' association.

It's an investigation into...

It's so not cool to read that financial aid for studying journalism (like the brilliant @nctj.bsky.social) could be removed by Dept of Education.

Angry rebuttal from Society of Editors below. I 100% agree. Journalism needs to get less posh, not more...

www.societyofeditors.org/soe_news/the...

And then Indian buyers pretend to recycle the tyres, but actually flog them onto illegal pyrolysis plants, so THEY can make a bigger profit.

Then they reach the final destination: unsafe tyre pyrolysis plants. We spoke to people who know children who have died inside them.

The graphic here explains the journey of the tyre (courtesy of my fab co-reporter @atikarehman.bsky.social).

Basically, garages are charging you an 'environmental disposal fee' for your tyre, but then flog it on extremely cheap to buyers so they make a bigger profit.

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Here's the factory in Cambodia, near a village.

Plastic burned here generates 'credits' so companies can claim they clean up waste.

But locals say children have been coughing ever since.

Experts say burning plastic is worse than coal due to the chemicals.

(Picture credit @afpnews.bsky.social)

Some brilliant images and graphics in the story. First, an explainer of how plastic credits 'work'...

...courtesy of the great team @afpnews.bsky.social:

We've published another top story on plastic credits
@lukewbarratt.bsky.social + @afpnews.bsky.social

Plastic burned as fuel gives companies 'plastic neutral' status but pumps out toxins and dust.

Graph shows the firms selling credits,% of plastic burned:

source-material.org/plastic-cred...