With fans returning to sporting arenas and concert-goers celebrating the return of music festivals, sustainability issues at events and venues are coming back into focus - specifically, the ever-present disposable plastic cup. Many attempts at solutions have been introduced, from bioplastic to reuse systems and now single-use aluminum cups. But there has been no clear scientific consensus as to which options have the greatest environmental impact and which options have the least - until now.

On Wednesday, representatives from 175 nations agreed to draft a global treaty that would start to tackle the exponentially growing amount of plastic pollution that we’re facing – essentially a Paris Agreement for plastics.

After launching a few reuse coalitions ourselves (and supporting others to do the same), we offer the following best practices to help you think about what might work best in your community.

Trash pollutes city streets, waterways, parks, and natural ecosystems – all at a cost to people and the planet. It’s clear by now that disposables don’t make any sense. But really – they literally don’t make dollars or cents. Learn why this is and how Upstream is helping transform the food service sector from a disposable nightmare to a real and reusable future.

EPR – aka extended producer responsibility – is a policy tool that holds consumer brands responsible for the environmental impacts of their products and packaging. Learn how EPR can move us toward a circular economy that follows the waste reduction hierarchy of reduce and reuse first, before recycling.

In honor of Black History Month, learn the past and present of today’s environmental justice (EJ) movement. Find out how environmental racism has played a role in the mistreatment of communities of color throughout United States history – and how reuse can help drive equal access to economic, social, and environmental opportunities.

Walk through the history – and future – of bottle bills (aka deposit-refund systems) and explore how bottle bills were used in the past and what caused the shift from this reuse–refill economic model to the modern-era throw-away system.

The Governor of Maine signed a new Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) bill into state law. More than a decade in the making, Upstream CEO Matt Prindiville describes the history of the bill’s development and what it means for the future of reuse solutions and for holding big brands accountable for their contributions to packaging waste and pollutes.

Reuse Wins, a new report from Upstream, shows how a new reuse economy is emerging to replace the use of single-use products in food service. The key findings in the report draw from life-cycle studies that compare the environmental impacts of disposables versus reusables, and project the potential cost savings to business and local government from transitioning to a new reuse economy.