About us

Ocean Plastic Forum is an association with 30 members, comprising industry organizations, NGOs, universities, and companies across the value chain. A shared ambition across all our activities is to combat ocean plastic pollution through collaboration, knowledge sharing, and the development of circular solutions to create both environmental and business value.

The association functions as an active community where members engage in professional dialogue, partnerships, and knowledge exchange, and where concrete projects turn ambition into action. Our projects are carried out in collaboration with both members and external stakeholders, focusing on developing, testing and scaling solutions for the collection and recycling of ocean plastic – with the goal of creating value as high up in the value chain as possible.

History

Our work

Vision and Values

Global Perspective

History

Ocean Plastic Forum was founded in 2027, when the Danish Marine Engineer’s Association brought together a range of Danish organizations, companies, NGOs, and knowledge institutions around a shared recognition that the growing amounts of plastic in the oceans represents a complex challenge – one that requires collaboration across sectors and diciplines. From the outset, the ambition was to create a platform where knowledge, experience, and solutions could come together and be translated into action.

In 2019, the collaboration was formalized as an association with a board and a secretariat. Since then, Ocean Plastic Forum has grown into an active community of around 30 members, collectively representing the entire value chain for the collection and recycling of ocean plastic.

Today, Ocean Plastic Forum serves as a hub and point of entry for stakeholders working with concrete challenges or ideas related to ocean plastic collection and recycling. The association brings together relevant actors, supports the development and planning of projects, and acts as a facilitator in collaborations involving bot members and external partners.

Our Work

Ocean Plastic Forum creates tangible results by bringing together relevant stakeholders in targeted collaborations. Through a hands-on and solutions-oriented approach, we facilitate projects that address the ocean plastic challange from multiple angles and turn ambition into action. We do not rely solely on standard solutions; instead, we always take the specific challenge as our starting point and assemble the right competencies to address it.

Value Chains

More concretely, we facilitate value chain collaborations that enable the collection, processing, and recycling of plastic from the oceans. We bring together companies and organizations with diverse expertise and create the framework for partnerships in which ocean plastic is recycled and upcycled as high up the value chain as possible.

Our members contribute expertise across the entire value chain – from planning and project development to design, delivery, and operations, as well as transport, sorting, washing, and granulation. In addition, a number of our members work with the use of recycled plastic in the development of new products.

Knowledge Sharing

Knowledge sharing is a central element of Ocean Plastic Forum’s work. Just as important as initiating new projects is ensuring that the knowledge, experience, and technology already available in this field are actively brought into play.

That is why we create frameworks for knowledge exchange and the development of expertise across stakeholders through events, workshops, and professional activities. By bringing together insights from practice, industry, and research, we contribute to a deeper understanding of the challenges related to ocean plastic, while also highlighting the solutions and opportunities that can drive positive change, both in Denmark and internationally.

Innovation

Innovation is a key driver of Ocean Plastic Forum’s work. We strive to promote new ideas, technologies, and business models that support a more circular economy and contribute to reducing plastic pollution in the marine environment.

Through projects and collaborations, we explore how ocean plastic can be integrated into new contexts and create both environmental and economic value from early-stage idea development to the testing and scaling of solutions.

Collaboration is Key

Vision and Values

Plastic does not belong in the ocean. Ocean Plastic Forum’s vision is to contribute to ensuring that ocean plastic is collected and managed in a way that supports the transition to a circular economy.

We recognize that ocean plastic is a complex and challenging issue, but we also see plastic waste as a resource that can – and should – be part of circular solutions. Through collaboration and collective action, we work to ensure that ocean plastic is removed from the marine environment and recycled in a responsible and sustainable way, both in Denmark and internationally.

Our vision is to remove plastic waste from the world’s oceans in a way that supports the transition to a circular economy.

Sustainability

All our activities are driven by an ambition to improve the marine environment through the prevention, reduction, and removal of ocean plastic pollution in a way that is both environmentally and economically sustainable.

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Collaboration

Collaboration is the foundation of all our activities. The more contaminated and complex the plastic is, the closer the collaboration must be across all actors in the value chain to achieve an end product that is both price- and quality-competitive in the market.

At Ocean Plastic Forum, we aim to facilitate and actively engage in close partnerships between stakeholders. Through our projects, we continuously strive to inspire and learn from others.

Openness

Openness and trust are essential when establishing, operating, and participating in a value chain through collaboration. At Ocean Plastic Forum, we are committed to communicating openly and sharing knowledge for the benefit of all.

Processing and recycling ocean plastic within a circular economy is a shared goal among our members – one that can only be achieved through open and honest communication.

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From Thought to Action

At Ocean Plastic Forum, we are action-oriented, and ideas are quickly translated into action. We take a hands-on approach in our activities and do not hesitate to set things in motion when we believe in them.

Optimism

We believe that even small steps can pave the way for real change, and we are inspired by even the most unlikely projects. We would rather try and fail than not try at all.

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UN Sustainable Development Goals

Our activities and the establishment of value chains are aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals.

Responsible Consumption and Production

Our collaborations and value chains aim to ensure the sustainable and responsible management of plastic by extending its lifecycle through recycling. In doing so, the need for the production of new virgin plastic is reduced, and the amount of plastic waste is minimized.

Life Below Water

Most of the plastic that ends up in our waters originates from land-based activities. By initiating value chains in which plastic is removed from the oceans and recycled, we seek to reduce marine pollution. Furthermore, our activities – including knowledge sharing – ultimately contribute to raising awareness and strengthening efforts to prevent new plastic from entering the ocean in the first place.

Partnerships for the Goals

Collaboration is at the core of our identity and serves as the foundation of all our activities. Ocean Plastic Forum aims to strengthen partnerships both nationally and internationally by mobilizing our members o share knowledge and expertise. We also engage in partnerships in developing countries, where the challenge of ocean plastic is most severe.

The Basel Convention

The Basel Convention under the United Nations Environment Programme is the only globally legally binding instrument that specifically addresses plastic waste. The purpose of the convention is to protect human health and the environment from the adverse effects of hazardous waste. The amendments on plastic waste introduce a procedure that ensures the environmentally sound management of exported waste.

At Ocean Plastic Forum, we support the vision of the convention and seek to complement its objectives through the establishment of sustainable value chains and knowledge sharing.

EU Plastics Strategy

The issue of plastic waste is also high on the EU’s agenda. As part of the EU’s Circular Economy Action Plan, the EU Plastics Strategy specifically calls for increased recycling, extended product lifecycles, and the prevention of plastic waste. The aim of the strategy is to make plastic recycling profitable for businesses, which Ocean Plastic Forum’s focus on value chains actively supports.

The Danish Climate Act

Ocean Plastic Forum’s activities are aligned with the Danish Climate Act and the target of a 70% reduction in CO2 emissions by 2030 compared to 1990 levels, as well as climate neutrality by 2050.

According to the Climate Act, Denmark must act as a frontrunner in international climate action and inspire the rest of the world. In addition, the targets of the Climate Act should be achieved as cost-effectively as possible, taking into account the long-term green transition, sustainable business development, and competitiveness.

Ocean Plastic Forum supports this agenda by establishing value chains that are both environmentally and economically sustainable. Through our projects, the is that value chain collaborations will strengthen the competitiveness of participating companies as they gain experience in the field. Ultimately, we hope that these companies will be quipped to address the larges challenges related to plastic waste globally – particularly in Africa and Asis, where marine plastic pollution is currently most severe.

The Danish Council on Climate Change identifies sorting, reuse, and recycling of plastic as key steps towards achieving the 70% Co2 reduction target and the goal of 90% recycling of all waste in Denmark. This highlights the relevance of Ocean Plastic Forum and our initiatives.