Family plastic footprint calculator: how it works and the weights we use
The full method, per-item weights and country benchmarks behind our calculator, so families and classes can check every number.
Ages 15–18
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PBS NewsHour: The Plastic Problem documentary and student-inventor lesson
A 54-minute documentary and a 3–4 lesson plan (grades 9–12) on how student inventors can tackle plastic, with Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) codes…
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Australian Marine Conservation Society: ocean plastic pollution posters
Free print-at-home A4 and A3 educational and values posters (‘Plastics are forever’) for classrooms and community groups.
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Planet Ark: Schools Recycle Right Challenge and lesson plans
60+ Australian lesson plans on recycling, including ‘Enzymes and Plastic Recycling’ (Stage 3, school Years 5 and 6) and ‘Recycle Reuse’ (Stage 4, Years…
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SubjectToClimate: plastic pollution lesson plans guide (K–12, grade-tagged)
A curated index of plastic lessons by grade, from Recycling (K–2) to Garbage Patches (3–5) and School Hydration Stations (3–12).
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Algalita Wayfinder Society: Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) MS-ESS3-3 ‘Plastic Ocean’ lesson and student hub
Research-grounded middle and high school lessons, toolkits and a youth summit from the institute behind the original gyre research.
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Our World in Data: Plastic Pollution topic page and data explorer
Free, citable charts (CC BY 4.0) on plastic production, waste, recycling and ocean inputs, ideal for 12–18 data lessons.
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Lesson plan: Does a bag for life actually help? Life-cycle assessment with real data (ages 15–18)
A 60-minute lesson that uses published life-cycle assessment (LCA) data to work out how many times a reusable bag must be used, and weighs…
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Classroom plastic audit (ages 8–18, with a picture tally for 5–7)
A one-week, 12-category count of a class’s single-use plastic with a published weights table, the sums, and a three-swap action plan.
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The Story of Plastic: animated short, feature film and learning guides
An Emmy-winning systems-level documentary for 13–18s, a four-minute animated short for 9+, and screening, research and action guides.