Rethinking plastic realities in Ghana: A call for a well-being approach to understanding human-plastics entanglements for more equitable plastics governance

Abstract

Plastics and plastic waste have emerged as one of the major challenges of the Anthropence, a so-called “wicked problem” complicated by a myriad of political, economic, cultural, and historical factors. The ubiquity of plastic waste has garnered increased attention from governments, non-profit organizations and the media, in turn expanding mitigative efforts. Yet much of this action has been ineffective, or in some cases, even harmful. Governance and management actions often neglect to understand the lived realities of those most burdened by plastic waste and thus solutions are not designed to address the complexity of human plastics entanglements. The human dimensions of plastic pollution are often narrowly focused on livelihood and physical human health, however, assessing human-plastics entanglements for equitable evaluation and decision-making requires a multidisciplinary One Health well-being approach that considers factors such as connections to natural systems, culture, social relationships, freedom, health, security, and livelihood. In this article, we highlight the value of adopting such an approach in understanding the local complexities of human-plastics entanglements. Drawing on the results from semi-structured surveys and focus group interviews implemented in two coastal communities in Ghana, we demonstrate the multitude of ways that local people are impacted by plastic waste. The survey used in this case study employed a framework to assess well-being and plastic waste via a grounded approach where well-being is defined by respondents based on their lived experience. Across these communities, respondents illustrated how plastic waste has influenced individual well-being including their livelihoods, environmental quality, cultural practices, physical and mental health. Overall, we argue that more holistic approaches of assessment are necessary for understanding the complex burdens of plastic waste and for informing more equitable governance solutions.