Kickstart: Maybe we can expect a poem on recycling

Amanda Gorman was a standout at President Joe Biden's inauguration, for her words, style and youth as she worked to encapsulate America's heritage and future in poetry. (Seriously, how is she only 22 years old?)

Perhaps we shouldn't be surprised that her background leading to that moment also included a look at plastics recycling.

In 2019, Gorman took part in a story and video on how a Slovenian recycler was converting marine waste such as abandoned fishing nets into nylon fibers used by the fashion brand Prada through chemical recycling.

"It goes beyond that circular system. It's about us as consumers having the opportunity and responsibility  to know the story about the product, because that story can change the world," she says in a video for the project.

More safety guidance related to COVID-19 may be on the way the way for workplaces across the U.S.

Steve Toloken has a story on fines levied by state and federal worker safety agencies on companies that failed to follow coronavirus precautions. He also writes that President Joe Biden has called for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to revise guidance on workplace safety during the pandemic by Feb. 4 and determine if further standards are needed.

The National Association of Manufacturers said in a Jan. 21 statement that it wants to work with the Biden administration on the protocols.

"What manufacturers need now is clear, science-based information on how COVID-19 spreads, and any rules or standards should provide the flexibility necessary for companies to implement health protocols tailored to the unique circumstances of their shop floors and work environments," NAM said.

The What Keeps You Up At Night podcast returns this week with Keith Everson of Wisconsin injection molder IM Sussex. Plastics News Publisher Brennan Lafferty took a brief break from asking plastics industry leaders about the things that are, well, keeping them up at night during the end-of-the-year rush, but the series is back now.

Sussex IM's customer list includes the "world's biggest maker of hand sanitizers" (you can probably guess the brand name). Sussex makes all of the company's wall-mounted dispensers, so it was an essential business from the start of the pandemic.

"We really felt like we were part of the solution to slow down the COVID spread," Everson said. "When you have that on your shoulders, you're going, 'Hey, we've got to make sure we've got people here making the product.'"