Kickstart: Taking lessons on the circular economy outside plastics classrooms

What can six universities do to support a plastics circular economy with $3 million in federal grant money split among them?

Hawaii Pacific University will create an interdisciplinary minor studies program combining both STEM fields and business students. Students at Penn State University will put the money to use to figure out better systems to sort and recycle plastics. The University of Houston will establish a circular plastics credentialed program with internships and "reverse internships" that will see companies send their employees to hone their sustainability skills.

Other funding to support plastics recycling will go to Auburn University, the University of South Alabama and the University of Toledo.

The money is coming from the U.S. Department of Commerce's National Institute of Standards and Technology to train students to "discover and develop solutions to problems presented by our current approaches to the production and consumption of plastics."

The Training for Improving Plastics Circularity (TIPC) grants want to go beyond studies for traditional polymer students.

"To do that, we need to educate different disciplines, and there is a huge unmet need at the undergraduate level," Kathryn Beers, the leader of NIST's Circular Economy Program, said in a news release.

The Society of Plastics Engineers' mold technologies division is launching a new $3,000 scholarship for undergraduate college students in honor of Plastics Hall of Fame member Glenn Beall.

Applications are due May 31. Students must be enrolled in a plastics manufacturing engineering program or other STEM-related career path studies. The division also is accepting applications for a $5,000 grant for plastics manufacturing engineering at training centers, community colleges or universities.

Forms for both programs are available from Joe Karpinski, [email protected].

Beall also is being honored by SPE this week at Antec 2024, with a symposium and keynote address from the industry pioneer during the March 4-7 event in St. Louis. Beall's career began in 1958 with Abbott Laboratories, where he helped the medical market transition to safer disposable devices.

While we're on the subject of SPE and the wealth of information available through its members, check out this remembrance from Frank Esposito of Vivian Malpass, a plastics engineer and researcher — and former SPE International president — who died on Feb. 19. Malpass, Frank says, wrote the background to understanding materials he has relied on since he started at Plastics News.

I often joke that PN draws its editorial staff from traditional journalism backgrounds rather than hiring engineers because it's easier to teach reporters about plastics than teach engineers how to write news stories. But the fact is, each of us at PN has relied on individuals in the plastics industry who have patiently taken our calls to help break down complex details covering the supply chain from chemical feedstocks to chemical recycling.

We couldn't do it without you.

And the next time you tune in to Frank's take on key trends during Polymer Points Live webinars, remember you're also getting insight courtesy of Viv Malpass.