Scientists and manufacturers are charting a path toward material sustainability
to the sustainable use and re-use of plastics; electronic devices such as mobile phones; building materials; and clothing and other textiles. It also examines the transition of biofuels to a more environmentally friendly form that will foster less soil-depleting and carbon-producing agriculture, and the urgent need to become better stewards of Earth’s water resources. Two researchers also debate whether plastic recycling is central to the advancement of the circular economy, or a counterproductive distraction from the need for more fundamental change.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR(S)
Herb Brody, Chief supplements editor for Nature.
