Plastic Crisis: An Anthropological View

In this outline, you will begin to determine how you will answer the interview questions for Final Project Part B (Interview Transcript). You must include a list of the references you are thinking of using for your final submission. Using the Crisis situation of Plastic wars from previous assignments.

For each of the reporter’s questions below, write your answer in full sentences. You should aim to address each critical element listed below in at least two sentences each. Write your answer directly beneath the reporter’s question. Please do not reiterate the example below in your answer.

Interview Transcript or Recording Outline

Cultural Diversity: In this section, you will explain the importance of understanding and being sensitive to cultural diversity.

Reporter: What is so important that we understand cultural diversity in a time like this? Who cares if we’re all different? What does it matter anyway?

Your Response: We need that cultural knowledge as all this comes from within cultural values, and it cannot be separated from them. When we are plagued with the plastic nightmare, we observe a high proportion of female informal recyclers around the world. For instance, women in Colombia and India are central in the collection, sorting and resale of recyclable plastic, in a job that is often socially devalued, or not even seen at all. It is important to acknowledge these gendered roles to promote just policies that complement these women’s activities and safeguard their health and wellbeing (Freinkel, 2011).

Your Response: Cultural norms are in play in how we use and consume plastic. Nowadays, in many Western societies, buying single-use plastic things is the default, the convenient thing to do — a behavior instilled in us by a consumer culture that prizes speed and disposability. Conversely, some indigenous populations reuse receptacles and suffer less overall waste by virtue of cultural norms of thrift or environmental responsibility. Knowing these actions will allow for greater precision in designing educational campaigns and policies to minimize the use of plastics (Reno, 2016).

Your Response: We continually perceive animals through cultural prisms that influence our reactions to environmental concerns. For instance, in the minds of people in many coastal communities, in places like Central America or Southeast Asia, sea turtles have a sacred or symbolic significance. If plastic pollution is affecting these animals, then people in these cultures could suffer a profound sense of emotional or spiritual impoverishment. This emotional connection can act as a strong drive to conserve and clean up the ocean (UNEP, 2021).

Reporter: Human culture might seem more complex than I initially imagined, so how does it relate to the crisis we’ve witnessed here?

Your Response: Anthropologists have a key role to play in helping communities make sense of and act creatively in the face of big, urgent, slow crises like plastic pollution. They are learning how other cultures employ, discard, and interact with plastics, and this enables them to pinpoint underlying causes of the problem that are sensitive to local customs and beliefs. For instance, anthropologists can collaborate with local populations in places where people frequently burn plastic in the absence of waste services, offering less harmful alternatives that are compatible with local customs, rather than imposing outside standards. Through respect for local ways of thinking while working with communities on devising solutions, anthropologists are facilitating the containment of the crisis and the creation of sustainable and culturally “appropriate” solutions. (Reno, 2016).

Anthropological Methods: In this section, you will speak as though you are an anthropologist investigating the crisis. You will describe the anthropological methods you would need to use to investigate the crisis and explain how you believe people would react to you investigating the crisis.

Reporter: Alright, can you explain to the audience how you came to this conclusion?

Your Response: To investigate the plastic crisis, I used the method of ethnography, which involves long-term observation, interviews, and participation in daily life within affected communities. This method is appropriate because it allows an anthropologist to deeply understand how cultural beliefs, economic pressures, and social norms influence people’s use and disposal of plastic. For instance, observing how informal recyclers operate in urban slums reveals both their environmental impact and the social stigma they face. Ethnography provides a holistic, human-centered view of the crisis, making it an ideal approach to uncover the complex cultural dynamics behind plastic pollution (Reno, 2016).

Reporter: Because I treated the community with respect, patience and cultural sensitivity, I was given the opportunity to study it.” Trust-building was critical – I engaged with and listened to their problems, joined their daily routine, and explained to them what my research was about. This openness helped to generate collaborative spirit. But not everyone was very enthusiastic. Some people were eager to share their sustainability solutions, while others were embarrassed or defensive, particularly when talking about the visible effects of pollution in their communities. Such disparate reactions serve to underscore the necessity of empathy and moral responsibility in anthropological fieldwork. (Liboiron, 2020).

Your Response: Investigating the community of a waste affected by plastic may cause a variety of emotional and social expressions. On a positive note, it may make some people feel proud not only that their recycling or traditional waste-reduction efforts are recognized. In Bogotá, for instance, informal recyclers were more than willing to display how they creatively turn plastic into income and grateful that someone was recording their efforts.

On the other hand, some people reacted negatively. In certain neighborhoods, residents were hesitant or even hostile, fearing judgment or outside interference. For instance, individuals in coastal villages in Southeast Asia were embarrassed when asked about local plastic burning, a practice born from necessity due to a lack of waste infrastructure. These responses reflect the sensitivity required when studying people in crisis settings and emphasize the need for cultural humility and ethical engagement (Reno, 2016).

Your Response: An objective lens is fundamental to study a particular people to avoid the pre-determined beliefs and personal biases of the anthropologist being placed on the society. It permits the investigator to see behaviors, beliefs, and practices within the appropriate cultural setting and to avoid evaluating them in terms of another culture.

This objective can serve to suppress anxieties within the study population. People are more likely to be candid and straightforward when they sense that the anthropologist isn’t there to blame or criticize, but rather to understand and accurately represent what life is like for them. For example, in societies where burning plastic is a reality due to an absence of waste management facilities, entering the conversation without judgment opens discussion for suggestions of safer alternatives. (Freinkel, 2011).

Plastic Crisis: An Anthropological View

Cultural Connections: In this section, you will make connections between cultural factors and the likelihood of the crisis occurring in your own culture. If the crisis has already occurred in your own culture, explain how the specific cultural, biological, or environmental factors allowed this to occur.

Reporter: Your Response: In my family, we have no familial dispositions that would either cause or prevent a calamity such as the Plastic Wars. But we do have some genetic health issues which are worsened by pollution — particularly of microplastics and the airborne toxins emitted when plastic is incinerated. Which is to say, that if plastic pollution deteriorates further, it may have a major direct effect on the health of susceptible household members and worsen respiratory symptoms for them. On the other hand, we are all lacking the genetic reasons which would help us to survive or protect ourselves from something such as environmental pollution.

Your Response: The world around me is a much larger culprit in the Plastic Wars debacle I live through. For instance, I live in a city where plastics are heavily used and the infrastructure for recycling is limited. Single-use plastics are ubiquitous, and there is uneven waste management. Consequently, a surplus of plastic waste accumulates in the landfills and local waters, causing direct environmental and health damage. Small local solutions, such as efforts to boycott plastic bag use, raise awareness of sustainability, which could ease plastic dependence. And so, my environment both contributes to and has the potential to be part of solutions to this crisis, depending on policies and public behavior.

Predictions: In this section, you will explain how anthropological perspective can assist in future crises.

Reporter: Do you think there is anything that could have informed these people of the crisis? I would hate to think that this could have been recognized and prevented earlier.

Your Response: Yes, this crisis could absolutely happen—and in many ways, it already has. In the United States, for example, cultural values such as convenience, consumerism, and disposability contribute heavily to plastic overuse. People are accustomed to single-use plastics in packaging, food service, and retail, often with little awareness of the long-term environmental impact. Additionally, fast-paced lifestyles and marketing reinforce the use of quick, throwaway products rather than reusable alternatives. These cultural factors make it easier for plastic waste to accumulate and harder to implement lasting behavioral change without major shifts in public education and policy (Freinkel, 2011).

Reporter: Now, I can bet there are people at home that are scared. So, how can you as an anthropologist help in preventing this crisis from happening to us?

Your Response: An anthropological lens is essential for creating effective and sustainable preventive action plans because it considers the unique cultural values, beliefs, and practices of each community. Using an objective lens allows anthropologists to analyze behaviors without judgment, focusing on understanding rather than blaming. This helps in identifying practical solutions that are more likely to be accepted by the people affected.

Cultural sensitivity ensures that proposed changes do not unintentionally disrespect local traditions or ways of life. For example, in areas where plastics are reused out of necessity, a culturally informed action plan might focus on improving access to sustainable alternatives rather than banning plastics outright. By approaching problems with empathy and knowledge, anthropologists can help communities build solutions that reflect their realities and capacities (Liboiron, 2020).

Reporter: Finally, do you still enjoy being an anthropologist throughout this apparent chaos? I mean, how has being an anthropologist helped you out personally?

Your Response: Being an anthropologist has deepened my understanding of human behavior and the interconnectedness of culture and environment. Personally, it has made me more empathetic and professionally, it allows me to contribute meaningfully to global issues like the plastic crisis through informed, respectful engagement.

Plastic Crisis: An Anthropological View

What is so important about understanding cultural diversity during a crisis like this?,
How does human culture relate to the plastic pollution crisis?,
How did you investigate the plastic crisis as an anthropologist?,
How does your own culture or environment relate to the Plastic Wars?,
How can anthropology help prevent future environmental crises?

References

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