Dominican Republic: Plastic waste chokes surfers’ paradise

Women in Nigeria make a living from recycling plastic bags and using them to make accessories and household products like baskets for sale.

Richardson Gustave works for an unusual project called "The Plastic Bank," which wants to protect the environment and help people escape poverty.

The June 12 Democracy Day commemoration in Nigeria has prompted calls for an effective legislation in plastic waste management in Nigeria.

Andrew Forrest, chairman of the Minderoo Foundation, a philanthropic organisation, discusses his plans to shift plastics manufacturing to recycling rather than using petroleum. The initiative is called "Sea the Future." Forrest, the billionaire founder of Fortescue Metals Group Ltd., speaks with Shery Ahn and Paul Allen on "Bloomberg Daybreak: Australia."

It's Christmas Day and following a year which has been harrowing for so many, we've decided to look back at the good news of 2020. We begin in Uganda, where a plastics company that specialises in recycling switched from making building materials to face shields to help hospitals. We also go to Benin, where the closure of the border with Nigeria has led to a push for more locally produced food, some of it on rooftops. And our correspondent in DR Congo looks back at how an NGO is helping Ebola survivors turn their lives around.

Social media influencer Esther Jimenez underwent a difficult survival process following a 'devil's acid' attack that was thrown at her face before social networks changed her life helping her become an influencer and motivator for thousands of followers.

An army of volunteers helps clean up a massive haul of plastic polluting Bali's famous Kuta beach.

Alarmed by the mountains of plastic waste leaching into Indonesia's waters, two best friends are taking on the environmental menace by turning crisp bags and shampoo packets into paving bricks.

Nina Gomes is no average environmentalist. With bright pink goggles and just 4 years old, she picks trash with her father from the water along the beaches of Rio de Janeiro. With Nina in tow, Gomes sets out on a paddleboard into the picturesque but polluted waters of Rio's Guanabara Bay, where she grabs plastic bottles and bags and puts them in a mesh net.

With greenhouses as far as the eye can see, the southern Spanish region of Andalusia has been nicknamed the "Sea of Plastic". Intensive farming is the norm and it helps feed the European market with fruit and vegetables all year long. It also produces an estimated 33,000 tonnes of plastic waste every year. Until two years ago, this waste was exported to countries such as China, Pakistan and Turkey. But now that these countries are refusing to take rubbish from rich countries, the "Sea of Plastic" is faced with the urgent challenge of recycling its own waste. Our correspondents report.

Tetiꞌaroa, an almost deserted Pacific island northeast of Tahiti, is a sanctuary for birds, sea turtles and all sorts of marine life. The atoll is perhaps most famous for being bought by US actor Marlon Brando. But this picturesque French Polynesian island is being invaded by plastic waste washed ashore by ocean tides. As a result, a team of volunteers have been to Tetiꞌaroa for a clean-up operation. Our colleagues from Polynésie la première report, with FRANCE 24's Jennie Shin.

The Dominican Republic markets itself as a tropical vacation paradise. But behind the scenes lie heaps of trash from mass tourism. People like Eddy Rosado and the UN environment program are trying to shrink the Caribbean nation's garbage dumps.