Plastic Expelled: Exposing Industry Propaganda in Schools

The report, Plastic Expelled: Exposing Industry Propaganda in U.S. Schools, analyzes how chemical, fossil fuel, and plastics companies are spreading pro-plastics propaganda in U.S. K-12 schools: creating and funding lesson plans, educational programs, and supplies to schools to curry favor with school administrators, teachers, and students across the U.S., while subtly dispensing marketing and misinformation—at the expense of the health and lives of communities.

Plastic Expelled uncovers how the plastic industry’s pro-plastics educational campaigns are designed to exploit the vulnerabilities of underfunded schools and a lack of science resources for teachers, along with decentralized curriculum decisions, creating openings for corporate involvement in education.

Importantly, Plastic Expelled concludes with recommendations to help school districts and State Departments of Education remove plastic propaganda from schools. 

Key takeaways:

• Miseducation of the public, and more insidiously children in K-12 public schools, has been a little-discussed public relations practice used by the plastics industry.
• Some of the largest chemical, fossil fuel, and plastic producers in the world are funding highly biased programs and educational materials in U.S. schools to teach children misinformation about plastics. 
• Plastic producers’ educational materials and programs are often marketed under the appealing label of STEM (Science Technology Engineering and Math)—yet the motivation is their own financial interests and the goal of securing a future workforce.
• Students in regions where chemical, fossil fuel, and/or plastic facilities and infrastructure are present face the greatest risks of plastic’s dangers, and are commonly targeted by companies inserting pro-plastics propaganda in schools.
• Adequate accountability for pro-plastics propaganda in schools is made more difficult by often obscured companies protected by a web of industry associations with everchanging and misleading names.
• Schools must be funded adequately, equitably, and transparently to help prevent corporate interests from exploiting vulnerabilities.