On Monday, as countries began a second week of talks on an international agreement to end plastic pollution, an artist collected piles of plastic waste to create an impressive sculpture in front of the United Nations.
Delegates negotiating the treaty walk past the sculpture daily, reminding themselves of their responsibility to help tackle plastic pollution. The talks are set to conclude on Thursday.
Benjamin von Wong, a Canadian artist and activist, designed the nearly 20-foot-tall sculpture called Thinker's Burden and built it with a team.
This is his version of Auguste Rodin's famous sculpture “The Thinker” in Paris. It depicts a male figure deep in thought, like Rodin's original.
But instead of sitting on top of a rock, Mr Wong is perched on top of Mother Earth, holding a baby and clutching plastic bottles connected by a strand of DNA, highlighting the health impact of plastic pollution.
With the help of volunteers, Wong adds plastic waste to the installation during the talks to highlight the rising cost of inaction.
On Monday, he climbed a ladder to reach the top of the sculpture, carrying plastic bottles through DNA. He placed a plastic toy car in front of the sculpture.
“By the end of this week we will have a sculpture almost entirely covered in plastic, but there is hope that a strong and ambitious plastics treaty will allow us to solve this problem once and for all,” he said.
The talks involve some 3,700 participants representing 184 countries and more than 600 organizations. The goal of the discussions is to develop the first global, legally binding treaty on plastic pollution.
Sourse: breakingnews.ie
