Read in full the submission of our Creative Writing Competition participant, Lisa McMillan, an Environmental Sustainability Professional.
Set within a fictional grant funding application, Lisa McMillan traces her journey from finance to microbiology. What starts as a story of disillusionment over humankind’s impact on nature becomes a testament of how collaboration and determination can turn event entrenched systems towards more sustainable alternatives.
You can read the winners announcement here, as well as a full list of all submissions published.
Collaborate to Confront the Plastic Pandemic; an Appeal from an Accidental Microbiologist
by Lisa McMillan
My naivety of the world I had entered arose again; how had I ended up a bench top scientist, surrounded by lab coats, copious equipment and single use plastics. Nature, the great outdoors felt very far away.
Following in my Mum’s footsteps, on leaving school I went straight into banking. The next 13 years were spent in finance; banking had led to pensions administration. Work during those years held its perks but overall had bored me silly, what I loved was being outdoors surrounded by nature; that was my happy place. As years passed I became more and more concerned about what humankind was inflicting on my beloved nature. Honestly, the climate crisis as a concept wasn’t my main concern – awareness levels back then were not as they are now – but issues such as the decimation of rain forest habitats troubled me deeply. I felt a strong need to leave pension calculations behind and ‘make a difference’. In what way I had absolutely no idea.
Aged 30, I enrolled on a biology degree course. A register of 120 with me as one of three mature students was daunting in itself. Plus, anything ‘scientific’ was well out of my comfort zone, I had held scant interest at school. But this move wasn’t about science per se. It was a chance to develop knowledge that might just put me on a road towards making that difference. My notion was a strong one but also vague and naive in equal measure; I knew virtually nothing of the academic world I was entering. I was the first generation in my family to go to university and if I personally knew any scientists at the time, I wasn’t aware.
The degree opened my eyes to a whole ‘new’ world. This world that makes and shapes us, but the mechanics, the DNA of which I had been ignorant of and I loved it. The knowledge, experiences, individuals, types of people were all new, all wonderful. I thrived, achieving top student awards in my first and final years, and obtaining first class honours. The course was designed flexibly, allowing students to commit to a chosen specialism half way through their studies. I had found the microbiology element especially fascinating so focused there for the remainder of my degree. A Masters degree followed and in my mid-thirties I began a new working life.
The job market was a tricky one, and finding a role had its twists and turns. After a year or two however I had established myself as a research and teaching microbiology technician at the university where I began my studies.
As interesting as the work was, I did ask myself at times how did I get here? My naivety of the world I had entered arose again; how had I ended up a bench top scientist, surrounded by lab coats, copious equipment and single use plastics. Nature, the great outdoors felt very far away. I called myself ‘the accidental microbiologist’ and found that difference I had wanted to make very hard to visualize.
I carried on; I had given up a lot to pursue my dream and had much invested in my new path.
Reflecting on positive elements of my situation (...) he said 'make it what you want it to be'. He had provided a spark and in the weeks that followed, through the sea of plastic and fog of frustration new thoughts began to emerge. Could there be a better way?
In microbiology when working with bacteria and viruses, equipment must be clean and free of all germs; sterile. In a modern-day lab this means using and discarding copious volumes of single use plastic. One estimate suggests such labs worldwide create 5.5 million tonnes of plastic waste each year (1).
Fifty years ago, lab scientists routinely used glass which was washed, sterilized and reused. Single use plastics have transformed the ease and efficiency of working methods whilst simultaneously creating an emissions time bomb for our planet. Science has provided answers for society but developed its own addiction and created a ‘plastic pandemic’. Made mostly from fossil fuels, plastics generate greenhouse gas emissions at every stage of their production and disposal and are responsible for around five per cent of global emissions. This figure could rise to 20% by 2050 (2).
This whole worrying picture made me very uncomfortable. I had fallen into an acceptance of science’s use of plastic whilst at home I fretted over binning a yoghurt carton. I had wanted to help our beautiful planet, not compound its problems!
A key moment came when I shared these doubts with my husband, fretting over the future of the job and my suitability to it. I am unlikely to forget his words. Reflecting on positive elements of my situation – I had already established a campus gardening group and litter picking in the local community – he said ‘make it what you want it to be’.
He had provided a spark and in the weeks that followed, through the sea of plastic and fog of frustration new thoughts began to emerge. Could there be a better way? It might not be perfect but what if some of these plastics could be recycled? Sounds simple but it wasn’t.
Until that point, contaminated lab plastics and a circular economy had not been part of the same conversation – period. Recycling was something that lab workers did at home, not at work. Fears of lab germs contaminating the environment and outpaced health and safety guidance dictated everything.
Many discussions and much research later we were ready to join forces - we were going to question the status quo.
Following decontamination our discarded plastics had always been deemed safe enough to be sent to landfill why then couldn’t they be recycled instead? My brain began to whir; perhaps we might begin to leave entrenched ideas behind and apply some common sense?
A casual chat one day with a colleague changed everything. Jane felt as despairing as I did at the volume of plastics we binned daily. Many discussions and much research later we were ready to join forces – we were going to question the status quo.
We already had mixed recycling facilities in the canteen so we found out which contractor dealt with this waste. We were then ready to ask them the rather bold question of whether they would accept our lab plastics. Months of providing samples and protracted discussions followed. We fully expected the answer to be no. Just as our hopes began to dim, the answer came back; they were happy to accept around 95% of the plastics we used. We were both stunned and overjoyed.
Despite any lack of precedence our waste contractor was refreshingly pragmatic, it helped too that the types of plastic involved were of a high quality and therefore value in reprocessing downstream. What’s more they were going to charge us significantly less per tonne compared to rates for landfill waste. There was a business case at both ends, this was great news, a win win! Obtaining buy in from management to allow our new process was made much easier when it generated a saving and not a cost.
As Jane and I considered the implications of the decision, we realised that the most vital piece of the jigsaw – ensuring the materials were safe to be passed on – wasn’t so complex after all. Our decontamination methods could remain, in essence it was only the destination that had changed. It felt as if so much yet so little had changed. We sought staff and students’ opinions, carried out a small pilot and checked that our new signs and instructions were clear and user-friendly for all concerned. Two months later we had lift off.
Bringing others on board with the change - a vital element to success of the project - was a second significant piece of the puzzle. (...) As the work gathered momentum and became established it was heartening to see colleagues, who in the beginning had shown resistance, later becoming the greatest cheerleaders.
Bringing others on board with the change – a vital element to success of the project – was a second significant piece of the puzzle. To us, beginning the recycling had felt like the only right thing to do, but risk-averse attitudes regarding lab waste are long held and breed resistance to change. As the work gathered momentum and became established it was heartening to see colleagues, who in the beginning had shown resistance, later becoming the greatest cheerleaders.
What we started has never looked back with five tonnes of plastic now having been diverted away from landfill. The processes we established are now embedded in the organisation’s waste contract tender process, ensuring future continuity of the recycling. The change also kick started a much wider drive towards making the labs environmentally sustainable. Other improvements included, adjusting ultra-low temperature freezers; individual units can use as much electricity in a year as the average house. Changes led to savings of £6,900 and 11 tonnes of CO2 and in so doing have become a key feature in the drive towards meeting net zero obligations.
Prior to lockdown Jane and I presented our work at an external conference ‘in case anyone is interested’ we thought. Quite the understatement. We were completely overwhelmed by the response from those working at other institutions. ‘Thanks for taking the time to come to inspire us’ was one of many comments we received that day, it seemed we had tapped into something and weren’t the only ones wanting to reduce the environmental impact in our labs.
Interest continued to grow and we’ve been lucky enough to share the work with around 300 different organisations. Making changes in this area is always challenging, labs are busy places and everyone feels the pressure. Being able to make contact with so many engaged individuals, all desperate to drive positive change themselves has been the greatest source of inspiration. The journey fills me with hope in what can be achieved when we work together; during presentations we would always say ‘collaboration not competition’. There is no going back, the work has become a duty rather than a choice.
Do I feel I have made that difference? I hope I have made a good start. Our work has fed into a paradigm shift where many now question long established norms
Do I feel I have made that difference? I hope I have made a good start. Our work has fed into a paradigm shift where many now question long established norms of lab waste disposal and to be shortlisted for an Outstanding Contribution to Environmental Leadership award (THE Times Higher Education Awards 2023) shows importantly the profile the work has developed.
Despite the interest shown by those wishing to repeat this work, external progress has been slow. Health and Safety policies and a lack of infrastructure are still restrictive.
Using the networks and insights gained, I would like to fund working independently in order to take this project forward. I plan to extend the sharing of our work by collaborating with individual labs and institutions, personalizing guidance to each set of circumstances. Each lab and institution differ in the plastics used, contamination levels, decontamination methods, waste contractors and so on. Tailored plans can help other labs begin to understand the viability of recycling as an alternative waste strategy, within their own set of circumstances.
We really must start making a significant dent in the 5.5 million tonnes and in so doing will give new hope for sustainable science and the communities it serves.
This funding would be a terrific start to continuing an exciting journey!
- https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/nov/10/research-labs-plastic-waste
- https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/apr/18/plastic-production-emission-climate-crisis
