Spotlights People Over Plastic
People over Plastic (PoP) is a Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC)-led storytelling collective. It is the only multicultural media platform of its kind, publishing stories by BIPOC for BIPOC. They focus on uplifting our people’s environmental justice stories with an approach method meant to build community relationships first. Their issue areas include plastic pollution, climate change, human health and other intersectional issues. In 2022, PoP produced season two of their podcast, People over Plastic, in collaboration with Prism Reports, a BIPOC network of journalists covering a wide array of intersectional issues. Wildseeds Fund supported episode 4, “Not My Mainland” featuring anti-GMO activist specializing in traditional Hawaiian farming, Josh Mori. This collaboration also produced a Climate & Environment article by Prism featuring Wildseeds Fund grantees, Mālama Hulē'ia and Hawaiʻi Alliance for Progressive Action.
We believe deeply in the power of stories to move the needle on environmental justice, from policy to action on the ground.
Project Objectives
- Activate listenership to activate amplification of stories
- Mobilize our digital network to mainstream dismantling systems of racism and injustice across the plastic pollution lifecycle
- Create a community for activists and culture makers
…people were buzzing about the powerful and raw stories our speakers shared—and the ‘lightbulb moments’ they sparked.
Impact
PoP’s Episode 4 featured Josh Mori, a partner and collaborator of Wildseeds Fund’s grantee
HAPA (Hawai’i Alliance for Progressive Action) released in December 2022 received over 500
listens across all podcast listening platforms. The five-part series was made in collaboration with Prism and featured five personal stories from five U.S. communities that have been disproportionately impacted by climate, plastic, and environmental injustice. Wildseeds Fund grantee, Mālama Hulē‘ia, was featured in the Prism piece “Restoring Hawaiian fishponds revitalizes food systems and cultures” an original article written by Prism’s Climate Justice Reporter Ray Levy Uyeda.
Prism is an independent and nonprofit news outlet led by journalists of color which receives 46,500+ monthly visitors to its website and has nearly 6,000 subscribers to its weekly newsletter. Combined, PoP and Prism have reached over 30,200 across all social media platforms.
A high performing reel of Josh Mori speaking out about tourism in Hawaii received 8,518 impressions, 356 likes, 93 shares, 64 saves, and a 6.06% engagement rate. It was shared widely by Wildseeds Fund grantee HAPA and professional hula dancer and content creator (130K followers), Melemaikalani Makalapua.
People over Plastic also brought together a timely panel at Shack15 – a community of entrepreneurs and changemakers with influence on Jan 11, 2023. The panel titled "Food Sovereignty as a Pathway to Climate Justice" featured Josh Mori and Indigenous food justice activist Sara Moncada. Promotional posts for the event were shared by the American Indian Cultural District and public figures Michelle Antoinette Nelson and Nicole Sutton.
The Shack15 podcast recording of the January 11 panel featuring Josh Mori can be found here.
