Alliance to End Plastic Waste Appoints Jacob Duer As President and Chief Executive Officer

WASHINGTON, D.C., August 22, 2019 – The Alliance to End Plastic Waste today announced that Jacob Duer will serve as the inaugural President and CEO of the newly formed nonprofit, effective October 1. Duer joins the AEPW from the United Nations, where he most recently served as a Program Director for the UN Environment Programme.

“Jacob is an experienced, impact-driven, global leader with a breadth of expertise working across a broad range of stakeholders in the public and private sectors,” said David Taylor, Chairman of the Board, President and CEO of Procter & Gamble, and Chairman of the AEPW. “His demonstrated leadership, passion for promoting sustainability, and track record of building solution-oriented multilateral partnerships will be an invaluable asset as the AEPW grows into this next phase.”

In this newly created role, Duer will advance the Alliance mission to develop, deploy, and bring to scale solutions that will minimize and manage plastic waste and promote solutions for used plastics.  This includes plastic reuse, recovery, and recycling to keep it out of the environment. Since launching in January, the Alliance has initiated projects focused on: river renewal; municipal and city partnerships; idea incubation; and IT infrastructure.

“Being strongly committed to environmental sustainability, I am honored to lead the Alliance as a unique solution model to address plastic waste as one of the most pressing environmental issues of today,” said Duer. “Working with all stakeholders, the Alliance will play a lead role in driving sustainable solutions for the future.”

The Alliance is the only organization bringing together the entire plastics value chain (manufacturing, packaging, collecting, and converting) and the associated technical, materials, logistics, and engineering expertise.  In total, the Alliance has committed to a goal of $1.5 billion to deliver sustainable solutions over five years.

“As a strategic partner to the AEPW, we are excited about the vision and leadership that Jacob will bring to this role,” said Peter Bakker, President, World Business Council for Sustainable Development.  “This is an important inflection point as we build an unparalleled force to systematically and sustainably bring solutions to scale that will end plastic waste in the environment.”

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About the Alliance

The Alliance to End Plastic Waste is a not-for-profit organization that includes companies that make, use, sell, process, collect and recycle plastics, including chemical and plastic manufacturers, consumer goods companies, retailers, converters, and waste management companies. The Alliance is the foremost CEO-driven international organization focused on bringing together industry, government, communities, and civil society in the fight to end plastic waste. The Alliance is working to promote programs and partnerships that focus on solutions in four core areas: infrastructure, innovation, education, and clean up. The Alliance membership represents global companies and organizations located throughout North and South America, Europe, Asia, Southeast Asia, Africa, and the Arabian Gulf.

Member companies include Member companies include: BASF, Berry Global, Braskem, Chevron Phillips Chemical Company LLC, Clariant, Covestro, Dow, DSM, EQUATE Petrochemical Company, ExxonMobil, Formosa Plastics Corporation USA, Gemini Corporation, Grupo Phoenix, Henkel, LyondellBasell, Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings, Mitsui Chemicals, Mondi, NOVA Chemicals, Novolex, OxyChem, PepsiCo, PolyOne, Procter & Gamble, Reliance Industries, SABIC, Sasol, SCG Chemicals, Sealed Air Corporation, Shell, Sinopec, SKC co., ltd., Storopack, SUEZ, Sumitomo Chemical, TOMRA, Total, Veolia, Versalis (Eni), Westlake Chemical Corporation

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About Jacob Duer

Jacob Duer is the inaugural President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Alliance to End Plastic Waste, a not-for-profit international organization focused on bringing together industry, government, communities and civil society in the fight to end plastic waste. He assumes this position on October 1.

Jacob Duer was previously Director of the Chemicals and Health Branch of the UN Environment Programme. Jacob also led the work of the secretariat of the Strategic Approach to International Chemicals Management (SAICM) and the secretariat for a new financing program on institutional strengthening at the national level to support the implementation of the chemicals and waste related conventions and SAICM.

Jacob has more than twenty years of experience with the United Nations with focus on the environment and sustainable development. He has a strong track record in policy work, intergovernmental negotiations, practical implementation and problem solving, coupled with strategic thinking and proactive leadership skills. Jacob has lived and worked with the United Nations in Austria, Senegal, Kenya and Switzerland.

Jacob holds a Master degree in Management and a Bachelor degree in Business Administration from the University of Aarhus in Denmark. He is a Catto Fellow of the Aspen Institute in Washington D.C., and a member of the Aspen Institute Global Leadership Network.