Join Beyond Plastics on Tuesday, September 15 at 7:00 PM ET / 4:00 PM PT for a free educational webinar about a groundbreaking study that exposes the unsustainable economical and societal costs of plastic pollution. The Duke University research team will unpack their report, The Social Cost of Plastic to the United States, in this live discussion. The report estimates that the social cost of plastic is between $436 billion and $1.1 trillion annually. We’ll hear from Dr. Nancy Lauer, Lecturing Fellow and staff scientist, Duke Environmental Law and Policy Clinic; Tibor Vegh, Assistant Policy Research Director, Nicholas Institute for Energy, Environment & Sustainability; and Renée Sharp, Director, Plastics and Petrochemical Advocacy, Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). The discussion will be moderated by Judith Enck, President of Beyond Plastics, and you can ask your questions directly to the expert panelists.
Register now to reserve your spot on September 15. Please note: if you cannot make it to the webinar on September 15 but would like to watch it, we will record it. If you'd like us to email you the recording, please register for the event. In addition, you can always find the recording in the original event listing on our website as well as on your YouTube channel.
About Our Speakers
Dr. Nancy Lauer is a lecturing fellow and staff scientist with the Duke Environmental Law and Policy Clinic. Since joining Duke Law in 2018, Dr. Lauer has worked on a wide range of environmental policy matters including drinking water quality, children’s exposure to toxic chemicals, hazardous waste remediation, and single-use plastics. Dr. Lauer received her PhD in Earth and Ocean Sciences from the Duke Nicholas School of the Environment and her Bachelor of Science in Geology from the College of William and Mary.
Tibor Vegh serves as an assistant policy research director with the Nicholas Institute for Energy, Environment & Sustainability. He is an applied social scientist with a background in environmental planning and economics. Vegh is a lead or collaborator on a wide range of projects where he contributes his economic, financial, and policy analysis skills.
Renée Sharp has led NRDC’s efforts to combat the health and environmental impacts of plastic pollution since 2024. Sharp has more than twenty-five years of experience in environmental policy, research, and program implementation, including serving as the national research director for the Environmental Working Group, regional executive director at GRID Alternatives, and strategic advisor for Safer States.
Judith Enck, Founder and President, Beyond Plastics
In 2019, Judith founded Beyond Plastics to end plastic pollution everywhere. Judith was appointed by President Obama to serve as regional administrator in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in 2009 and served as deputy secretary for the environment in the New York Governor’s Office. She is a professor at Bennington College and co-author of the new book “The Problem With Plastic” (The New Press, December 2025), available wherever you purchase your books.