How Design Industry Players Are Rethinking Everyday Plastic Waste

Feruni, Webby Group and Ceratrade are taking part in a four-week programme examining everyday plastic consumption.

Following last year’s initiative, Beach Clean-Up 2026 is set to return this September, bringing together industry players and communities to address plastic waste and its impact on the environment. Leading up to the clean-up, Feruni, Webby Group and Ceratrade are taking part in Use. Throw. Repeat., a four-week workplace programme encouraging participants to take a closer look at the plastic they use and discard every day.

Rather than focusing solely on collecting recyclables, the programme introduces a simple process of Identify, Clean and Sort (ICS), encouraging participants to consider their waste before it leaves their hands. The collected plastic is then weighed and recorded throughout the programme, turning everyday waste into measurable data.

The exercise also brings attention to what happens beyond the bin. With support from Reef Check Malaysia, the programme incorporates information on plastic pollution and microplastics, linking everyday disposal practices with wider environmental concerns.

For an industry that works extensively with materials, products and the built environment, the question of what happens after something has been used is an increasingly relevant one. The initiative places that question within the workplace, where consumption and disposal take place every day.

This thinking forms part of the wider approach behind Beach Clean-Up 2026, which is structured around three pillars: Care, Connect and Commit. The programme positions the clean-up not simply as an exercise in removing waste, but as an opportunity to understand what is being collected, bring communities and industry together, and establish more measurable approaches to waste management.

“Responsibility does not end when we build, it begins with how we care for what remains. Through collective action, measurable impact, and transparent systems, we aim to redefine how our industry engages with the environment,” says Mr Jackal Chua on behalf of Metrics Global, the organisation behind the initiative.

The workplace programme will lead into Beach Clean-Up 2026 on 19 September 2026 at Pantai Morib, Banting, Selangor. The morning programme will combine the coastal clean-up with an environmental workshop, extending the focus from collection to learning and community participation.

Use. Throw. Repeat. therefore sets up the beach clean-up as more than a one-day effort. By starting with the waste generated in everyday working environments, the programme introduces a more immediate way for participants to consider their own consumption before turning their attention to what has already reached the coastline.

For more information visit: https://beachcleansquad.com/beach-clean-up-2026/