Only 4 percent of Pakistan’s plastic waste is recycled. Much of the rest blights our landscapes, and some of it invades the human body. Plastic bags and packaging clog and contaminate waterways – as one recent study estimates, 27 percent of all plastic waste generated in Hyderabad ends up in the Indus River. Microplastics have been found in drinking water, seafood, human blood and breast milk, writes Dr Sulaiman Shahabuddin, President of Aga Khan University (AKU), in a blog post. “We also need institutions to demonstrate leadership. At the Aga Khan University, we have phased out single-use plastic bottles and plastic cutlery across all our campuses globally. The success of this initiative has sparked efforts to reduce plastic use in other areas of our operations—including in our hospitals. We are keenly aware that plastics make up 30 percent of health care waste, according to the World Health Organisation. Meanwhile, our students, faculty, and staff are leading research and awareness efforts that extend far beyond our campuses,” he adds.