Diapers, or nappies, are single-use plastic contributing to the global plastic-waste crisis.  We need solutions that go beyond recycling and stop plastic pollution at the source.  We need to look to nature for inspiration and find solutions that reimagine the way we make, use, and contribute to the world we live in.

Kim Graham-Nye is irrepressible when it comes to ending nappy waste.  With one cup of oil in each nappy and 450 billion nappies entering landfills or our oceans every year, nappies are a dirty business. Kim and her husband, Jason, founded gDiapers in 2005, introducing the world's first Cradle to Cradle Certified nappy, and created the “hybrid” nappy category globally.

In 2011, Kim was named one of Fortune Magazine's “Top 10 Most Powerful Women Entrepreneurs in America”, and in 2015, the World Economic Forum named their new gCycle project as one of the top five disruptive technologies leading the circular economy. Kim and Jason are determined to shift the global nappy industry from oil-based to renewable-based, from landfill-bound to resource-generation, and from a burden to our children to an inspiration in how to reimagine consumer goods in a circular economy. In short, nappies will no longer be a dirty word.

This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx

Kim Graham-Nye: Changing disposable diapers:  no plastic, no landfill, no waste | Kim Graham-Nye | TEDxSydney

Changing disposable diapers:  no plastic, no landfill, no waste | Kim Graham-Nye | TEDxSydney

Every disposable nappy contains a cup of oil, cumulating to 250 million cups of oil used daily worldwide in nappies alone.

In Australia, less than 10% of plastic waste is recycled, underscoring a global crisis where convenience trumps responsibility.

Reimagining nappies through compostable materials could shift the global nappy industry towards a sustainable, circular economy.