We are halfway through Plastic Free July and I'm so proud of all of you!! I'm so excited you've been keeping up with these episodes, and I hope you've learned a few things and are eager to expand your plastic awareness beyond yourself this week, because it's all about caring for our community. Additionally we speak to Caitlin Smith, a PhD student at University of Sunshine Coast using biomonitoring tools to study the impacts of chemical exposure and toxicity on turtle health due to plastic ingestion.

NOTE: Blog post for this week is delayed until the end of the week unfortunately!

IN THIS EPISODE:

•  [1:36] Challenge - Week 3
• [4:05] Remember that viral video with a turtle that had a straw stuck in its nose? Turns out it might not be the only problem we should be concerned about
• [5:35] What are some of the other major dangers associated with plastic debris?
• [8:33] What are some of the novel methods being used in Caitlin's research?
• [12:22] Plastics were found in a human fetus!
• [13:23] What does it mean that Caitlin is finding plastics in external tissues of turtles?
• [15:56] What are Caitlin's hope in this space moving forward?
• [17:15] What even are biodegradable plastics?
• [19:00] What does Caitlin's research mean for the future of turtle populations?

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