The third session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee to develop an international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, including in the marine environment (INC-3), is scheduled to take place from 13 to 19 November 2023 at the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) Headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya.

In INC-3 Briefing 2 of 10, the Key Messages are:

• In United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA) resolution 5/14 one of the critical areas designated for negotiation in the International Legally Binding Instrument (ILBI) is the generation of a glossary of key terms.
• At the end of INC-1, no clear set of key terms emerged, although States did provide insights into many topics that will require them moving forward in the negotiation process. The same issues were experienced during INC-2, and thus the issue of definitions is among those highlighted for State and stakeholder submissions in advance of INC-3.
• The generation of a holistic and meaningful glossary of key terms that reflects the need to combine legal and technical realities relating to plastics is essential to framing the ILBI. This briefing addresses and follows the format of the briefing note generated by the INC Secretariat in advance of INC-1, highlighting areas of importance for INC-3 in addition to the discussions from INC-1 and INC-2.

A compilation of 10 Briefings for negotiators is available here. These are:

Briefing 1: Key Elements for Plastic Pollution Treaty 
Briefing 2: Glossary of Key Terms 
Briefing 3: Structure of Plastic Pollution Treaty (ILBI) 
Briefing 4: Just Transition and the International Legally Binding Instrument 
Briefing 5: Regime Convergence and the International Legally Binding Instrument 
Briefing 6: Circular Economy and Plastic Life-Cycle Issues 
Briefing 7: Legal Process of Treaty Negotiations 
Briefing 8: Connections between IUCN’s Plastic Pollution Elimination Timeline and the SDGs 
Briefing 9: Connections between IUCN’s Plastic Pollution Elimination Timeline and the GBF
Briefing 10: Free Trade Agreement Convergence and the Plastic Pollution Treaty