We are PR3
The private-public partnership for reusable packaging. We developed The PR3 Standards for scalable, efficient, and profitable reusable packaging systems.
A Health and Environmental Solution
When we reduce single-use plastics we will help avert a critical threat to human health and the environment.
Our Mission
To enable and accelerate the alignment and scaling of reuse systems around the world with the PR3 Standards.
Where it’s happening
Americas: Seattle, WA; Galveston, TX; Hilo, HI; Ann Arbor, MI; Savannah, GA, Toronto Canada, Mexico City. Many other cities interested.
EU: Rotterdam, Berlin, Ghent, Leuven Paris, Barcelona. Many other cities interested.
Asia: Jakarta, Manila. Many other cities interested.
The core team
Amy Larkin, Project Director
Amy Larkin, a leading sustainability infrastructure developer, activist and producer, has been at the forefront of the environmental movement for decades. Her 2013 book Environmental Debt: The Hidden Costs of A Changing Global Economy revealed the links between our environmental and financial crises – both causes and solutions – and predicted the astronomical costs of climate chaos. From 2014-2016, she served as Vice Chair of the World Economic Forum’s Global Agenda Council on Climate Change.
Led a collaboration with the Consumer Goods Forum to remove HFCs from refrigeration systems, which led to the inclusion of HFCs in the Montreal Protocol and will eliminate over 1% of the world's greenhouse gas emissions.
Received the Roy Award from Harvard for her work on HFCs.
Served as Executive Producer at Fabrica, Benetton’s Institute of Arts and Communications.
Been a guest speaker on corporate, government and cultural platforms around the world.
Lectured at dozens of universities around the world.
Been a guest on media from NPR, Bloomberg to CNBC.
Written regular columns for The Guardian and Huffington Post.
Served as Chair of both BiomimicryNYC and the ARChive of Contemporary Music.
Claudette Juska, Technical Director
Claudette Juska, engineer and climate solutions developer, has been at the forefront of the environmental movement for decades.
Claudette is Co-founder and Technical Director of PR3. She is an engineer and researcher with 20 years’ experience in the environmental movement. She is an expert in supply chain research and has deep knowledge of the complexities involved in sourcing, manufacturing and delivering consumer goods. She works to create and promote solutions to environmental and social concerns along the supply route.
Mason Hines, Operations Director
Mason Hines is a Mediator in RESOLVE’s Washington, D.C., office. His work focuses primarily on health and the myriad intersecting social issues that affect it, including food and water safety, nutrient access, employment, housing, education, and more. His work often involves engaging expert stakeholders to build agreements and solutions that improve wellness, advance research, promote sound policies, and develop practical resources. The underlying goal of these efforts is to improve health outcomes at the individual, community, and population levels, particularly for those whom our current system underserves.
Mason’s background is as a mediator and ombudsman. Prior to joining RESOLVE, Mason worked for the American Red Cross, where he helped constituents effectively manage workplace conflict, raise sensitive issues, and strengthen team functioning. Before that he served as a court mediator in Tillamook, Oregon.
Creating systems
PR3 is activating the world’s first interoperable and standardized reuse systems that enable and support local and global reuse programs that are open to all and benefit the greater reuse movement.
We are core partners of Reuse Seattle and the Jakarta Reuse Movement, and we are working to embed standards in more city-level reuse systems around the world, collaborating with Perpetual in the U.S., Zero Waste Europe in the E.U., and others.
Background
Plastic production, from recycled content or not, is a significant and growing driver of global greenhouse gases (GHGs) and much of the plastic produced for packaging ultimately winds up as garbage in landfills and oceans. Research done by The Pew Charitable Trusts in 2020 shows that reusable packaging represents the most effective way to solve this problem.
Reuse can reduce up to eighty percent of the climate impact of packaging. A shift to reusable packaging moves supply chains away from fossil fuel and global sourcing toward circular, regional economies and local employment. Reuse systems must be scaled to reach this potential.
Everyday technologies, such as wi-fi and USB ports, have standards that have allowed them to proliferate and become consistently made and used globally.
Standardize
For reuse systems to scale as a truly viable replacement for single-use packaging, the growing reuse industry needs similar standards. We launched PR3 to enable this systemic change. Standardized systems and infrastructure will help transform the current landscape of disconnected, small-scale, reuse programs and pilots into full-scale, interoperable public-private systems.
PR3’s diverse team has transformed global industries before, from eliminating hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) in refrigeration to creating global protocols for conflict-free mining.
PR3 has been featured in GreenBiz, Green Network Asia, and Upstream’s Indisposable Podcast, among others. In 2022, PR3 was nominated for an EarthShot Prize and the Gulbenkian Prize for Humanity.
Global companies have started testing but have not committed to systemic change.
FAQ
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Recycling programs have been around for decades, so why isn’t recycling the way out?
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What does this have to do with climate change?
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What specifically is PR3’s role in relation to the other parties involved?
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What are the opportunities for companies/brands?
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How can a successful outcome be scaled to other industries/cities?
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What does joining PR3 mean?
Collaboration
Our vision is a world where anyone anywhere can easily adopt zero-waste, reusable packaging and implement solutions with minimal effort and maximum impact. However, they each have different functions and roles to play in achieving this vision.
PR3 is the governing body that develops and oversees the PR3 Standards. These standards are designed to make reusable packaging safe, efficient, and affordable. They also ensure that reusable packaging can be used in a variety of reuse systems.
The PR3 Standards are used to promote the Reuse Movement, which is the global effort to reduce single-use plastic pollution. The Reuse Movement includes a variety of stakeholders, such as businesses, governments, non-profit organizations, and individuals. These stakeholders work together to raise awareness of the importance of reuse, to develop and implement The PR3 Standards and reuse programs, and to advocate for policies that support reuse.
Reuse Movement and The PR3 Standards are interconnected through the participants. The participants in the Reuse Movement use the PR3 Standards to design, manufacture, and use reusable packaging. In turn, the participants in the Reuse Movement provide feedback to PR3 on how the standards can be improved.
Together, PR3, the PR3 Standards, and the Reuse Movement are working to create a world where reusable packaging is the norm. They are committed to making reusable packaging safe, efficient, affordable, and accessible to everyone.