Green Innovation and the Plastic Society

This chapter introduces the volume, outlining how it came about, the problem it is responding to, and the approach taken in individual chapters. In doing so, it situates the history and future of Kakishibu in the context of major concerns surrounding the proliferation and endurance of petrochemical plastics, and debates in the social sciences about the appropriate way to intervene in such crises through innovation. The opportunity for collaboration between the Kakishibu community of experts in Japan and a team of social science researchers from Japan and Australia is described, with the common focal point being a shared interest in new ways of doing and researching science communication. This chapter distinguishes between three ways of approaching innovation in response to the planetary crisis posed by the plastic society: technology-led, socio-technical, and alternative innovation pathways. While Kakishibu offers a promising way forward, innovating with this traditional material will require grappling with social and cultural norms across industrial systems, not technological visions alone.