A super-strong plastic that reverts to dust | Jeannette Garcia | TED Institute @tedinstitute
A super-strong plastic that reverts to dust | Jeannette Garcia | TED Institute  @tedinstitute
Uploaded December 2015 | Updated September 2026, 2 days ago
Plastics advocate Jeannette Garcia's accidental invention of a super-strong and fully biodegradable polymer could make today's environmental curse tomorrow's sustainable answer. The implications? Recyclable airplanes, dissolvable water bottles and dramatically diminished landfills.

TED@IBM was a TED-curated event showcasing speakers from across the IBM community. Produced in partnership with IBM, the event brought to light the often-overlooked. Examining social structures and sustainable approaches, TED@IBM explored the necessity of invention to build a better world.

Visual Credits
0:23 Photo: Stefan Leijon / Flickr / CC BY-ND 2.0
0:32 Photo: Lindsay Hoshaw / Flickr / CC BY 2.0
6:52 Photo: Phillip Capper / Flickr / CC BY 2.0
7:17 Photo: IMCBerea College / Flickr / CC BY 2.0

About the TED Institute: We know that innovative ideas and fresh approaches to challenging problems can be discovered inside visionary companies around the world. The TED Institute helps surface and share these insights. Every year, TED works with a group of select companies and foundations to identify internal ideators, inventors, connectors, and creators. Drawing on the same rigorous regimen that has prepared speakers for the TED main stage, TED Institute works closely with each partner, overseeing curation and providing intensive one-on-one talk development to sharpen and fine tune ideas.

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A super-strong plastic that reverts to dust | Jeannette Garcia | TED Institute

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