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Short abstract

This study examines how different stakeholders narrate micro- and nanoplastic pollution and shape the discourse of the invisible. We aim to reveal how knowledge, power and discursive agency shape innovation societies, future imaginaries and policy pathways.

Long abstract

Micro- and nanoplastics (MNP), along with plastic-associated chemicals, are increasingly recognized as pervasive environmental pollutants remaining from innovation practices, adding a complex dimension to the global plastic pollution crisis. As plastics fragment into the environment, MNP generate diffuse and often unforeseen risks that challenge existing governance and spark growing discussions. Within this context, scientists – often portrayed as neutral informants – actively contextualize and narrate findings and, thereby, influence what is seen as pollution, what counts as evidence and what interventions appear legitimate. This raises the question of how other actors take on, reinterpret or adapt those framings, shaping how the topic is further problematized and what solutions gain traction. This paper examines how stakeholders construct the discourse on MNP and envision just strategies for mitigating MNP pollution.

Drawing on workshop transcripts, policy documents, and explorative interviews with NGOs, regulators, academia and industry representatives, the study explores how stakeholders negotiate uncertainties, risks, and responsibilities through narratives. We identify how MNP pollution and its management are discussed as well as which strategic practices are used to attain legitimacy, pave governance pathways and influence regulatory trajectories.

Examining MNP discourse reveals how stakeholders construct plastic waste not as inevitable byproduct of innovation, but as site of contested environmental future imaginaries. Policy trajectories emerge in the tension between calls for further research, often delaying regulatory interventions, and demands for decisive action applying precautionary measures. In this contested space, stakeholders play a decisive role in (re)shaping the terrain of innovation and policy pathways for MNP.