Green Action Week is an annual global campaign coordinated by the Swedish Society for Nature Conservation and Consumers International to promote sustainable consumption. In 2026 the theme was “Sharing Community.” TheNetwork for Consumer Protection in Pakistan used the week (around 1–7 October 2026) to advance practical, community-level progress on plastic pollution under the Single-Use Plastics Prohibition Regulations 2023.
What we did
Documented on-the-ground success stories. We video-documented ten real examples from Islamabad and Rawalpindi where the plastic ban was already being successfully implemented and enforced. These included a hospital, local markets, a food street, a five-star hotel, and other businesses and public-facing establishments. The documentation showed how businesses, markets, and consumers were switching to alternatives and complying with the rules.
Organised a stakeholder meet-up in Rawalpindi. We brought together community representatives, members of the Punjab Provincial Assembly representing Rawalpindi, district government officials, and senior officials from the Punjab Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Instead of focusing only on the law, the meeting highlighted practical implementation examples. We shared the ten video success stories so participants could learn from what was already working and discuss how to expand successful approaches.
Ran public awareness activities. In collaboration with Punjab EPA, we took the plastic-ban message to the streets of Rawalpindi, raising awareness among motorists and the public about the harms of single-use plastics and the availability of sustainable alternatives. We highlighted specific cases such as the Chur Chowk Sahulat Bazaar (Facilitation Market), which had become a model plastic-free zone through active monitoring and enforcement by EPA Punjab, with vendors switching to eco-friendly bags and shoppers adapting.
Amplified the campaign digitally. Social media outreach for the campaign reached around half a million people. We shared the success stories, enforcement examples, and calls to action using #GreenActionWeek and #SharingCommunity, turning individual and local achievements into shared learning for a wider audience.
Linked action to the Sharing Community theme. By documenting what works, bringing stakeholders together to learn from it, and making the examples publicly available, the campaign treated successful plastic reduction as something that can be shared, replicated, and scaled—rather than remaining isolated local efforts.
The campaign demonstrated that plastic-ban enforcement is already happening in real settings when laws are applied, businesses adapt, and consumers participate. It aimed to build confidence that a cleaner, less plastic-dependent environment is practical and achievable, while encouraging wider adoption of the successful models already visible in the twin cities.
