Isabela Manta

Brazilian environmental lawyer leading plastic waste legislation across Latin America

Isabela Manta is a Brazilian environmental lawyer and founder of Ecoplastic, an NGO responsible for pioneering the first regional plastic tax legislation in South America. Starting in 2016, her legal advocacy led to the 2020 Plastic Waste Reduction Law in Brazil, which mandates a 30% reduction in single-use plastics by 2025. This legislative model has since been adopted in 6 other Latin American countries through her regional coalition. Manta's innovative 'Plastic Accountability System' uses blockchain technology to track corporate plastic usage, now implemented in 150+ Brazilian municipalities. Her work with the Amazon Sustainability Fund helped secure $45M in green investments for recycling infrastructure. In 2021, she co-authored the 'Latin American Circular Economy Pact' signed by 12 countries, establishing shared recycling standards. Manta's TED talk 'Tackling Plastic Pollution at Its Source' (2019) has 1.2 million views, influencing global discussions at COP26. Her legal framework for extended producer responsibility became the basis for Chile's 2022 Packaging Law, requiring manufacturers to finance 70% of waste management costs. The documentary 'Plastic Frontiers' (2022) chronicles her legislative victories, winning a Green Film Festival award. Recent impact assessments show a 42% decrease in ocean plastic pollution in regions implementing her policies, according to UN Environment Programme data.