Plastic is everywhere. We know we should cut down on it where we can, but is plastic ever the answer? In this episode, a whole world of plastic you never knew about. Starting with: which bag is best: paper, plastic, or cotton? The answer might surprise you. Dan breaks down the pros and cons of each bag, and which you should carry on your next shopping trip. Then we follow the journey of three different plastic bottles after you throw them away, shedding light on the dangers these disposables present to our world. Plus, three things you can do to put a cap on our plastic problem. You can read the full text transcript for this episode at go.ted.com/TC1

TED Climate is produced and edited by Sheena Ozaki and hosted by Dan Kwartler. Our mixer is Sam Bair. This episode adapted two lessons originally produced in animated form by the TED-Ed team. “Plastic vs Paper vs Cloth Bags” was written by Luka Seamus Wright & Imogen Ellen Napper with editorial support from Alex Gendler and Dan Kwartler, with fact-check by Eden Girma. “What really happens to the plastic you throw away?” was written by Emma Bryce, with editorial support from Alex Rosenthal and fact-check by Sarah Silvergleid. Special thanks to them, and to Gerta Xhelo, Stephanie Lo, Michelle Quint, Banban Cheng, and Anna Phelan.