Meet oureco-segmentation
Why Eco-Actives stay resilient
What makes plastics an area of particular focus for us is the fact that different levels of engagement with the issue can be used to identify those who are passionate about environmental issues and those who are less engaged.
Unlike many sustainability choices – such as having an electric car – the ability to take action on plastics isn’t determined by income and isn’t affected by geography. Our studies also show that how a person behaves on plastic is reflective of their behaviour across a range of other areas and their overall engagement towards sustainability.
Based on these behaviours, for the last seven years, we’ve divided consumers into three groups, Eco-Actives, Eco-Considerers and Eco-Dismissers.
Over seven years of tracking our eco-segmentation, we found that economic prosperity, environmental disasters, and government-led education are the main drivers shaping public engagement. Higher Gross Domestic Product (GDP) also generally means more Eco-Actives, whether due to higher levels of education, less financial pressure and wider access to alternatives. In places such as Indonesia, concern about plastic waste is high, but economic barriers and limited product choices hamper efforts to reduce consumption.
When looking back at what has driven changes in the trends, we found that events which transcend the daily noise are closely associated with rises in Eco-Actives. For example, floods and wildfires in Brazil triggered a spike in engaged consumers in 2024, while in 2020 in France new legislation on single-use plastics dominated the conversation, driving an increase in Eco-Actives that year – even as much of Europe saw a decline, with war and inflation occupying headlines and headspace.
So far, 2025 has yet to provide a significant breakthrough: the global government treaty on plastic is collapsing, European Union (EU) initiatives stalling and the US taking steps backwards. As a result, we have seen the proportion of Eco-Actives staying largely the same with only a small drop 1% to 23% in 2025. Eco-Considerers are static at 40%, the same proportion as in 2023 and 2024, with a rise in Eco-Dismissers, up one point at 38%.
Europe has maintained 25% Eco-Actives with a slight drop in the UK that could well be linked to the political backlash against green issues amongst the Conservative and Reform parties who are attacking Net Zero plans. Brazil is another market where we saw a decrease in Eco-Actives (from 16% to 11%) which we attribute to fewer severe climate events this year when compared to the previous one.
The key takeaway is that, despite ongoing attacks on climate science and policies from some factions, nearly a quarter of the population continue to maintain their eco habits in daily life and this proportion is holding steady. This Eco-Active group is worth $613bn globally FMCG value, making it a sizeable target for brands.
