Time for a summary: On the one hand, plastic played a major part in the development of modern societies, as it made what was previously a luxury accessible to everyone: design, aesthetics, and functionality. Seen in this way, plastic is democratic. At the same time, plastic is almost worthless. It can be produced on such a massive scale and at such low cost that for a long time it was simply seen as something to throw away. Plastic is the material for quick use, yet at the same time a substance that does not decompose. A PET bottle for example takes up to 450 years until it has broken down into microplastic particles. These particles will probably never entirely disappear.