Home On April 8, the fourth edition of the World Plastic Connection Summit®, organized by Think Plastic Brazil, a portfolio of solutions for the plastic-converted products sector in the process of internationalization for target markets, carried out through a partnership between ApexBrasil (Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency) and INP (Brazilian Plastics Institute), began at the Novotel Center Norte, in São Paulo, with the activities of the Hybrid International Seminar. The first roundtable was composed of renowned designers, researchers and professors, such as Dijon de Moraes, Gisele Raulik and Marco Lobo.
Moderator of the panel and curator of Global Green Design, Marco Lobo, coordinator of the Innovation, Sustainability and Design Center at INP/Think Plastic Brazil, highlighted the importance of the area in the internationalization process. “The financial performance of companies focused on design is much more expressive. They show more than 50% of innovation in products, 200% more added value and reduction of costs in production and rework”, he presented, supported by market research.
Dijon de Moraes, designer, lecturer, writer and professor, focused his speech on the human side of the solutions that the area develops. “It is necessary to understand others. Design is about research and being with people. We do not need to wait for many years to pass to bring an innovation, a solution to a problem. This can be done today with the application of design”, he highlights, presenting examples such as the needle hole and the pasta strainer, inserted based on the analysis of the products.
Gisele Raulik holds a PhD in public design policy from the University of Wales and a master’s degree in innovation strategies from Brunel University in England. A partner at DUCO Consultoria, she discussed the need to seek solutions for the needs of each market, personalizing relationships with each target market. “Innovation can be accessible and transformative. Sometimes design is mistaken for spending, but it is necessary to first research and invest in order to achieve successful internationalization,” the researcher pointed out.
In 2025, Global Green Design held the Creative Tour in Frankfurt, Germany, and Chicago, United States. The opportunity provided Brazilian companies with practical examples during their technical visits, showing how the international market innovates in various aspects of the production and presentation of its products, with investments in science and technology, design and sustainability, to renew everyday objects, connecting the public with their narratives.
About Think Plastic Brazil
Think Plastic Brazil started its activities with 38 companies and, over the last 20 years, has expanded its participation to more than 250 companies. During this period, the Portfolio promoted 4,773 participations of companies in the industry in 240 projects specifically for Trade Promotion, resulting in 64,366 meetings. The economic impact was significant, with more than US$1.247 billion in business generated and a total investment of US$12.338 million, achieving an impressive ROI of US$101.04 for every dollar invested.
For those interested in buying from Brazil and contacting Brazilian companies associated with Think Plastic Brazil directly, please contact cristina.sacramento@thinkplasticbrazil.com and daniela.ornelas@thinkplasticbrazil.com via email or visit the website (https://thinkplasticbrazil.com/en/home-en/). Think Plastic Brazil is a non-profit, non-commissioned organization that can facilitate your direct contact with Brazilian producers.
About INP
Founded in 1989, the Brazilian Plastic Institute – INP arises amid the process of globalization and the need to make the plastic market more competitive internationally. Its strength and representativeness are the results of the union of the Brazilian Processed Plastic and Recycling Industry (ABIPLAST), the Brazilian Association of the Chemical Industry (ABIQUIM), and the Union of Synthetic Resin Industries in the State of São Paulo (SIRESP).
As a sectoral technological body, the INP’s is to be the focal point for the entire plastics production chain in Brazil. To this end, the body maintains an extensive workforce qualification program, promotes access to the most modern technologies, especially for small and medium-sized companies, and develops Technical Standards so that products with better quality be manufactured.
About ApexBrasil
The Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (ApexBrasil) promotes Brazilian products and services abroad and attracts foreign investments to strategic industries of the Brazilian economy. To reach its goals, ApexBrasil carries out diversified trade promotion actions aimed at promoting exports and valuing Brazilian products and services abroad, such as prospective and trade missions, business roundtables, support for the participation of Brazilian companies in major international fairs, and visits by foreign buyers and influencers to learn about the Brazilian productive structure, among other business platforms that are also focused on strengthening “Brazil” as a brand.
The agency also acts in a coordinated manner with public and private actors to attract foreign direct investment (FDI) to Brazil, focusing on strategic sectors for the development of the competitiveness of Brazilian companies and the country.
