Lessons from the litter-ature: A review of New South Wales and overseas litter research

Between 2000 and 2003, the New South Wales Government undertook a $3.6 million Litter Education Program. In 2000, to support the development of the Program and the proposed advertising campaigns, the then Rural Development Centre (now Institute for Rural Futures) at the University of New England was commissioned to undertake a literature review on litter and littering. In 2007 the Institute updated this literature review, covering the academic literature on litter since 2000, and market research, campaign evaluations, discussion and policy papers produced by the NSW Government since 20001. While this literature review aims primarily to provide a succinct summary of litter research in NSW and overseas, it also attempts to place the current understanding of 'litter' and 'littering' within a broader socio-political context, an aspect that is lacking from other reviews that have been undertaken in NSW and elsewhere.