Exeter researchers lead global beauty industry shake-up to cut water, plastic and carbon waste

A global campaign to cut water use, plastic waste and carbon emissions from beauty products is being led by research expertise based in Exeter, placing the city at the centre of an international effort to reduce the environmental impact of everyday items.

The campaign, called H2NO, brings together the University of Exeter, environmental charity WRAP, creative agency M+C Saatchi and major beauty brands such as Elemis and Lush. 

Its goal is simple: to make a lower-impact beauty product the normal choice for shoppers, rather than a niche option.

Although the campaign launched on the world stage at the World Economic Forum in Davos, much of the thinking behind it is happening in Exeter. 

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Researchers at the University of Exeter are helping to shape how scientific evidence, industry action and public behaviour change can work together to reduce environmental damage at scale.

Beauty and personal care products are a hidden source of water use, plastic waste and carbon emissions. These pressures are increasingly felt in Devon through river pollution, water scarcity risks and the wider impacts of climate change on homes, roads and communities.

By reducing the amount of water and plastic used at the point products are made, the H2NO campaign supports wider local efforts to protect the River Exe, nearby rivers and the Devon coastline. It also helps cut emissions linked to transport and packaging, which are major contributors to climate change.

The project is also strengthening Exeter’s reputation as a centre for green innovation. 

University researchers, students and graduates are working on solutions that are being adopted by global companies, helping to build green skills, attract investment and support future jobs in the region.

H2NO focuses on encouraging companies and consumers to switch to solid and concentrated beauty products, which use far less water and packaging than traditional liquid formats. Examples include solid shampoos, cleansers and soaps.

Research used by the project shows these products can dramatically reduce environmental impact while still being effective and long-lasting. 

The challenge, according to researchers, is not inventing new products but getting more people to use them.

In 2025, the project brought together beauty brands, scientists and creative experts in a series of workshops to understand why these products are not yet mainstream, and how to remove the barriers stopping people from switching.

Cora Taylor, Research Impact Fellow at the University of Exeter, said the solutions already exist.

“Waterless and solid beauty isn’t new, in many cases it’s how beauty products were originally made,” she said. 

“The challenge is making these formats the default again, and that’s what H2NO is trying to do.”

The campaign is now expanding into new markets and product types during 2026, with Exeter researchers continuing to help guide the science and behaviour-change work behind it.

The long-term aim is to show how university research, businesses and creative industries can work together to reduce environmental harm in everyday life - starting with beauty products, but with the potential to influence other consumer industries too.