Recently The Economist published a good article on the history and future of recycling.
Conclusion: with technology and leadership, there may still be hope for the planet yet.

A break from our two-party system will not be possible until the our system of party primaries and electoral rules is revamped. This requires the election of lawmakers willing to make the necessary changes– changes that would ironically demolish the dual-party power sharing architecture that allowed the lawmakers to get there in the first place.I [...]