Circular Economy

The constant stream of new models, products and processes that are helping organizations extend the useful life of resources and materials while reducing, repurposing and ultimately eliminating waste in all its forms

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Circular EconomyCircular Economy
UK Brewers Meet 2020 Carbon Target Eight Years Early
UK Brewers Meet 2020 Carbon Target Eight Years Early
Published on December 26, 2013
About a 3 minute read

The UK brewing sector says it has met its 2020 carbon emissions target eight years early, is on track to achieve its 2020 target for improved water efficiency and is making significant progress in reducing excess packaging and waste, as detailed in B... View More

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Circular EconomyCircular Economy
Monadnock Reduces Water Consumption by 55% in 15 Years
Monadnock Reduces Water Consumption by 55% in 15 Years
Published on December 20, 2013
About a 2 minute read

In the past 15 years, Monadnock Paper Mills has reduced its water consumption by 55 percent through the installation of water recycling equipment, utilizing valve restrictors and instituting other projects identified by the company’s water conserva... View More

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Collaboration & Co-CreationCircular EconomyCollaboration & Co-Creation
Businesses, NGOs Joining Forces to Build Net Positive Movement
Businesses, NGOs Joining Forces to Build Net Positive Movement
Published on December 18, 2013
About a 4 minute read

A diverse group of leading UK companies and multinationals including BT, Kingfisher, Coca-Cola Enterprises, SKF, Capgemini and The Crown Estate have teamed up with NGOs Forum for the Future, The Climate Group and WWF-UK to encourage businesses to com... View More

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Circular EconomyCircular Economy
Interface to Use Food Waste to Power Dutch Plant
Interface to Use Food Waste to Power Dutch Plant
Published on December 16, 2013
About a 2 minute read

Global carpet-tile manufacturer Interface has announced it will switch to using 100 percent renewable gas at its manufacturing plant in Scherpenzeel, The Netherlands, beginning January 1, 2014. The company has signed a contract with sustainable energ... View More

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Circular EconomyCircular Economy
How Phoenix Is Transforming Trash Into Resources
How Phoenix Is Transforming Trash Into Resources
Published on December 13, 2013
About a 5 minute read

Phoenix, Arizona is a huge and growing city — the sixth largest in the U.S. — with a population of 1.4 million residents embedded in a metropolitan area of more than four million people. Because of its location surrounded by mountains in the hot ... View More

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Circular EconomyCircular Economy
GM Global Headquarters Achieves Zero Waste
GM Global Headquarters Achieves Zero Waste
Published on December 10, 2013
About a 3 minute read

General Motors announced this week that its company headquarters in Detroit produces 5 million pounds of trash annually — the equivalent of 200,000 full garbage bags — which GM now diverts from the landfill. The automaker says the complex now rec... View More

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Circular EconomyCircular Economy
Rethinking the Obvious: Lean and Sustainability
Rethinking the Obvious: Lean and Sustainability
Published on December 9, 2013
About a 3 minute read

For those not already familiar with the term, "Lean" is a concept that started in manufacturing but is broadly applicable. It refers to a continuous improvement focus on waste reduction. Most notably, Toyota used Lean to attain world-class ... View More

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Circular EconomyCircular Economy
Helping PDP Engage Brands to Revalue Plastic
Helping PDP Engage Brands to Revalue Plastic
Published on December 8, 2013
About a 4 minute read

The Plastic Disclosure Project sees an influential need for companies to start disclosing their plastic footprint in order to create a benchmark for reduction by increasing recycling and adding value back into plastic use. ... View More

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Collaboration & Co-CreationCircular EconomyCollaboration & Co-Creation
Nestlé, Coke, Pepsi & Unilever Join Forces to Combat Waste in Chile
Nestlé, Coke, Pepsi & Unilever Join Forces to Combat Waste in Chile
Published on December 4, 2013
About a 2 minute read

Nestlé has announced a commitment to helping reduce waste and boost responsible disposal in Chile by supporting a new recycling network.The company has backed the “Collective Recycling Project,” which aims to recycle about 1,200 tons of waste pe... View More

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Circular EconomyCircular Economy
Browns' Food Waste Program Helping Turn Cleveland Into 'a Green City on a Blue Lake'
Browns' Food Waste Program Helping Turn Cleveland Into 'a Green City on a Blue Lake'
Published on December 4, 2013
About a 5 minute read

Waste-to-energy is a trend we’re happy to see growing like wildfire, with new initiatives seeming to pop up weekly that turn waste generated by everything from food and alcohol to heat, humans and ... View More

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Marketing & CommunicationsCircular Economy
This Black Friday, Patagonia Invites You to Celebrate the Stuff You Already Own
This Black Friday, Patagonia Invites You to Celebrate the Stuff You Already Own
Published on November 27, 2013
About a 2 minute read

Socially conscious outdoor apparel company Patagonia has made its feelings about mass consumption clear in a number of ways — last month, it launched its Responsible Economy campaign, which calls on consumers and businesses alike to rethink disposa... View More

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Circular EconomyCircular Economy
Detroit Renewable Energy Steaming Up GM Assembly Plant
Detroit Renewable Energy Steaming Up GM Assembly Plant
Published on November 26, 2013
About a 2 minute read

General Motors and Detroit Renewable Energy have announced a renewable energy project to turn solid municipal waste from the city of Detroit into process steam that will be used to heat and cool portions of GM’s Detroit-Hamtramck assembly plant.Whe... View More

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Circular EconomyCircular Economy
Sainsbury's Ups the Zero-Waste Ante with First 'Triple Zero' Stores
Sainsbury's Ups the Zero-Waste Ante with First 'Triple Zero' Stores
Published on November 26, 2013
About a 3 minute read

Sainsbury’s new supermarket in Leicester, opening Wednesday, November 27, is one of the British retailer’s two new “triple zero” stores. The 81,700 sq ft store will produce zero carbon emissions from all on-site energy used, send zero waste t... View More

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Circular EconomyCircular Economy
Heat Generated by London Underground Trains Will Now Heat Homes Instead of Commuters
Heat Generated by London Underground Trains Will Now Heat Homes Instead of Commuters
Published on November 21, 2013
About a 4 minute read

In the spirit of the just-wrapped SB London conference, the city has announced just the kind of ingenious, waste-to-resource solution that we love: Excess heat generated by London Underground trains will now be captured and used to help warm homes an... View More

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Circular EconomyCircular Economy
Sierra Nevada Brewing Achieves 99.8% Waste Diversion
Sierra Nevada Brewing Achieves 99.8% Waste Diversion
Published on November 21, 2013
About a 2 minute read

Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. is the first to receive the US Zero Waste Business Council’s platinum certification — the highest possible rating — for successfully diverting 99.8 percent of its waste.The company says its waste-management efforts als... View More

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Circular EconomyCircular EconomyInnovation & Technology
Bureo Poised to Make Waves of Change in the Skateboard Industry
Bureo Poised to Make Waves of Change in the Skateboard Industry
Published on November 21, 2013
About a 6 minute read

For Ben Kneppers and David Stover, the dream was always sun, sand and a great day of skateboarding and surfing. But their passion for sustainability and the environment made them keenly aware of plastic pollution in the oceans — when the two took o... View More

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Circular EconomyCircular Economy
P&G Utilizes More Than 99% of Materials Entering Its Plants
P&G Utilizes More Than 99% of Materials Entering Its Plants
Published on November 19, 2013
About a 3 minute read

Over the past fiscal year, more than 99.35 percent of all materials entering Procter & Gamble’s (P&G) plants were used in products and through recycling, reuse, and conversion of waste to energy, according to the company’s 2013 Sustainabi... View More

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Consumer Behavior ChangeCircular Economy
Sprint Offering Buyback Credit on All Phones to Encourage Trade-Ins on America Recycles Day
Sprint Offering Buyback Credit on All Phones to Encourage Trade-Ins on America Recycles Day
Published on November 15, 2013
About a 3 minute read

Despite being the No. 3 wireless carrier in the United States, Sprint leads the industry in phone recycling. Last year, Sprint reclaimed 4.4 million phones through voluntary collection programs — compared to AT&T’s 3.1 million and Verizon’s... View More

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Marketing & CommunicationsCircular EconomyMarketing & Communications
On November 15, Give Your Garbage Another Life for America Recycles Day
On November 15, Give Your Garbage Another Life for America Recycles Day
Published on November 12, 2013
About a 3 minute read

Keep America Beautiful (KAB) is encouraging people to give their garbage another life on America Recycles Day, taking place this year on Friday, Nov. 15.The organization says the average American produces 4.4 pounds of trash in a single day, yet we r... View More

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Collaboration & Co-CreationCircular EconomyCollaboration & Co-Creation
New Process Developed by GE, Sasol Producing Biogas from Wastewater
New Process Developed by GE, Sasol Producing Biogas from Wastewater
Published on November 12, 2013
About a 2 minute read

Sasol, a South African chemical and energy company, and General Electric’s GE Power & Water have developed technology that will clean wastewater while also producing biogas as a by-product.The technology, known as Anaerobic Membrane Bioreactor ... View More

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