The Next Economy
The myriad new models and processes aimed at fixing the flaws in capitalism and laying the groundwork for practical, alternative economic frameworks designed to benefit all stakeholders.
New Analysis Outlines Progress, Challenges, Next Steps for UK Recovered Plastics Market
The latest data and in-depth information about UK plastics recycling and reprocessing has been released in an updated Plastics Market Situation Report from resource efficiency experts WRAP. The report includes detailed analysis of recovered plastic flows, prices and the sustainability of end markets, including the risks and opportunities. It reviews trends past and present, and updates on data reported by the organization since the previous Plastic Market Situation Report was published in 2011. The three key themes covered in the report:
How the World’s Most Wasteful Country Is Leading the Shift to a Circular Economy
John A. Mathews and Hao Tan, both professors based in Australia, believe that the country that consumes the most resources in the world and produces the most waste also has the most advanced solutions. In a recent article for Nature, they summarized China’s progress on closing industrial loops to reduce its industries’ consumption of virgin materials and waste generation – in other words, the development of a circular economy. China’s levels of consumption and waste are completely unsustainable, and its resource use is inefficient. The authors provide several statistics for context:
Rockefeller Family, Who Built Fortune on Fossil Fuels, Dumping Oil Stocks — Starting with Exxon
The latest generation of descendants of oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller have denounced the industry upon which he built their fortune. The Rockefeller Family Fund (RFF) announced this week it has sold its holdings in Exxon Mobil and plans to dump all of its other fossil-fuel investments “as quickly as possible.” Foundation director Lee Wasserman told Bloomberg that fossil-fuel investments comprise roughly 6 percent of the RFF’s $130 million in holdings.
H&M, M.I.A. Aiming to Rally 1,000 Tonnes of Garment Donations for World Recycle Week
To celebrate the first World Recycle Week April 18th to 24th, fashion retailer H&M is partnering with artist and singer M.I.A. on an ambitious global garment collection campaign. H&M aims to collect 1,000 tonnes of unwanted or worn out clothing items across its over 3,600 worldwide stores. To raise awareness, an exclusive M.I.A. music video will debut on April 11th at hm.com.
Trending: New Materials, Traceability Could Help Mould Circular Economy for Plastics
With the opportunity to curb over $80 billion in annual industry losses, a circular economy for plastics seems pretty appealing. Several projects in Europe are working to make this happen: Earlier this month, Sustainable Brands covered a collaborative effort between the cities of London, Amsterdam and Copenhagen to improve plastics capture, but companies, non-profits and research centres are also working together to improve traceability and create new materials to help facilitate the transition to a circular economy for plastics.
London, Amsterdam, Copenhagen to Collaborate on Circular Model for Plastics
From “competitors” to collaborators – several European cities in a race to be capitals of the next economy are joining forces to develop practical projects to accelerate the transition to a circular economy. London, Amsterdam and Copenhagen have announced they will work together to design a project that will improve the capture of plastics.
Ellen MacArthur Foundation's Circular Economy 100 Program Comes Stateside, Lands in Arizona
The Ellen MacArthur Foundation (EMF) has launched a U.S. chapter of its Circular Economy 100 (CE100) program, which brings together leading organizations with the objective of innovating, developing and implementing circular economy opportunities.
Trending: Zero-Waste Ale, Restaurant Save Food From Landfills in the UK
Food waste has been one of the trendiest topics in sustainability of late, as more and more people have become aware that as much as one third of the world’s food is being wasted. The UN set a target to halve global food waste as one of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which the CEOs of Nestlé, Tesco, Unilever, and other leaders formed Champions 12.3 to pursue.
Trending: Scotland Invests £70M Into Circular Economy; Report Outlines Potential for US
More and more, circular economic business models are proving ways to cut costs and increase efficiency. A new report from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation’s Corporate Citizenship Center (CCC) reinforces that turning waste into resources presents economic opportunities for American businesses.
'Peak Stuff': Why IKEA Is Shifting Towards New Business Models
Cross-Posted from Product, Service & Design Innovation. Last month, IKEA’s Chief Sustainability Officer, Steve Howard, raised eyebrows at a panel debate by suggesting that in some parts of the world we have reached the point of ‘peak stuff’, a comment that was interpreted by some as a warning that consumer appetite for home furnishings had reached a crucial turning point.
Trending: How Eastern Europe Is Working to Go Circular
The prospects of linear models in Europe are slowly diminishing. European experts have concluded that the current cradle-to-grave way of life – exploiting resources, processing them, using them, and discarding them – has no future.
EU Remanufacturing Could Represent Up to €90B Annually, 600,000 Jobs by 2030
Following the adoption of the European Commission’s Circular Economy Package and the announcement of a €24B fund to support circular economy projects and businesses, several organizations have released research reports and tools to aid the transition.
Dell, Grenier Seeking Short Films Showcasing Benefits of Circular Economy
Dell and actor Adrian Grenier have announced the “Legacy of Good” short documentary film contest, aimed at creating compelling stories to raise awareness around the circular economy movement and the role of technology in creating a better future. As the Dell Social Good Advocate, Grenier will work directly with the winning filmmaker to develop and promote the film.
Report: The Future of Plastics Can (and Should) Be Circular
Plastic packaging is not only an environmental problem, it is economically wasteful, too. Most plastic packaging is only used once, leading to 95 percent of the value of plastic packaging – worth $80-120 billion annually – being tossed and lost to the economy.
London, Berlin, Amsterdam: Capitals of the Next Economy?
Whether the European Commission’s Circular Economy Package is ambitious enough is still under debate, but at least it leaves some flexibility for potential partnerships, industry-led and local government-led initiatives to shape the next economy.
Should the Fossil Fuel Industry Be Taxed to Pay for Climate Damage?
More than 60 environmental leaders and organizations have signed The Carbon Levy Project declaration, calling for a tax on fossil fuel extraction that would help pay for damages caused by climate change. The declaration states that fossil fuel companies are accountable for around 70 percent of present day global warming and should be held accountable for the resulting costs to the countries most affected. Signatories include author Naomi Klein, 350.org’s Bill McKibben, and Greenpeace’s Kumi Naidoo.
10 Sustainable Business Stories That Shaped 2015 ... and Some Questions for 2016
2015 was a pivotal time when humanity turned more decisively toward building a thriving and sustainable world. On our largest shared challenge, climate change, most of the major hurdles to action — both imagined and real — started to crumble. And an unlikely group of new voices joined the fight. From the Pope to global CEOs to almost all the world’s political leaders, the most powerful people got on board.
Is It Time for a New Type of CEO – the Circular Economy Officer?
As more and more companies look to adopt closed-loop business models, the question of whether to create dedicated circular economy roles internally is beginning to bite. Such roles are still thin on the ground, but it’s notable that those businesses that have already adopted them are demonstrating real leadership on this agenda.
European Commission Offering €24B to 'Help Risk-Takers Make The Leap' to a Circular Economy
On Thursday, the European Commission and the European Investment Bank (EIB) announced changes to EU financial tools to help circular economy projects and businesses secure funding and support the realization of EU climate goals. The changes open €24 billion (~US$26.4B) in funding for businesses looking to transition to a circular economy model.
How WRAP Continues to Help Make the #BusinessCase for a Circular Economy
‘If you can’t measure, you can’t manage’ - the first and golden rule of corporate improvement, and key to constructing a case for change. For the emerging practice of ‘circular economy,’ which represents a sea-change in the way we manage our physical resources, the quest for sound metrics is crucial – how do we know what good looks like?
