Waste Not
The latest in the growing number of efforts directed at reducing, repurposing and ultimately eliminating waste in all its forms.
Dell’s ‘Closed-Loop’ Jewellery a Circular Economy Success, But a Drop in the Sustainability Bucket
Earlier this year, tech giant Dell announced an innovative partnership with actress Nikki Reed’s jewellery company, Bayou with Love, which spawned a new line of fine jewellery made using recycled gold from the motherboards of end-of-life Dell computers. The juxtaposition of fine, intricate jewels with old computers has driven media interest and raised the issue and importance of sustainability within the tech sector. ‘The Circular Collection’ has been positioned as an example of circular economy success, but how deep does this move go?
Coke, Dow, Kimberly-Clark Join Coalition to Tackle Ocean Plastics in SE Asia
Corporate action to tackle the mounting problem of ocean plastics is on the rise with new commitments and cross-industry initiatives cropping up regularly.
Trending: The Future of Mobility Is Circular
Discussion around the future of mobility is dominated by discourse around the shift away from fossil fuels, but this is only one small part of a more complex conversation. Even clean energy vehicles have impacts on environmental and human health. China’s industry ministry, General Motors and Goodyear are taking these often-overlooked impacts into account by focusing on waste recovery and prevention approaches that seek to establish closed-loop systems.
Garnier, TerraCycle Launch Campaign to Divert 1M Beauty Empties from Landfill
Despite the rise of recyclable packaging for beauty and personal care products, only half of US consumers responsibly dispose of these products. To boost bathroom recycling, beauty brand Garnier has teamed up with TerraCycle and DoSomething.org to launch the second year of Rinse, Recycle, Repeat, a national recycling campaign and college campus competition that aims to educate young people on how to responsibly recycle their beauty and personal care products.
Super Bowl LII Hits Ambitious Waste Diversion Target to Become Zero-Waste Event
Earlier this year, the NFL, PepsiCo, Aramark, U.S. Bank Stadium, SMG and the Minnesota Sports Facilities Authority announced an ambitious plan to make Super Bowl LII a zero-waste event. The results are finally in and it’s official — the effort was a major win. Ninety-one percent of all trash generated on game day from 67,612 fans was responsibly recovered through composting, recycling and reuse. This marks the highest diversion rate achieved at U.S.
Circular Economy 101: Waste Not, Get More
Across the globe, about 50 percent of CO2 emissions are tied to materials — goods that often produce a significant amount of physical and financial waste.
Trending: Startups, Government Put Planned Obsolescence in Its Place
As increasing emphasis is being placed on circularity, the concept of planned obsolescence is being called into question. While it has long been criticized by consumers, brands and governments are finally beginning to recognize that the short-term strategy has no place in the low-carbon economy — and are taking action to promote transparency and resource efficiency.
Circularity, Sustainability Take Hold in Toy Industry
The closed-loop conversation is often one that focuses on e-waste, fashion and single-use plastics, but LEGO Group and Antwerp-based design furniture brand ecoBirdy are aiming to change that by bringing the concept of circularity and sustainability to the toy front. Supported by the EU’s program for the competitiveness of SMEs (COSME), ecoBirdy has launched its first collection of design furniture for kids made entirely from recycled plastic toys. The launch follows two years of research exploring how to sustainably recycle plastic toys.
ProSUM Urban Mining Tool Maps Critical Raw Materials in EU E-Waste
Resource scarcity and the rise of the circular economy are inspiring businesses, industry associations and governments to develop new ways to recover precious and critical raw materials (CRMs) from waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE). The Urban Mine Platform, a database of valuable materials for “urban mining,” is the public and private sectors’ latest attempt to take on the challenge.
Next Step to Eliminating Food Waste? Making It Relevant, Surmountable to Farmers
Globally, food loss and waste prevention efforts at farm and production level are, in many respects, still in their infancy. Many growers around the world are not required to record or report on their post-harvest crop losses — the dearth of data in this area makes it hard to determine exactly how much food never makes it beyond the farm gate.
Trending: New Tools, Rules, Partnerships Take Food Waste, Hunger Head On
Around 52 million tons of food are wasted each year in the United States despite 1 in 7 US citizens lacking reliable access to sufficient, affordable and nutritious food. While raising consumer awareness is an important food waste reduction strategy, interventions at the corporate level have a crucial role to play in addressing the issue on a large scale.
NFL, PepsiCo Team Up to Score Zero Waste at Super Bowl LII
The NFL has joined forces with PepsiCo, Aramark, U.S. Bank Stadium and the Minnesota Sports Facility Authority to make Super Bowl LII a zero-waste event. Together, the partners have launched Rush2Recycle, a game plan to recover more than 90 percent — over 40 tons — of stadium waste during Super Bowl LII on Sunday, February 4. This zero-waste effort aims to leave a positive legacy at U.S. Bank Stadium and create a playbook for other leagues, teams, sites operators and fans to curb waste in their own communities.
Trending: Fast Food, Supermarket Giants Commit to Slashing Single-Use Plastics
With an estimated 12 million tons of plastic waste entering the world’s oceans each year, consumers and governments are increasingly looking to businesses to eliminate plastic packaging. Fast food giant McDonald’s and major supermarkets in the UK are rising to the challenge, revealing big plans to go plastic-free.
EMF, WRAP Collab Puts New Plastics Economy Into Motion in UK
Coinciding with the launch of Theresa May’s 25 Year Environment Plan, WRAP has announced a new collaborative initiative with the Ellen MacArthur Foundation (EMF) that aims to help turn the tide on the UK’s growing plastic waste problem.
UK Unveils National Action Plan to Slash Plastic Waste by 2042
The UK government has unveiled a national action plan to eradicate avoidable plastic waste by 2042. The announcement aims to quell concerns of critics regarding the potential negative impacts Brexit could have on the UK’s sustainability performance.
Trending: Local Solutions Could Hold the Key to Reducing Global Food Waste
While food industry giants and software companies have played an important role in creating solutions for reducing food waste, local community members are proving to be just as critical in driving the movement forward.
Trending: Circular Sportswear Is Next on Sustainable Fashion’s Checklist
Circular design principles continue to infiltrate the fashion industry as fast fashion giants and emerging labels alike turn their attention to sustainable activewear. Despite recent criticism over its decision to send its discarded clothing to Swedish incinerators, H&M continues to stride forward on its mission to accelerate the circular fashion movement.
How Do the World’s Recyclers Solve a Problem Like China?
For decades, China has been an open door for foreign waste, importing recycled material from around the world to help feed its manufacturing boom. In 2016, the country imported 7.3 million metric tonnes of waste plastics from developed countries. However, this is all about to change. Last year, the country notified the World Trade Organization of its intention to ban the import of 24 types of solid waste material by the end of 2017 — including unsorted paper and plastics.
Trending: New Savvy Solutions for Redistributing Landfill-Bound Food in the UK
Around 7 million tons of food go to waste each year in the UK, but local startups and organizations are dreaming up new and noteworthy ways to tackle the growing problem. Action Hunger, a charity committed to alleviating poverty and hardship among the homeless, has created a novel solution for simultaneously providing essential items to those in need and diverting food from landfill: vending machines.
Trending: Food-Focused Tech Solutions Helping Slash Waste While Recouping Revenue
Food waste may be on the rise, but startups across the globe are developing new solutions to drive waste — and costs — down to an all-time low.