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Summary report 31 January – 1 February 2019
30th UN-Water Meeting
Summary report 23–24 August 2019
31st UN-Water Meeting
Summary report 28–29 January 2020
32nd UN-Water Meeting
Highlights and images for 3 June 2019
3rd World Circular Economy Forum 2019 (WCEF2019)
Highlights for Monday, 3 June 2019
Youth representatives from over 70 countries march on the stage, calling audience members to tackle key causes of climate change and environmental degradation.
The 2019 World Circular Economy Forum (WCEF2019) opened today in Helsinki, Finland, as a global initiative of Finland and the Finnish Innovation Fund (Sitra).Following a live welcome performance on the theme “wind, water, earth and fire,” moderators Peter Woodward, Quest Associates, and Veera Heinonen, Sitra, welcomed more than 2,000 participants from over 90 countries.President Mikko Kosonen, Sitra, underlined that, while the impacts of climate change and biodiversity loss are being increasingly felt, there are nonetheless positive examples of change, such as the Finnish roadmap to a circular economy by 2025. Youth representatives from over 70 countries marched on the stage with banners, calling audience members to tackle key causes of climate change and environmental degradation.On ways to scaling up global solutions, Stientje van Veldhoven, Minister for the Environment, the Netherlands, drew attention to population growth and the “enormous” pressure on natural resources, identifying governments’ public procurement spending as a good opportunity for driving the circular economy. Torbjörn Lööf, CEO, Inter IKEA Group, announced his company’s commitment to use only renewables and recyclables by 2030.Four parallel sessions took place in the afternoon to discuss: acceleration of business innovations; circular economy in cities; governance and roadmaps; and the circular economy in Africa.The Forum closed its first day of deliberations with a plenary session on “Building an Enabling Environment for Circular Business.” Key takeaways include:
transition to a circular economy is essential to respond to the climate crisis and the rapid destruction of the biosphere, which is affecting human health and undermining the life of present and future generations;
governance and policy frameworks are crucial, as the circular economy transition will not happen if incentives to a wasteful economy are allowed to endure;
a business case for the circular economy that clarifies the benefits of natural capital accounting can help with the transition;
the transition to the circular economy must be inclusive and take into account the cultural, economic, political and social dimensions of different regional contexts;
consumer mindsets remain a barrier for the circular economy and more work is required to raise awareness of sustainable consumption.
IISD Reporting Services, through its ENB+ Meeting Coverage, provided daily web updates from WCEF2019. In addition, IISD Reporting Services has published a summary report from the meeting, which is available in HTML and PDF.
A live performance at the Grand Opening of the WCEF2019.
Highlights and images for 4 June 2019
3rd World Circular Economy Forum 2019 (WCEF2019)
Highlights for Tuesday, 4 June 2019
“If you think you are leading in the circular economy but no one is following, then you are just taking a walk by yourself,” warned Hans Bruyninckx, Executive Director, European Environment Agency, at the WCEF2019 closing session.
The second and final day of the 2019 World Circular Economy Forum opened with the session “International Trade of Circular Economy Goods and Services,” highlighting interlinkages between trade and the circular economy. Panelists recommended avoiding trade barriers; eliminating perverse subsidies; and using existing trade policies to enhance the circular economy, noting the success of the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal to strengthen the regulation of trade in plastic waste. They also discussed the potential role of the World Trade Organisation and recommended engaging trade ministries in the discussions on circular economy.Several parallel sessions took place throughout the day, including on the themes related to: circular bioeconomy and plastics; metrics and fair use of data for circularity; education; business investments; circular economy for water; carbon neutral industry; and circularity in people’s daily lives.Key highlights of the day include:
free and fair trade is a pre-condition to accelerate a circular economy in particular for smaller economies;
the necessary metrics for measuring circular economy are not yet in place and need to be developed;
materials will play an important role in carbon-neutral industrial transformation in line with the Paris Agreement’s goals;
identifying and addressing real-life barriers to scaling up is crucial to promote circularity holistically;
technological solutions exist to ensure plastic never becomes waste, and these must be scaled up;
the role of consumers as agents for change is important;
an interdisciplinary perspective and lifelong personal education about circularity are often overlooked dimensions;
bringing positive messages about circularity, instead of the “doom scenario” of environmental degradation, has greater chances to drive change.
The WCEF2019 closing plenary concluded with key messages from the event, with speakers calling for fairer consumption patterns; community empowerment; and enabling environments for scaling up the transition towards a circular economy “for all.”During the final key messages during the closing panel discussion, Kimmo Tiilikainen, Minister of the Environment, Finland, emphasized the need to act now. Vincent Biruta, Minister of the Environment, Rwanda, called for the participants to be leaders in driving the circular economy. Secretary General Paula Lehtomäki, Nordic Council of Ministers, urged participants “to do something that takes us to the right direction.”In her closing remarks, Director Mari Pantsar, Sitra, praised the energetic engagement of all participants, inviting them to continue this conversation at the next WCEF, which will take place in Canada in 2020.
IISD Reporting Services, through its ENB+ Meeting Coverage, provided daily web updates from WCEF2019. In addition, IISD Reporting Services has published a summary report from the meeting, which is available in HTML and PDF.
Summary report 3–4 June 2019
3rd World Circular Economy Forum 2019 (WCEF2019)
Aud_10Feb21_Martin Brocklehurst, KempleyGREEN Consultants
Martin Brocklehurst, KempleyGREEN Consultants
Aud_10Feb21_GMGSF_2021_Rachel Mash, Green Anglicans, Cape Town
Rachel Mash, Green Anglicans, Cape Town