Circular Economy in Asia, Africa and Europe: sharing knowledge that makes value chains circular
The World Resources Forum ’23 will take place in Geneva and online on 4-6 September 2023, enabling stakeholders to explore some of the key topics around sustainable resource use from the perspective of sufficiency, value chains and digitalisation.
A virtual side session on Circular Economy in Asia, Africa and Europe: sharing knowledge that makes value chains circular will be hosted on 7 September 2023 at 10:00 - 11:00 CEST. It will focus on leveraging expertise and experiences from Circular Economy Stakeholder Platforms in ASEAN, Africa and Europe.
In June 2023, the EU and the ASEAN Centre for Sustainable Development Studies and Dialogue (ACSDSD) launched the ASEAN Circular Economy Stakeholder Platform. The EU-funded SWITCH-Asia Programme and ACSDSD are working together to ensure this Platform promotes knowledge-sharing and dialogue among policymakers, the business community and civil society in ASEAN on opportunities and obstacles to a shift to more circular practices, including how new or revised government policies could accelerate this transformation.
SWITCH-Asia has also partnered with the ASEAN CSR Network with a view to starting up a voluntary ASEAN Circular Economy Pact (ACEP) with leading businesses operating in one or more ASEAN member states. ACEP signatories would commit to drive circular economy initiatives in their products and services, technologies and business models and supply chains and voluntarily report periodically on progress against a simplified set of headline circular economy and/or Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance indicators.
The European Circular Economy Stakeholder Platform is the main knowledge hub for circular economy in Europe, gathering a number of networks and groups from all sectors and stakeholders. Its outreach to the business community is growing stronger through partnership with business networks in Europe.
The African Circular Economy Network (ACEN) Foundation is a non-profit organisation established in 2021 with the aim of accelerating the just transition to an inclusive, circular, and sustainable economy in Africa by facilitating the development of enabling policy environment and supporting circular economy practitioners within our network on the ground. It is currently a virtual and voluntary organisation made up of 100 Country Representatives and Chapter Members who combine to form 30 Country Chapters across Africa.
Objectives of the event:
- Discuss the benefits of Circular Economy Knowledge Platforms and Networks and their transformative value in the transition towards a circular economy
- How can knowledge be translated meaningfully into the business world?
- How can such platforms become a resource for business stakeholders and how can business stakeholders strengthen these platforms?
- How can the ASEAN and European platforms increase knowledge about circularity along value chains?
- Discuss how these platforms could effectively support sustainable consumption and production practices and the shift to circularity, feeding into policy dialogues with national governments and regional organisations.