The Institute for Research in Circular Economy and Environment “Ernest Lupan” attended the 73rd UN General Assembly and the UN Economic and Social Council organized by the UN with a focus on Circular Economy for the SDGs in order to accelerate implementation of the 2030 Agenda.
In recent years, the concept of a circular economy has gained increasing prominence as a tool which presents solutions to some of the world’s most pressing crosscutting sustainable development challenges. By addressing root causes, the concept of a circular economy, an economy in which waste and pollution do not exist by design, products and materials are kept in use, and natural systems are regenerated which provides much promise to accelerate implementation of the 2030 Agenda [1]. The concept was also repeatedly mentioned as a key solution in the Expert Group Meeting [2] and in-depth review of SDG 12 on Sustainable Consumption and Product ion (SCP) during the 2018 High-Level Political Forum, including in the areas of SCP and climate change, ocean act ion, and food waste and loss. The circular economy holds particular promise for achieving multiple SDGs, including SDGs 6 on energy, 8 on economic growth, 11 on sustainable cities, 12 on sustainable consumption and product ion, 13 on climate change, 14 on oceans, and 15 on life on land.
Panel discussion
It was a great honour for IRCEM to speak on behalf of the European Circular Economy Stakeholders Platform (ECESP) and to address the topic of circular economy and its impact on Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) as this topic is a subject that covers many parts of the UN’s activities.
The event was focused on an in-depth approach to helping to accelerate the implementation of Agenda 2030, the issue of legislation on the circulatory economy, education and changing behavior on waste of resources and innovation that can help to speed up this transition. In addition, it presented important help to developing countries that do not yet have the technological capabilities that developed countries have linked to innovation in circular economies.
If until some years ago certain processes were impossible, now, as technology has advanced, it is the best time to rethink the use of technology and more precisely about how to use disrupting innovation in order to accelerate the transition of circular economy with an in-depth review of all of the 17th SDG.