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    WEF Publishes Circular Economy Whitepaper

    Stockholm (NordSIP) -The World Economic Forum has published a new whitepaper on the circular economy in cities. Commissioned by the WEF’s Future of Urban Development and Services Initiative, the paper: Circular Economy in Cities: Evolving the Model for a Sustainable Urban Future explains why cities are central to accelerating the transition away from the ‘take-make-dispose’ economic model towards a circular economy.

    Cities around the world are used as examples in areas such as water harvesting and reuse, reducing energy use, electronic waste, health care and procurement, and the paper suggests opportunities in the circular economy for stakeholders and suggests how they can collaborate at the city level.

    “Cities can play a pivotal role in creating an enabling environment through regulations and incentives, but the private sector needs to collaborate and explore the cross-sectoral synergies required to achieve a circular model,” Hazem Galal, Global Leader of Cities and Local Government in the United Arab Emirates, wrote in the foreword.

    “There are immense opportunities for public-private collaboration in achieving goals that might not otherwise be possible for cities to accomplish alone. Cities are embedding circular thinking in their procurement processes, placing the onus on the private sector to come up with new business models that are both economically viable and ecologically sustainable. This could potentially result in a situation whereby circular products and services become the new market standard. Similarly, urban-industrial symbiosis programmes can deliver greater impact in creating a resource efficient vision for a city. “

    Added Gregory Hodkinson, Chairman of the Arup Group: “The transition to a circular economy can only be achieved when all stakeholders – individuals, the private sector, government and civil society – collaborate. The Forum hopes that these recommendations will pave the way towards a more sustainable, liveable and healthier urban future, as well as spur additional circular initiatives in cities.”

    Image © PsychoShadow-shutterstock

     

     

    Glenn W. Leaper, PhD
    Glenn W. Leaper, PhD
    Glenn W. Leaper, Associate Editor and Political Risk Analyst with Nordic Business Media AB, completed his Ph.D. in Political and Critical Theory from Royal Holloway, University of London in 2015. He is involved with a number of initiatives, including political research, communications consulting (speechwriting), journalism and writing his first post-doctoral book. Glenn has an international background spanning the UK, France, Austria, Spain, Belgium and his native Denmark. He holds an MA in English and a BA in International Relations.

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