The circular economy. It's not a new concept, but it hasn't always been at the forefront of environmental conversations either. That's about to change with Circular Economy Week, an exciting virtual summit taking place on the 11th-15th of May that will bring together some of the world's leading thinkers in the circular economy space.
What's the circular economy?
The circular economy is a system of producing, consuming and disposing of materials in a way that minimises waste and pollution.
The concept has been around for years, but it became more popular when Ellen MacArthur launched her eponymous foundation to promote it. In 2015, she published a book titled "The Circular Economy: Paring Down Waste to Avert Disaster", which outlined how we can move towards a zero-waste future by using fewer resources and reusing products as much as possible.
Circular economy week.
Circular Economy Week is a global initiative that aims to raise awareness about the importance of a circular economy and how it can be achieved. The idea of a circular economy was first proposed by Professor Michael Braungart and Ellen McArthur in 2010, when they called for a more sustainable system that mimicked nature's production cycles, where nothing went to waste. This concept has been gaining ground since then, especially as more companies realise that traditional linear models are unsustainable in the long term and there are significant opportunities for them to participate in creating this new model.
Get involved in Circular Economy Week!
Here is a list of events happening in London for circular economy week.
Wednesday, June 15th, Loanhood will be running a session on The role of communities to drive forward the Circular Economy where Ella will be a guest speaker. Tickets can be found here.
One week isn’t going to change the world, but it can make a difference. If we all work together for one week, maybe we’ll be inspired to keep it going all year long!