Ninety-five percent of people in the United States believe recycling helps the environment and 76 percent of us say recycling helps us feel better about all the stuff we buy. And you know what? They think that way because all of us in business and marketing have taught them to think that way over the last 40 years. If you go back 60, 80 or 100 years, we thought about purchasing, consumption and waste differently. That means we can indeed teach everybody to engage with a new system — and now is the time to do it.

The Shelton Group will share its latest insights from middle America about why now is the right time to engage consumers in a new way, to launch new consumption methodologies, and inspire practitioners to get to work.

By now, we all know the scale of the problem: Up to 13 million tons of plastic leaks into the ocean every year; this is equivalent to dumping one garbage truck full of plastic waste into the ocean every minute; without intervention, we’ll have more plastic than fish in the ocean by 2050. These facts and figures frame reports, press releases and microsites, and stakeholders along the plastics value chain have made ambitious commitments to tackle this global crisis.

What will it take to address the plastic waste crisis? The solution set is relatively clear: Target the production, design and disposal of plastics and packaging; invest in infrastructure and recycling technologies; establish and harmonize policy; center communities and climate. It will take a portfolio approach and an all-of-the-above solution set.

But if you ask most practitioners outside of the corporate sector — scientists, NGOs, startups — the threat of this crisis is only increasing. Even with a widespread consensus around the facts, figures and necessary interventions, we aren’t doing enough and we aren’t moving fast enough.

Join this keynote for a candid conversation about what it will actually take to solve the plastics waste crisis at scale and move from good intentions to meaningful impact.

This series of fast-paced, lightning talks will offer big ideas, provocations and perspectives from a diversity of speakers in a short amount of time.

The Emerging Leaders program aims to elevate, cultivate and support the next generation of BIPoC leaders driving the transition to a circular economy. The program creates a pathway into the circular industry for students and early-career professionals who face barriers to entry in the field, and wouldn’t otherwise be able to attend Circularity 22.

In order for humans to survive, thrive and protect the planet, we’ll have to find a way to innovate with nature, not against it. Where do we start?

A series of five cycles connects the human-built world to the natural world. They are stable ecosystems, regeneration, materials metabolism, recycling, and use and reuse. The intersection of use and reuse with our stable ecosystems provides a working definition of sustainability. Recognition of these intersections enables a blueprint for how to help invent future technologies and products that accomplish the goals of a circular economy.

It’s clear that to achieve the level of systems change necessary for a circular economy, the world’s largest companies will need to band together to reach impact at scale. In practice, some large brands are open to collaboration and some aren’t — and the words “collaboration” and “partnership” are used to describe a significant range of activities, from meaningful relationships to more optical alliances.

In this conversation, we’ll explore what it takes for a brand to willingly collaborate with its competitors in order to advance circularity for an entire industry. This session will explore how brands can gain buy-in, overcome barriers and ultimately work together with the most unlikely bedfellows of all.

The number of touchpoints in a circular supply chain add up quickly — from official partners such as local retailers, manufacturers, packaging organizations and recycling companies to informal participants, including the individual waste pickers who help collect discarded items for processing in emerging economies.

How can companies gather better data across that complex network? After all, when it comes to ESG matters, the things your company doesn’t know could hinder meaningful progress toward commitments. And failure to understand and disclose risks to investors, employees, consumers and other stakeholders could become a reputational threat.

During this conversation, the speakers will share insights about practical and effective ways of collecting information that can help companies develop a better understanding of progress toward waste management and recycling goals; enforce and uphold corporate human rights policies; and create more equitable systems for rewarding vulnerable participants. We’ll discuss how these efforts can create a virtuous circle of traceability, transparency and trust.

Atmospheres and oceans don't adhere to state lines, and neither can our solutions to the issues that plague our planet. Plastic pollution is found in every corner of the world, and up until now, country-level action has not been enough to turn off the tap of plastic waste flowing into our environment.

Earlier this year however, the United Nations made history by voting in favor of a Global Treaty on Plastic. With this incredible momentum and commitment from around the world, corporate sustainability leaders now have a chance to make solving the plastic crisis a part of their legacy. This talk will explore this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to deliver on key environmental agendas from start to finish.

Accelerate is a fast-pitch competition featuring entrepreneurs with innovative technologies, products and services advancing a circular economy. Five finalists will pitch from the Circularity main stage to two industry experts and an audience of investors, businesspeople, government officials and thought leaders. Hear expert reactions to each pitch, and then cast your vote to help determine the winner.

Failure is an inevitability on the path to success. While companies and practitioners are keen to share wins, many of us won’t admit to the scale of the challenges we endure. Working to implement circular economy solutions inside a company, it can often feel like the job is made up of more challenges than successes, whether or not we’d like to admit it.

In this candid conversation, two veterans of corporate sustainability will discuss their experiences advancing circularity at scale. Between navigating change management, internal influence and external partnership, the job isn’t easy. This panel will get real about when things don’t go according to plan, what we can learn from those experiences and what it takes to be resilient in the face of challenges. The speakers will share advice on how to overcome those failures, learn from them and ultimately succeed.