What will it take to accelerate the circular economy?

Welcome to Circularity 20. The opening will set the stage for the virtual event, offer an overview of the program and ground attendees in what circularity means today. 

What is the state of the circular economy today, how can we encourage stakeholders to adopt its principles, and what systemic shifts should we prioritize to advance this model’s future?

Why is plastic waste a c-suite issue, and how can corporate leaders have a positive impact on plastic waste reduction, while potentially benefiting their businesses? 

Plastic waste reduction is not only an environmental issue.  It is an economic one. Indeed, every C-suite officer has a reason to care about plastic waste reduction, and can benefit by trying to address the problem.  Even companies who are not a traditional part of the plastic value chain can play an important role. Last year, Morgan Stanley made a firm-wide commitment, the Morgan Stanley Plastic Waste Resolution, to facilitate the prevention, reduction, and removal of 50 million metric tons of plastic waste from rivers, oceans, landfills, and landscapes by 2030.  Across other industries, and all around the C-suite table, business leaders can play an important part in building a more sustainable plastics economy that can deliver benefits for sustainability, for brand and for profits.

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How can your company implement a resale business model?

The resale of used, worn or simply returned consumer products, also known as recommerce, holds tremendous promise for the retail industry. Beyond diverting substantial landfill waste, resale represents a rapidly growing revenue opportunity with a market valued at $20 billion in the apparel industry alone. But despite clear environmental benefits and new financial opportunities, only a handful of companies are implementing secondary sales models. From reverse logistics, quality control, customer expectations and revenue cannibalization concerns, companies must overcome a multitude of considerations and complexities. Join this breakout to learn how organizations at the forefront of the recommerce industry are tackling these challenges, and what it took them to build an effective, lucrative resale business model.

How can your company implement a rental business model?

While the concept of renting is anything but new, recent years have seen an expansion of products traditionally bought and kept by consumers now available for rent. From formal wear to scooters to furniture, rental products promote access over ownership, providing consumers with an often easier and cheaper alternative to purchasing something outright. In return, rental models allow companies to extend their customer relationship from one-off products to long term service.

This paradigm shift requires businesses to evolve in numerous ways, shifting internal operations and financial models alongside external value propositions, communications strategies and sales tactics. In this session, attendees will hear from companies at the forefront of the new and improved rental industry as they discuss the benefits, challenges and best-practices for building a successful rental business model.

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How can companies establish an organizational circular economy strategy that’s owned and embraced by key internal stakeholders?

The impacts of circular initiatives can ripple throughout a business and its supply chain, creating opportunity and disruption in its wake. But no matter how visionary or comprehensive, a circular economy strategy will translate into real-world impact only if it breaks through silos and takes hold across an organization. Hear from leaders who not only have established comprehensive circular economy strategies, but also effectively implemented them across their organization.

This session will explore the structure of different circular economy strategies — including core focus areas, KPIs, ownership and impacts on compensation — as well as actionable tactics to engage colleagues, assure alignment and create cross-functional initiatives without derailing existing operations.

How can your company harness the power of data to inform your circular transition?

The prevalence of data and our ability to draw insights from it is increasingly embedded in decision making. In terms of circular economy transition, data insights are essential to implement successful circular economy strategies. In this session, we are going to introduce a broader concept on data and measurement in circular economy, and bring that to life through real world company examples. 

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Stay tuned! 

What new strategies are enabling companies and sectors to finance circularity at scale?

The circular economy offers significant value and new growth opportunities. In the plastic value chain alone, research shows that compared with business-as-usual, a circular economy has the potential to reduce the annual volume of plastics entering our oceans by 80 percent, reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 25 percent, generate savings of $200 billion per year, and create 700,000 additional jobs by 2040. The circular economy can create value in similar ways across other sectors of the economy. As we look for ways to recover from the economic shock of the pandemic, the circular economy presents a pathway to build back better. Through the capital markets, investors can help build a more resilient economy that addresses global challenges, creates jobs, and benefits society.

How can you advance circularity within your team and throughout your company by championing designers and their process?

Design decisions have ripple effects throughout a product's lifecycle and beyond, affecting production, use and end of life management. In this way, designers and creators hold tremendous influence on material flows throughout the supply chain, determining whether materials end up as waste and pollution, or remain in the economy providing value.

As the idea of a circular economy becomes increasingly mainstream, how can we support people making decisions that shape materials, products and business models? Where are these professionals found within your business? What role do they play, and how can you empower them in the context of your circular economy ambition?

This breakout session will be led by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, alongside practitioners and thought-leaders at the frontier of circular design.

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Structuring circular economies like a neural network enables our transition from linear use, lowers risk through collective action and unlocks low-hanging circular wins. Hear from neuroscientist turned circular economy start-up founder Garry Cooper, whose company, Rheaply, is generating millions in savings for partnered organizations by scaling corporate reuse and facilitating circular materials flows.

How do we design for the future amid the disruptive present?