The objective of this report is to make an overview of the key points aimed in the 2018 Circular Economy Stakeholder Conference held in Brussels on 20-21 February 2018, and to help the SC5 NCPs to get the clues that are going to drive the circular economy stakeholder actions in the next future and their influence over the SC5 Work Programme.
The Circular Economy Stakeholder Conference is the main gathering of the European circular economy community and brings together businesses, local authorities and citizens to discuss recent initiatives and new areas of action in the transition to a more circular, resource-efficient and low-carbon economy.
Three years after adoption, the Circular Economy Action Plan had been fully completed. Its 54 actions have been delivered. On 4 March 2019, the European Commission adopted a comprehensive report on the implementation of the Circular Economy Action Plan. The report presents the main achievements under the Action Plan and sketches out future challenges to shaping our economy and paving the way towards a climate-neutral, circular economy where pressure on natural and freshwater resources as well as ecosystems is minimised.
During the conference sessions, the progress of the initiatives, the new areas of action and upcoming deliverables in next themes, were discussed:
- Chemicals-Products-Waste Interface: achieving non-toxic materials flows
- Circular solutions for the Low-Carbon transition. Taxes on natural resources and pollution.
- How to ensure that the Bioeconomy contributes to the Circular Economy
- Towards an EU Product Policy Framework contributing to the Circular Economy
- The European Resource Efficiency Knowledge Centre
- Sustainable construction. Progressing towards a more Circular Economy
- Circular Economy package update. Additional initiatives adopted during 2018