The Circular Future - A Quantum Lifecycle Partners podcast
Welcome to the Circular Future – a podcast that facetimes you with the challenges of e-waste and its impact on the world. Join Stephanie McLarty, Head of Sustainability at Quantum Lifecycle Partners, as she interviews industry thinktanks who share their insights on the trends in reuse and recycling of technology. This podcast is for you if you are responsible for managing your company’s electronics or are simply curious about all things e-waste, sustainability, carbon emissions, data security and more. Each episode finishes with actionable advice for business managers and leaders to do their part in helping build a circular future.
The Circular Future - A Quantum Lifecycle Partners podcast
39. Celebrating Circular Economy Month
In this episode, host Stephanie McLarty discusses the significance of Circular Economy Month with guests Caitlin Perry and Audrey Manuel from the Circular Innovation Council. They explore the transition from Waste Reduction Week to a broader focus on the circular economy, emphasizing the importance of systemic change in consumption and waste management. The conversation highlights the various themes of Circular Economy Month, the role of businesses and individuals in promoting circular practices, and the resources available for participation. The episode concludes with advice on how to engage in circular economy initiatives and the importance of celebrating small achievements in sustainability efforts.
Takeaways
- Circular Economy Month aims to raise awareness about circular solutions.
- The Circular Innovation Council has a long history in recycling and sustainability.
- A circular economy rethinks the entire process of production and consumption.
- The importance of transforming systems to address climate change and biodiversity loss.
- Circular Economy Month includes various themes to educate and engage the public.
- Businesses can participate through employee engagement and community initiatives.
- Individuals can take small actions to contribute to the circular economy.
- Resources are available for both individuals and businesses to get involved.
- Celebrating small achievements in sustainability is crucial for motivation.
- It's never too late to start making a difference in sustainability.
Learn more about Circular Economy Month> https://circulareconomymonth.ca/
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Want to be a guest on The Circular Future podcast? Email Sanjay Trivedi at strivedi@quantumlifecycle.com
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October is now Circular Economy Month, a rebrand from Waste Reduction Week. So why the change and what's in it for both individuals and businesses to get involved? Welcome to the Circular Future your access to thought leaders and innovations to help you be a business sustainability champion, even if it's not your core job. I'm your host, stephanie McLarty, head of Sustainability at Quantum Lifecycle Partners. Circular Economy Month is a public awareness campaign by Circular Innovation Council to essentially learn, embrace and celebrate circular solutions. For many years, the third week of October was Waste Reduction Week, but as of 2023, this week is now part of a broader month-long campaign focused on the circular economy as a whole. With me to unpack Circular Economy Month is Caitlin Perry, manager of Education and Engagement Programs at Circular Innovation Council or the CIC. Caitlin has been with the CIC for eight years and has played a leading role in the development of Circular Economy Month and the Share, reuse, repair Hub. Also here is Audrey Manuel, resource Development and Outreach Coordinator at CIC. This will be her third year supporting Circular Economy Month programming.
Speaker 2:Welcome to the podcast. Both of you, hi. Thanks for having us. Thanks for having us. I'm excited that you're here and diving into this important topic which Quantum has been working on as well. But first let's start as we always do, and I'll start with you, caitlin. What would be two things that the world may not know about Circular Innovation Council?
Speaker 1:Yeah, so Circular Innovation Council, we are a not-for-profit and charitable organization, so some organizations just have either one, but we uniquely have both statuses and we have a long history industry.
Speaker 1:So we were originally established as the Recycling Council of Ontario way back in 1978. So over 40 years ago when our first kind of claim to fame was playing a major role in the development of Ontario's Blue Box program, which I'm sure many people on the podcast here know about and participate in every day, and we actually won an award for that from the United Nations back in early 1980s. So and since then I mean we've also been a big part of the development of recycling policy here in Ontario as well, and really since then a lot of our work started off as focused on recycling and then since then has really developed and grown into more circular economy programming and projects and we originally focused more in Ontario and we've now expanded to a national mandate and a mandate that's focused more on circular economy and putting circular economy concepts into action, while still obviously focusing on recycling and making sure that's still a big part of our work as well.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so it sounds like the changes at CIC really reflect the changes of the world, moving from recycling to this whole concept of circularity and also going from regional to really a national organization. Audrey, what about you? What would be two things that you would say that the world wouldn't know necessarily about CIC.
Speaker 3:Well, cic is a multi-stakeholder network and membership-based organization, and we have hundreds of members. We operate both frontline programs like pilot waste programs and waste auditor training, but also education and engagement programs that you're about to hear about, primarily Circular Economy Month, but also two others the Share Reuse, repair Hub and the Plastic Action Center, and Caitlin and I both work on the education and engagement programming.
Speaker 2:That's cool and full disclosure. Quantum is a member of the CIC, so let's get into what you're doing. But first of all, I really want to peel back what we're talking about. When we talk about the circular economy, caitlin, what would you say the circular economy actually is in your view?
Speaker 1:Yeah, so this is a relatively new term that you may or may not be familiar with Probably heard about it. Within the last like 10 years or so, it's really been starting to gain traction. So it's really a major systems change to the way that we consume and live our day-to-day lives. So historically we've lived in a linear economy and you may have seen our graphics out there on our website and there's lots of graphics out there that illustrate this. But so we've been historically in a linear economy that starts with take, make and waste Essentially, take and extract natural resources from the earth things like trees to make paper products, minerals to create electronics, fossil fuels to create plastic.
Speaker 1:So we take those from the earth and then we create products with them. And when we're creating the products, we don't really put a whole lot of consideration in all of the carbon emissions, the costs, all the energy being put towards making these products, and then we make them without also not a lot of consideration on the end of life of them. So what are we going to do when consumers are done with these products? So just, kind of, we've been for so many years just dealing with it at the end. So the circular economy is really rethinking that whole entire process. In a circular economy, we create products that we consume and design out waste and value our resources for as long as possible and in that process, you know, we ultimately reduce costs, we reduce carbon emissions and we reduce the amount of waste that ends up in landfill and we keep materials in use for as long as possible.
Speaker 2:Yeah, at Quantum, we often say that we help close the loop through our reuse and recycling. So yeah, that makes total sense. Now, Audrey, why is it important to have a circular economy? Why is it important to have a circular economy?
Speaker 3:Well, we've all experienced and seen the many crises that we're facing so climate change, affordability, loss of biodiversity, just to name a few so there's really a clear need that we need to transform our systems, because our systems are not working. I want to challenge listeners, and you as well, to imagine a world where waste isn't created in the first place. So, instead of trying to figure out what to do with our waste, what if we just never had waste at all? Imagine if we lived in harmony with the earth, we supported ecosystems that support us in this reciprocal relationship, that we valued nature and what it does for us, and if we operated our businesses mindfully that would be amazing and containing them within natural planetary boundaries.
Speaker 2:I heard once that there is no waste in nature. Nature recovers and regenerates everything, so what if we could live like that as a society? Maybe we wouldn't have the planetary crisis that we have today? Yeah, exactly Okay. So I want to talk about Circular Economy Month, and I remember when I was planning the engagement activities for Quantum two years ago back in 2022, we ran a sustainability superhero bingo exercise for Waste Reduction Week, and when we went to plan it last year, I noticed the scope had changed. It was now Circular Economy Month. So, caitlin, why the change to Circular Economy Month and away from just waste reduction?
Speaker 1:Yeah, so Waste Reduction Week has been activated by Circular Innovation Council since 2001. And it started off, as you know, recycling events, a lot of educational activities, like you just mentioned, and then it really transformed since then into a really big digital campaign as well still, with all of those great local events and stuff. But it's also contributed big social media campaign and it has just grown really big over the last few years and waste reduction events were starting to not just become, you know, recycling collection drives and that kind of thing, like they previously were. They were starting to. We were starting to see more repair cafes, clothing swaps, conferences that weren't just related to recycling and talking about the bigger picture circular economy message, and a lot of these events were happening throughout the month anyways.
Speaker 1:And we noticed on social media that the momentum was building all month long. So we're like let's expand it, because people are celebrating all month anyways, so let's just expand it. And we wanted to recognize that circular economy doesn't just include waste reduction and recycling, like traditionally Waste Reduction Week always has. Many of you didn't want to take away from Waste Reduction Week, so we essentially built it into a bigger campaign to include both Waste Reduction Week and the circular economy. So that's pretty much why we did that and it's been really successful so far since we launched it.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and I think again it speaks to this whole area of circularity is bigger and broader than just waste reduction. So to me it makes a lot of sense and I also am happy that we don't have to put everything into that single week, because it's a lot to fit into a single week at times. Audrey, can you speak to what the themes are of this year's Circular Economy, Month per week?
Speaker 3:Yeah, definitely. So we start off with week one, which is an introduction to circular economy, which basically is purely educational, and it's trying to explain all the different facets of what a circular economy means versus, you know, for example, a linear economy. Week two is environmental benefits of a circular economy, so exploring how having a circular economy will help the environment heal. Week three is about social and economic benefits, because circular economy does help our well-being. And the fourth week continues as waste reduction week, which itself has daily themes throughout the week focused on different waste streams. Now, since October has five weeks this year, we threw in an extra theme there at the end for celebrating your efforts, where we're going to highlight all of the awesome, inspiring things people like you and our listeners have done during the month to participate.
Speaker 3:The reason why these themes have been chosen is because the circular economy is a complex term and I think it's best understood through examples of how a circular economy can benefit us and the planet. So it really generates motivation for people to make changes in their daily lives, at work and at home.
Speaker 2:So you actually, I think, just answered one of my questions, which is is it designed for businesses or for individuals?
Speaker 3:or both. Anyone can participate in Circular Economy Month. We do specifically also address businesses, organizations, schools and governments. Those organizations can get involved. Specifically is declaring their support for a circular economy. We have lots of educational resources which I'll get into a little bit later, and we also encourage individuals to participate as well. Specifically this year, you can take a pledge to take action, which is a new way this year of learning about actions that are big and small. Every action counts, so you can learn about the impacts of each of those actions as well.
Speaker 2:So can you give us an example of the pledge? What specific actions would you be pledging to?
Speaker 3:Yeah, so there are a few examples. Carpooling can actually reduce your emissions by 2.7 kilograms of carbon per day, so you can carpool with people at work. Taking public transit, for example, instead of a car, helps you reduce six kilograms of carbon emissions per day. Shopping secondhand or attending a clothing swap are really great ways to reduce your impact as well, because for every kilogram of secondhand textiles you receive instead of buying new saves you about 17 kilograms of greenhouse gases.
Speaker 2:That is amazing and I love how it's really looking at your own life and what you can do and the awareness of it. Like oftentimes, we don't know the impact or the potential benefit of some of these circular practices until we hear the numbers behind it, like carpooling or buying secondhand clothes.
Speaker 3:Pledge also has 30 actions that you can choose from, and it also has the capacity for you to write in what you're going to do yourself if one of those actions isn't listed.
Speaker 2:Cool. So 30 actions, that's great. Now, caitlin, let's talk about businesses. What are some things that businesses can do as part of Circular Economy Month?
Speaker 1:Yeah, so, like you just mentioned about the bingo which is an amazing idea I love that no-transcript educate your team about circular economy, or your customers, to like. We've seen that as well like workshops and webinars that people can join that talk about circular economy and how they can get involved. Recycling drives are really popular, so, like textiles and electronics, they'll have like a month long collection drive or something like that for the campaign and then share their impact at the end of it and then another fun one like the bingo you mentioned. Like contests. So challenging your team to you know, bring a waste-free lunch every day. Only purchase things that are secondhand or carpooling to work every day. Little challenges that you can do that create some friendly competition amongst your colleagues can really encourage them to take action.
Speaker 2:What we're doing this year is a little variation on our bingo card and it's a 10-day circular challenge where we've got 10 different actions to take from October 21st to November 1st and yes, it's a little bit challenging this year but I personally I love that celebration aspect because we need more of it.
Speaker 2:One of our actions will be to post to our company kudo page about a circular win that employees have done and I know. Beyond what we're doing internally, we're supporting customers with e-waste drives, as you mentioned, caitlin. We also have two talks during that week. Also appreciate the fact that it's not just a single week anymore because the fact that it's during the month allowed us to do. But we've seen at Quantum, specifically around the employee engagement, doing these kinds of challenges for our employees. They love it and I feel like as a company, it helps us to really create that culture internally about what's important and that sticky factor like people want to work for us. Caitlin, what have you seen are some of the benefits that businesses have realized out of Circular Economy Month and participating in various ways.
Speaker 1:Yeah, like you said, there's two kind of angles to it. There's the employee engagement that really, you know, excites your employees and encourage them to take action. We find that like, sometimes you know, if you work for a big company you might not and you want to be a part of the change, but you might not be in this particular position where you can create change for the company itself. But there's things that you can do as an individual. I feel like those employee engagement actions are really great for that. And then, on the other side, it's a great way for businesses to really showcase to both their employees and their customers their commitment to advancing the circular economy and promoting their circular services to their customers and beyond. And it's really a great opportunity and I guess a touch point for announcements and sharing your impact. So if you have like annual recycling impact stats or you're launching a environmental sustainability report, it's a really great time to do that. Or you're, you know, announcing a new corporate commitment, it's a really great time to align, to align those that messaging with it.
Speaker 2:You're absolutely right and we do have an announcement planned for that last week, October. All right let's move into our how to section, where I ask you how to questions. Audrey, I'm going to start with you. I feel like we are all so busy and we want to make an impact. So how to prioritize our actions, like, are there certain actions to take which have a bigger impact than others? Yeah, certainly.
Speaker 3:I understand it.
Speaker 3:We're all so busy and it can feel overwhelming sometimes when we have such a daunting it can feel daunting task.
Speaker 3:So what I would say is focus on transportation, the reason being the National Greenhouse Gas Inventory that was released in 2024 determined that transportation and economic sectors was actually the second highest emitter out of all of the categories, being second to oil and gas.
Speaker 3:So for that reason, I would suggest carpooling with co-workers or trying to advocate for increased work from home, because then you don't have to commute at all and that reduces those emissions there. Reducing your consumption where you can is free, so that means don't buy things if you don't have to, or just try to be more mindful of how you're spending your money, making sure to use your office supplies to their fullest life before you have to replace them or order more and lastly, this is entirely free. Talking to your colleagues, friends, family, talking to them about the circular economy and sustainability and the reason being behavior shift is an increasing awareness is one of the most important things that you can do, because the more people who participate, the better resiliency our society has in the future of climate change 100% and, on that note, share this podcast.
Speaker 2:Caitlin, what about you for businesses, you know perhaps, are finding out about this sort of last minute. What would you suggest to do if they're short on time? How can they get involved?
Speaker 1:Yeah, so we have a new this year. We just expanded this our promotional resources for the campaign. We have on our website there's promotional kits and there's different pre-made social media assets that you can download. So there's some that we've tailored more for individuals, there's some general ones, there's some that we promote, that we suggest businesses use, and then there's some for governments and schools as well. Businesses use, and then there's some for governments and schools as well. So we encourage you.
Speaker 1:I mean, if you don't have time to create your own social media materials, you're welcome to download what we have on the website. We also have like sample captions and stuff you can put on your social media posts, so you really don't have to do much. You just have to download them and copy paste. And then, of course, like building off of the employee engagement piece, like there's a lot of quick things you could do, like it doesn't have to be a formal webinar thing. It can be just maybe getting together some employees and educating them and doing or even doing like a community cleanup one day at lunch or something, or everyone promoting everyone to bring reusable containers for lunch, or something, or everyone promoting everyone to bring reusable containers for lunch, or something like that Just little things, like little actions that you can do throughout the month, even if you don't have a lot of time to plan. And it doesn't need to be an official event. It can be kind of more informal if you don't have a lot of time to plan it.
Speaker 2:Yeah, one of our actions on our 10 day challenge is a litterless lunch, and it's something that my daughter was challenged in her Montessori school early on, like don't bring packaging to school, in this case, don't bring packaging to work. So I think that's a really great sort of easier one to implement, audrey. Last one how to access resources as an individual. What's available to us?
Speaker 3:Yeah, so there are, as Caitlin said, promotional kits that are available on the Circular Economy Month site, so you can join in the conversation online and use the hashtag Circular Economy Month. We'll be able to see anything that you share. You can also talk to your co-workers, as I said, your supervisors, friends and family and lead by example, so, for example, you could start a circular economy committee at work and use your voice and vote with your dollar to drive change.
Speaker 2:I love that we have a company green team, but you could do it as a circular economy team at work. Thank you so much for sharing what you're doing and really leading the charge on this. If there was one piece of advice that you would leave individuals or businesses with around this whole circular economy month, Caitlin, I'll start with you. What would that one piece of advice be?
Speaker 1:Celebrate your efforts and your achievements. I mean, I feel like we don't really do that enough. I feel like we sometimes think we have to do either sustainability really well or not do it at all. But really to make change you have to do. Even small changes are better than nothing. It's so easy with all the doom and gloom news out there. It's so easy to feel like defeated and feel like you're not doing enough. But it's really important to recognize what you're doing and how you're really making an impact.
Speaker 2:And Audrey, what would your piece of advice?
Speaker 3:be. Mine would be that it's never too late to take your first step towards a better future for all, big or small, it all makes a difference.
Speaker 2:So it's never too late and celebrate, whatever you do. Thank you both. Thank you both, as I mentioned, for being here, but also for really facilitating this whole month for us and giving so many resources to help us, on both an individual level and a business level, to really implement circularity in our lives and in our businesses. So thank you.
Speaker 1:Thank you.
Speaker 2:Thank you and remember, if you are looking for a circular partner to help you reuse and recycle your electronics, we'd love to chat Head on over to quantumlifecyclecom and contact us. This is a Quantum Lifecycle podcast and the producer is Sanjay Trivedi. Thank you for being a Circular Future Champion in your company and beyond. Logging off.
