With a world population of more than 8 billion people, it’s increasingly important to make finite resources on the planet last longer and to waste less. One possible way to do that is by embracing the idea of a circular economy.
In contrast to a linear economy where resources are extracted, used, and tossed in landfills, a circular economy focuses on developing longer-lasting products that can be easily reused, repaired, repurposed and recycled. It also takes into account the energy impacts of producing goods, and the importance of preserving and restoring ecosystems.
This week, Seattle is hosting Circularity 23, a conference with a slate of international speakers and dozens of local presenters including representatives from Microsoft, Amazon, Starbucks, REI and Nordstrom. Startups including clothes subscription service Armoire, outdoor gear exchange facilitator GeerGarage, and recycling provider Ridwell are also panelists.
Some 1,400 attendees signed up for the 2 1/2-day event, which was organized by GreenBiz Group, a media and events company focused on sustainability.
Presenters emphasized that the stakes are high. The climate continues warming, the planet is choking on plastic waste, there are food shortages and limited resources for manufacturing, and plant and wildlife biodiversity numbers are plummeting.
“This is a meeting to determine how we can save humans and civilization for the next several centuries,” said Washington Gov. Jay Inslee in a keynote address. “There is a no more consequential time in our history on Earth and the kind of work that we’re doing together.”
Washington state is a leader in supporting companies focused on sustainability and in approving policy addressing these issues.
Recent initiatives include:
- State and local agencies created a program called NextCycle Washington, which runs an accelerator to support sustainable, circular economy businesses.
- Washington has disposal and recycling programs to divert six product types from waste streams: batteries, electronics, mercury-containing light bulbs, photovoltaic solar panels, pharmaceuticals and paint.
- Limits and bans on plastic items including straws, grocery bags and utensils.
- Restrictions on the use of PFAS or “forever chemicals” in food packaging.
Participants at the Circularity 23 conference urged leaders and advocates to think big when considering the scope of the effort.
“This is circular everything — not just the circular economy, if you will, and we need to think of the economy as a tool to preserve the health of our state more than an end in itself,” Inslee said.
Seattle-area corporations have made pledges to cut waste. Those actions include:
- Microsoft committed to reaching zero waste by 2030 for its direct waste production, is building a system for reusing and recycling electronic equipment used in its data centers, and pledged to eliminate single use plastic packaging by 2025.
- In 2020, Starbucks vowed to halve the amount of trash produced at its stores and in manufacturing.
- Amazon on Tuesday shared news of its efforts to reuse and repair its data center hardware. On the retail side, the company is supporting the sales of used items on its platform and working to cut packaging waste, including a partnership with the U.S. Department of Energy to improve plastic recycling. However, a report last year by a nonprofit alleged the company’s plastic packaging waste increased 18% in 2021.
“Our business decisions must take more into account than just profit,” said Alyssa Macy, CEO of nonprofit Washington Conservation Action, who gave a welcoming keynote.
“We have the sacred obligation to take care of this planet,” added Macy, who is a citizen of the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, Ore. “We have the opportunity to create sustainable products and services that integrate our understanding of place and relationship to all things.”
Editor’s note: This story was updated June 6 to add information on Amazon’s data center hardware recovery.
