The Covid-19 pandemic highlighted that linear supply chains in a linear economy are brittle and vulnerable to shocks. In this episode, Bill McRaith — the former CSO of PVH, the US company that owns fashion brands including Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger — explains how the circular economy offers opportunities to transition from fragile supply chains to more resilient supply ‘lattices.’ Tune in to hear Bill’s advice to companies that are trying to restructure their supply chains — and the change...
Mar 29, 2022•29 min•Ep. 80
Why are we still demolishing buildings when we can design for deconstruction? In this episode, Arup structural engineer Grace Di Benedetto explains that we need to change our mindset and recognise buildings as valuable sources of materials rather than rubble. Together, we discuss material passports and the structural engineering opportunities offered by the circular economy. -- Find out more about a circular economy for the built environment Watch Grace on the Circular Economy Show Learn more ab...
Mar 15, 2022•21 min•Ep. 78
Renewable energy is vital in order to address climate change, but it’s only half the story. Almost half of global greenhouse gas emissions come from the way we make and use things — we need a circular economy to tackle those emissions and achieve the targets set out in the Paris Agreement. In this episode, Ellen MacArthur is joined by Christiana Figueres, Global Optimism Co-founder and former Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. Together, they discuss the crucial...
Mar 08, 2022•28 min•Ep. 77
This week, governments from United Nations member states are meeting in Nairobi to negotiate a legally binding UN Treaty on plastic pollution. This is an unprecedented opportunity to build on the already successful voluntary agreements towards a circular economy for plastics The time to act is now. With over two million people, almost 1000 civil society organisations, and over 100 global companies calling for a UN Treaty on plastic pollution, we must seize this opportunity. In this episode, Laur...
Mar 01, 2022•36 min•Ep. 76
High street and online fashion retailer H&M Group has big ambitions — to be a circular business, designing all its products for circularity by 2025 and to achieve net-zero by 2040. But how is it going to get there? In this episode, Head of Sustainability, Leyla Ertur, explains how the company aims to design every product for circularity by working with its value chain to embed circular business models. She also talks about her personal journey, and the circular economy legacy she would like ...
Feb 22, 2022•33 min•Ep. 75
How can we reimagine and rebuild our towns and cities? In this episode, we talk to Eric Corey Freed, Senior Vice President of Sustainability at CannonDesign and Co-Author of Circular Economy for Dummies, about a key circular economy topic — construction and the built environment. What’s wrong with the way we currently design and construct buildings? And what are the challenges in doing things differently? We discuss how we can learn from nature as a model for construction, and how buildings can ...
Feb 15, 2022•32 min•Ep. 74
“Some people say ‘business is big, that’s not good.’ On the other hand, I’d say that means we can drive scale, we can make meaningful change, and we have the resources to do it.” -Bea Perez, Senior Vice President and Chief Communications, Sustainability and Strategic Partnerships Officer, The Coca Cola Company Operating in more than 200 countries and territories around the world, serving over 1.9 billion drinks every day, The Coca Cola Company has been hugely successful in the linear economy. So...
Feb 08, 2022•41 min•Ep. 73
Big businesses hold the key to promoting action in building a regenerative future. When will we see this action though? In this episode, Seb Egerton-Read takes us back to COP26 where he was in conversation with two key players in the business world. Our guests today are Karrie Denniston, Senior Director of Sustainability at Walmart.org, and Jim Andrew, Chief Sustainability Officer at PepsiCo. Karrie tells us why she chose to pursue a career with Walmart.org in order to achieve that opportunity f...
Jan 25, 2022•37 min•Ep. 72
Design is at the forefront of the transition from a linear economy to a circular one. But how can communication assist this change? In this episode Laura Franco Henao hears from two guests working in this space, looking at the business opportunities available as a result of circular design and also the power of social media in catalysing change. Rebecca Garner is Circularity Partner at ASOS, who talks us through the circular journey of ASOS, including their Circular Design Guidebook. Laura's als...
Jan 18, 2022•39 min•Ep. 71
In this episode, Laura Franco Henao explores the intersections between fashion, regenerative design, the importance of context and the power of storytelling. She’s joined by Josie Warden, the Head of Regenerative Design at the RSA and Rudo Nondo, the Creative Design Practitioner at The African Rack and Country Co-Ordinator of Fashion Revolution Zimbabwe, who also feature in the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s new book, Circular Design for Fashion. — Learn more about the Circular Design for Fashion ...
Jan 11, 2022•39 min•Ep. 70
In this episode, we take a look back at some of the conversations we had at COP26. We’ll be discussing how businesses are making the important link between the circular economy and climate change. These conversations are from November 2021, when Seb Egerton-Read went to the climate change conference in Glasgow to meet some of the leading individuals in the climate space. First, we'll hear from Johan Rockström, Director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, about where we are with...
Jan 04, 2022•30 min•Ep. 69
In this episode, we discuss the role of nature-positive food in providing a solution to global challenges such as biodiversity loss and climate change. The Ellen MacArthur Foundation recently published The Big Food Redesign, highlighting the critical role that food manufacturers and retailers can play in catalysing the shift to a regenerative food production system. We will be joined by Garbriela Hernandez-Galindo, Global Sustainability Director for Essential Dairy & Plant Based at Danone an...
Dec 21, 2021•41 min•Ep. 68
In this episode, we’ll hear how innovation is key to transitioning from a take, make, waste linear economy, to a circular economy where, through design, we can eliminate waste and pollution, circulate products and materials, and regenerate nature. During the recent COP26 UN Climate Change Conference, the Foundation’s Emerging Innovators Manager, Ella Hedley, hosted an innovation session showing how disruptive start-ups around the world are demonstrating viable circular economy business models. E...
Dec 16, 2021•52 min•Ep. 67
More than 90% of biodiversity loss is due to the extraction and processing of natural resources. Can a shift to the circular economy help to reverse biodiversity loss altogether? In this episode, we’re joined by The Nature Conservancy’s Robert Jones to discuss the potential role of restorative aquaculture can play in rebuilding the health of our oceans. We’ll hear how aquaculture is effectively the regenerative agriculture of our oceans, with the potential to eliminate greenhouse gases and help ...
Dec 09, 2021•29 min•Ep. 66
The way our food is produced and designed is one of the largest contributors to some of our most significant global challenges from biodiversity loss to climate change. But what if it was possible to reverse that and to create food that was nature and climate positive? In this episode, we explore how this can be achieved through better design, which also represents a significant opportunity for food manufacturers and retailers to make food that’s better for customers, better for farmers, and bet...
Dec 01, 2021•26 min•Ep. 65
What role do cities play in the transition to a circular economy? Currently, cities consume of 75% of the world’s natural resources and emit 60-80% of global greenhouse gas emissions in the linear system. It’s estimated that two-thirds of the population will be living in cities by 2050, so it’s vital that cities tackle the issues of the current take, make, waste economy. In this episode we’ll hear from the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s Cities Lead, Sarah O’Carroll, who will guide us through how c...
Nov 23, 2021•33 min•Ep. 64
Ellen MacArthur talks to Wolfgang Blau about what growth looks like in a circular economy. The pair discuss what the risks and costs are for businesses transitioning to a circular economy, and whether the leaders of the transition are being supported enough. Plus, what impact has Covid-19 had on the circular economy, and how does shifting to a circular approach help to fix the climate and improve biodiversity. A shorter version of this conversation featured in the Foundation's Summit 21, which e...
Aug 18, 2021•32 min
In a circular economy,we need dedicated, ongoing, and sufficient funding for the collection, sorting, and recycling of packaging – otherwise the economics simply do not stack up – it costs more to do than the money it makes. That’s where Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) comes in. In this episode, the Foundation's Maya Adams and Ambrogio Miserocchi introduce the concept of EPR and how it works in a circular economy. We'll then hear from guests Matthew Demorais, Corporate Affairs Director at...
Jul 02, 2021•30 min•Ep. 63
Circular design is a key enabler in the transition to a circular economy. It provides the opportunity to rethink how products are made and systems can be designed. But who are the designers leading this transition? In this episode, Anne Asensio, Head of Design at Dassault Systemes, joins us to talk about what circular design means to her. Sean Carney, Chief Design Officer at Philips, will also showcase examples of Philip's journey to circularity so far. The Foundation's Design Network and Creati...
Jun 16, 2021•26 min•Ep. 62
In the lead up to COP 26, more and more companies and organisations are coming together to discuss how they can have a positive impact on the environment and reduce their greenhouse gas emissions. In this episode of The Circular Economy Show podcast, we'll explore how circular economy practices can contribute to meeting companies’ climate targets. We'll hear from Chad Frischmann from Project Drawdown, who will provide insights into the solutions to climate change that most of us don’t talk about...
Jun 02, 2021•27 min•Ep. 61
The textiles industry remains anchored in the linear take-make-waste economy. According to the European Environment Agency, the sector has the fourth most significant impact on primary resource materials and water after food, housing and transport. The Ellen MacArthur Foundation has recently set out five universal circular economy policy goals around which governments and businesses can align to scale the circular economy. One goal is to ‘make the economics work’ by creating economic incentives ...
May 20, 2021•26 min•Ep. 60
Measuring progress against targets is vital for any business. You track your company’s sales figures, cost base, and carbon emissions — but what about your circular economy performance? As the circular economy gains momentum globally, with more businesses developing circular strategies that create growth and also benefit society and the environment, circular economy performance is becoming increasingly important. In this episode we hear from Cecilia Brännsten, the Environmental Sustainability Ma...
May 06, 2021•29 min•Ep. 59
If you came home to find that your apartment was flooding, would you immediately start mopping up the water? Probably not! That would be a futile effort without first finding out what is causing the flooding and stopping it. This is the essence of tackling the root cause of a problem — moving upstream. In a circular economy, upstream innovation is about tracing a problem back to its root cause and tackling it there. Why deal with a pile of waste when we can prevent it from being created in the f...
Apr 22, 2021•25 min•Ep. 58
From farm to plate, our food plays an important role in how we tackle climate change. Since the beginning of the agricultural revolution, we have used extractive, traditional farming practices in order to produce enough food to meet the needs of an ever-increasing global population. People are eating more food with less nutritional value. Is it possible to grow our food in ways that provide more valuable nutrients through regenerative and restorative practices? Join us in this episode as we expl...
Apr 08, 2021•25 min•Ep. 57
As the circular economy continues to gain momentum, designers, creatives, and innovators have seized the opportunity to rethink the way in which products are made and used. But there is still much to do — we need pioneers to demonstrate what is possible, and most of the innovation we need to scale the circular economy transition has not yet been established. In this episode, we will discuss the opportunities and challenges in circular design and ask the question: what does the journey towards ci...
Mar 25, 2021•23 min•Ep. 56
The circular economy has gained a great deal of momentum in the Latin American and the Caribbean (LAC) region, with many national and city governments developing and scaling policies, strategies, and roadmaps. As a response, eight institutions have launched the LAC Circular Economy Coalition, aiming to support countries and foster multi-stakeholder collaboration. In this episode, we have compiled the best moments of our discussion panel on the subject that was streamed live on our channels on 16...
Mar 12, 2021•26 min•Ep. 55
Our recently published set of five Universal circular economy policy goals will enable governments to benefit from the circular economy as they pursue a resilient recovery from the COVID-19 crisis that offers solutions to key global challenges such as climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution. In this episode, we have compiled the best moments of our discussion panel on the subject that was streamed live on our channels on 2nd February. Seb Egerton Read and Laura Franco Henao introduce us...
Feb 25, 2021•24 min•Ep. 54
In the fifth and final episode of our fashion-focused series, we're looking at how to apply circular design to fashion. Design will shape the fashion industry’s transformation to a circular economy. More than 80% of all environmental impacts from products are determined at the design stage. While traditional design focuses on considering and meeting the needs of the end user, circular design takes a much broader perspective, considering not only the user but the system within which the design wi...
Dec 16, 2020•36 min•Ep. 53
The current system for producing clothing is putting increasing pressure on natural resources, while polluting and degrading the natural environment. In this episode, three guest speakers share new ways in which materials and processes can tackle these issues. This includes; turning old clothes into new, making the most out of agriculture, and keeping all chemical substances in a closed loop. - The Ellen MacArthur Foundation is a UK charity working on business, learning, insights & analysis,...
Dec 16, 2020•41 min•Ep. 52
In this episode, we're joined by three representatives from pioneering circular business models in the fashion industry: Sara Eriksson from the H&M Group, Lulu O'Connor from Clothes Doctor and Mikaela Larsell Ayesa from Hack Your Closet. We’ll discuss what key customer trends are impacting the industry right now, what the potential of circular business models within the industry is, and what would be the impact of these on our future wardrobes. - The Ellen MacArthur Foundation is a UK charit...
Dec 16, 2020•31 min•Ep. 51
