A 1.5 degree world will be a circular world. At a time when national governments are not moving at the pace required to avoid climate crisis, cities are leading the way. Circle Economy’s second annual Global Circularity Report gives us concrete examples of where change can be achieved and how.

The National Strategy for Circular Economy involves the joint work of producers, suppliers, consumers and other actors in production and consumption systems to develop and implement new business models that incorporate waste management, efficient handling of materials and changes in the lifestyles of citizens.

Broad awareness of the need to transition to a circular economy is now driving governments, companies and consumers to use resources more effi ciently and minimize waste. But how far have we come and how much further do we need to go? And beyond plastics and CO2 that make the headlines, what other waste streams require our attention? The Circularity Gap Report 2020 answers these important questions for us. It is required reading for all of us working to advance a circular economy.

Circular economy is a concept already accepted by many, but when it comes to the implementation in practice, we are still at the beginning. Circularity Gap Report is trying to asses this gap and it is providing a very valuable insights on the state of the journey. Useful and interesting work with a lot of potential.

If Paris Agreement or Sustainable Development Goals: There is no lack of ambitious goals to achieve a decent living for all. However, what’s lacking are multifaceted but directed actions across scales that are based on a consistent assessment on where we stand. The Circularity Gap report provides such a fundamental view on a specific aspect which nevertheless has the potential both to tackle multiple problems at the same time and to engage actors from different domains and levels. I thank the authors and wish the report to trigger small but decisive changes that pave the way for a change of direction in global developments.

This report tackles many aspects of the circular economy: capital goods design, practices in the sourcing of building materials, and measurements and metrics. They all share a common feature: the potential to work on a systemic level. Metrics in particular, if they are appropriately crafted, offer a powerful framework to assess where public-private interventions such as the ones EIT Climate-KIC supports, can be systemic and effective. The first lines of the Circularity Gap Report 2019 make it clear: the circularity gap is not yet shrinking. As we go forward, focusing our efforts on more systemic approaches to analysis, measurement, experimentation and, all, design, we expect to see further editions of this report refine our capacity to measure the circularity gap and expand our understanding of the role of product and service design in driving systemic change.

This report recognizes the critical role that countries play in closing the widening circularity gap, and underlines the urgent need for close collaboration. Companies that have a global footprint also have a responsibility to embed circular thinking into their business models and processes. We must join forces to enable the transition to a circular economy.

The circular economy is a topic whose time has come, and I see more and more interest in this topic for both governments and businesses around the world. It is nothing less than a blue print for a fundamental transformation of our economic system—a transformation that that is urgently needed, that is entirely possible, and desirable.

Only 14% of all plastic packaging is recycled and vast quantities escape into the environment, resulting in a loss of USD 80 to 120 billion per year, and the possibility of more plastic than fish (by weight) in the ocean by 2050. We have an opportunity with the circular economy to rethink how we use resources like plastic and become a more responsible custodian of the planet. By using resources more efficiently and creating policies and economic infrastructure that encourage recycling and reuse, we can advance both Agenda 2030 and the Paris Agreement.

Circular economy is becoming a widely recognised and accepted concept. But to make it real, as the report shows, will request many eff orts and a system change also in our understanding of the circular economy. We need to embrace dematerialisation, rethink ownership concept and move from resource effi ciency to resource sufficiency.

Without a healthy planet, there are no truly healthy people. Yet, the take-make-waste model that the world has pursued for far too long is failing both planet and people, alike. In response, Philips is pioneering innovations to deliver affordable, accessible, outcome-focused healthcare. By embracing Circular Economy models, we can drive forward the sustainable care agenda, both socially and environmentally. Helping align policy and purpose with best practice, the Circularity Gap Report provides clear guidance and actionable solutions to achieve that goal.

The circular economy is a fundamental means to achieving sustainability and carbon neutrality. Yet to know if we’re getting there, we need to measure circularity. The series of Circularity Gap Reports have been illuminating, as they’re showing us the distressing tendency of the past years. This third report sparks an alarm for all governments; we need to deploy all the array of policies to really catalyse this transformation.

The shift to a circular economy is essential for achieving a world in which nine billion people live well within the means of the planet. At 9.1% circular, we have substantial work to do. The Circularity Gap Report helps business identify circular investment opportunities that drive impactful change. Through Factor10, WBCSD and its more than 30 member companies are committed to driving a circular transition in developing common metrics, advocating for enabling regulations and convening value chains to collective scale circular economy solutions.

The transition to the circular economy is crucial, because our current consumption pattern is already beyond the limits of what the planet can provide. With a growing global middle class, the gap will widen even more. This report shows that we need to take action on a global level and the best way to bridge the gap is by working together. As a bank, we strongly support this forward momentum and wholeheartedly want to contribute to a futureproof society.

The Circularity Gap Report conveys a compelling need for redesigning economic models. The North-South dilemma will not lead to the needed transition, businesses and policy makers need to create an opportunity for the scale up. Although many thought leaders and countries have initiated action in terms of rising social inequity, declining resources and national frameworks but further increase in the CE gap from 2018 to 2020 by 0.5% is threatening. We need accelerated action by investors, designers, businesses, researchers, consumers and policy makers to create an economic opportunity for CE, worldwide.

The City of Amsterdam is keen to make the transition towards a circular economy and aims to be a fully circular and climate neutral city by 2050. Urban leadership will lead the way on delivering the positive effects of a circular economy. A shift in the tax system from labour to raw materials provides the right impetus and is crucial for this process. Solidarity and justice are at its heart to the transition.

The circularity gap is widening, and with it, the climate and biodiversity impacts of our extractive economies. To confront environmental challenges and deliver socio-economic benefi ts, we must rethink how we consume and dispose of materials. This report offers essential metrics to track progress and underlines the key role played by cities and regions in bridging the gap.

The way we measure circularity is still not good enough. Circularity goes way beyond recycling. But the Circularity Gap Report conveys a strong message that we are still stuck in the linear production model. This has to change. The focus in the Report on developing countries is spot on. We have to help them avoid repeating the linear production mistakes of the rich countries. If we succeed in that there is hope for the world.

We stand at a defining moment for the future of the planet and human well-being. To stay within the planetary boundaries, a radical transformation of key economic systems will be required to significantly reduce their environmental footprint. Our current linear “take-make-waste” system is simply not sustainable for the environment, the way we live or the economy. As this new report makes clear, economic prosperity depends on a healthy global environment, which goes hand-in-hand with the circular economy approach.

Rapid population growth and a growing middle class is putting unprecedented strain on the World’s natural resources. The concept of a Circular Economy, one in which waste products become valuable assets, has recently gained traction as a solution that would lessen the burden on natural resources while encouraging economic growth. Its main concept is simple: minimize the need for virgin resources by keeping existing materials in the production cycle. Corporate and government leaders need to look at ways to strengthen our societies’ resilience, measure and reduce the environmental impacts of human activity, and create a truly circular economy that works for the people and the planet.

DSM, as a science-based company, collaborates across the value chain to rapidly redesign and scale up “closed loop” solutions for some of the biggest waste problems in the world. We are committed to working with others to measure and monitor circularity and to underpin collective actions towards a circular economy, where waste will be something from of the past.

“As climate change experts and practitioners are increasingly searching for new and innovative approaches to increase the climate ambition to enable the achievement of the Paris Agreement, circular economy has the potential to shift our world economy to a 2⁰C or even 1.5⁰C pathway since 67% of global greenhouse gas emissions are related to material management."

Cities leaders are increasingly taking a centre stage addressing key societal, economic and environmental challenges, as all these issues come together in the urban environment. The need to measure progress in moving the needle to a circular city is therefor evident.

For insight into the dynamics of the circular economy, read the Circularity Gap report. Full of pioneering concepts, metrics and analysis, it starts to make visible the essential qualities of the 21st century economy that we must now create.

Circle Economy’s ‘The Circularity Gap Report’ marks an important step in rethinking traditional linear resource management in order to transition to innovative models of continual reuse. The report underlines the key role for cities in this transition, supporting C40 research that improved waste and materials management is a vital area of intervention for mayors and an urgent priority for preventing the worst effects of climate action. The report sets out important strategies and next steps to progress towards a circular economy and to ensure consumption without waste.

The global sustainability crisis has four dimensions: the climate crisis, the biodiversity crisis, the crisis of overuse of natural resources and the crisis of social inequality. It is time for us to face the culprit of this crisis: our current consumption pattern. We simply cannot continue our current way of consuming in a world that is only 9.1 % circular.

“Long-term sustainability requires among others a fundamental shift in our resource use, away from a linear towards a circular economy. The present report not only shows that Austria (as probably all economies around the globe) still has a long and difficult way ahead to accomplish this transition, it also provides valuable information on the group of resources that should be in focus to substantially increase the rate of circularity."

To achieve sustainable consumption and production the transformation to a circular economy is crucial. This accompanied with resource and energy efficiency will also help to reach the goals of the Paris agreement. The report gives an excellent and comprehensive overview and data set, where we stand and where action is needed and possible to be set. A good evidence base is essential for targeted measures.

The circular economy and resource conservation being at the heart of RECYC-QUÉBEC's mission, we felt it was necessary to provide Quebec with a first reference point to allow us to track our efforts and measure the results. We need to reduce waste and move away from the traditional take-make-waste model. This is where the circular economy comes in. It is a model for the future and an invitation to businesses, citizens, organizations and institutions to rethink consumption and production patterns in order to contribute to the fight against climate change.

The Circularity Gap Reports show the circular economy’s enormous emission mitigation potential and key role in achieving our climate goals, as well as the need for national and global action. We need systemic change in how we use our resources, that goes beyond recycling and incorporates new business models, design and metrics. In order to fully understand our progress and identify specific action areas, we need a variety of coordinated metrics, including the Circularity Gap Report.

What you don’t measure, you can’t manage. So, circular economy policies need sound indicators. The ‘circularity gap’ is a nice, simple, intuitive metric. It shows our economy is just over 9% circular. Such a powerful message of what still needs to be done! The indicator may not be perfect, but we have to start somewhere. A great start to the discussion on how to build the most policy-relevant circularity metric!

This report takes us much further along the road towards realising a circular economy that is part of a new framework for thinking about the economy based on 21st century not 19th century science.

If humanity is to meet the needs of all people within the means of this delicately balanced living planet, it is essential for the linear, degenerative industrial systems that we have inherited to become circular and regenerative by design. Last century’s economic theories, models and policies were not designed to bring about this transformation: it is a challenge that belongs to our own generation. The Circularity Gap Report 2021 plays a key role here by providing highly valuable analysis, data, guidance and examples that build the necessary momentum for circularity in this critical decade ahead.

Austria is taking a pioneering role in the transition to the circular economy. This Circularity Gap Report - Austria shows how Austria is performing as a country in comparison to the global average of 9,1%. In this epoch of climate breakdown, with profound societal and economic challenges, our vision of a circular economy is an inclusive, sustainable and future-proof model for development. We have done this work with hundreds of businesses and dozens of cities around the world. With this report commissioned by ARA, Austria becomes the first country to bring national perspective to this global debate. Austria has developed a strong social partnership over the years, with a strong record in recycling. We hope that all stakeholders - policymakers, industry, academia and civil society - will build on the great ideas put forward in this report, and jointly map a path to faster and scalable action.

This report gives a very concrete and tangible analysis and way forward for the circular economy and is a good contribution, supporting the efforts of many policymakers. The European Commission is very dedicated towards the achievement of the SDGs and is committed to transforming the European economy towards a more sustainable, low carbon, resource efficient future. We are convinced that we can only achieve this together through a broad collaboration of all stakeholders - across national borders - to make our systems fit for the challenges of today. This report illustrates how much more effort is still needed.

The traditional “take-make-dispose” economic model endangers the achievement of the globally agreed Sustainable Development Goals. SDG Goal 3 - “Healthy lives and well-being for all at all ages” - is at the core of the Philips mission and relies on “Sustainable consumption and production patterns” (SDG12) to be achieved. I therefore welcome this first step towards a global circularity metric. This will allow us to better measure the material flows of the global economy and provide insights about key levers for moving to a circular economy.

The Circularity Gap Report 2021 provides a clear and alarming view on the insufficient progress towards a circular economy. Decoupling economic growth from resource use is critical to mitigate climate change. I urge the global community to step up efforts and to adopt circular practices with urgency.

Moving towards the circular economy will be critical for addressing climate change and resource overuse. This report is a promising step forward in understanding our global progress on this front. Business will be essential in building momentum as we work to decouple economic growth from resource use.

Governments are making huge decisions that will shape our climate future. They are spending billions to stimulate their economies after the Covid pandemic and they are committed to strengthening their climate commitments ahead of the Glasgow Climate Summit. Circular economy strategies hold the key to a resource-efficient, low-carbon and inclusive future.

Innovative solutions and partnerships, which contribute to accelerate the transition towards Circular Economy in Switzerland and beyond are crucial. MAVA believes strongly in investing in innovation by supporting individuals to learn and apply an entrepreneurial approach. Local or global, this important Circularity Gap Report shows how much effort is still needed to make everyone join this exciting journey towards circularity and emphasises the need for a collective dynamic promotion of cross-sector innovation.

The transition to a global circular economy will continue requiring new data and metrics to enable public and private sector leaders to make the best decisions. This Circular Gap Report is another step forward, providing leaders with data and insights on how to understand national-level circularity and possible ways to cluster, learn from similarly-situated countries, and better understand their individual and collective transitions.

The promise of the circular economy is to live in harmony with nature again. It is also essential for resolving our climate crisis and start living within our planetary boundaries. But how do we get started? This report is a wake up call and shows that with 9% circularity we are still scratching the surface. After reading the report ask yourself: What can you do to help save the planet.

The report convincingly makes the case for urgent action addressing the massive development challenge in the built environment. Immediate changes in planning, design and construction processes are needed that encourage the use of renewable and low carbon materials, that allow for future disassembly and reuse. In addition - and particularly in Europe - strategies are needed that help renovation and where possible the extension of existing buildings.

Moving towards the circular economy will be critical for addressing climate change and resource overuse. This report is a promising step forward in understanding our global progress on this front. Business will be essential in building momentum as we work to decouple economic growth from resource use.

Building resilience in the face of climate change, achieving the Sustainable Development Goals and developing a low-carbon future demands that we move beyond an extraction economy. Circular development is one of ICLEI’s five pathways to sustainability, and The Circularity Gap Report shows how local and regional governments - our Members - can and should make high-impact choices to improve the circularity of their economies.

The Paris Agreement demands that we decarbonise the global building stock, and this timely report highlights the urgency with which we must address the construction sector’s total emissions impact. Without radical action towards circular construction, embodied emissions in our sector will continue to rise, eating into our achievements on operational emissions. The Green Building Council movement stands with Circle Economy and those willing to take on this challenge.

Business as usual is dead. We must commit to taking action at scale to make the circular economy reality. Measuring our individual and collective performance in the circular economy is fundamental in knowing whether we’re decoupling resource consumption and financial performance at the rate which our planet is demanding of us.

Moving towards the circular economy will be critical for addressing climate change and resource overuse. This report is a promising step forward in understanding our global progress on this front. Business will be essential in building momentum as we work to decouple economic growth from resource use. WBCSD’s circular economy program – Factor10 – brings global companies together to speed up the transition and deliver circular solutions, faster.

In a global economy of 7.5 billion people, a number of markets, jurisdictions and complex value chains coexist. Environmental solutions cannot be engineered top-down or through multilateral negotiations alone. Rebalancing national incentives – and orchestrating those across jurisdictions - is essential for value chains to develop circular patterns of trade. This can help the international community in the pursuit of the SDGs, as well as in the implementation of the Paris Agreement.

As a global economy, we need to move from a mercantilist model of resource trade, where some nations accumulate materials which are costly to reprocess in their own territories, to a model in which resources flow back to regions with comparative advantages to recycle. Negotiating agreeable conditions for all countries to do so is essential to make the circular economy the core of less wasteful economic growth strategies with social inclusion.

The circular economy, an eastern reality is fast becoming a western cause. We see the proliferation of new and established businesses embracing recycling and circularity. Understandings around the distribution of benefits and the long term impacts for big and small economies is yet to be fully deciphered. Who will benefit from this new opportunity? How will value be transferred to those who most require it? And, will the ownership and benefits be once again captured by the incumbents? The “Circularity Gap Report” is an important contribution that seeks to respond to some of these issues that will allow for international collaboration, development and prosperity for all.

Despite two years of concentrated eff orts and pockets of success, circularity’s global impact is not big enough. This report provides a clear roadmap for action. Countries, cities and businesses can step up as change agents to accelerate circularity locally and globally. But, governments and businesses alike must engage in far-reaching, cross-border collaborations for circular value chains and climate neutrality.

“At the end of the day, a comprehensive circular economy is a key requirement for long-term economic activity in our global society. The present country report offers a database as a basis for political discussion and will hopefully be imitated in numerous other countries across the globe."

The circular economy is an enormous opportunity for companies and the advances of the 4th Industrial Revolution. By spanning digital, physical and biological technologies it offers innovative ways of producing and consuming products to help businesses rise to the challenges of the Paris Agreement and the UN’s SDGs and ensures that the world has enough, for all, for ever. In that context, the proposal of a global metric to measure circularity is an important step in guiding public and private sector action to accelerate the transition to a circular economy.

The twentieth century was ruled by the metric of money, which demanded endless growth. This century calls for new metrics - natural and social - that enable humanity to thrive within the means of the planet. This fascinating report presents just the kind of powerful numbers needed to start making that new economy real.

The transition towards a circular economy is often seen in the very limited context of post-consumer wastes. As Austria’s market leader in packaging recycling, we wanted to paint the bigger picture of raw materials, minerals, biomass, and fossil fuel and their relevance for Austria’s societal needs. We now have a benchmark and a starting point to identify priorities and come up with appropriate actions to increase our circularity rate. Taking far-reaching economic and environmental policy decisions lacking a sufficient data basis would have been merely speculative and not in line with our goals that are efficiency and effectiveness.

The economic case for shifting to a circular economy is compelling and the concept has gained tremendous momentum in the past few years. With the advent of the 4th industrial revolution, we have a suit of innovations and technologies that can enable resource decoupling, yet we still live in a world where natural resource demand is growing dramatically. What we need now more than ever is collaboration and partnerships between business, government and civil society to move the circular economy from idea to action at scale. This report nicely sketches a roadmap for change that can help mobilize the global community.

Our current economic and financial systems are driving unsustainable consumption and degrading the natural environment. The circular economy provides a tangible framework for reducing our impacts, protecting ecosystems and living within the means of one planet. Collaborating with business and civil society, governments can play an invaluable role in delivering positive change by implementing policies that encourage circularity and systems change.

The world’s population is expected to strongly increase within the next decades; thus, the lifestyle of this growing population, meaning how people life, how they consume and behave is an essential factor, and will become most probably a factor, that will even have a higher overall impact than each newly developed and improved technology or business model and management concept. Circular Economy approaches, therefore, cannot be limited to the implementation of innovative and improved recycling technologies, to the technical optimization of resource efficiency, or introduction of new business models. Sustainable Circular Economy approaches must also change people’s attitude, our consumer behavior, our lifestyle.

The big question remains if the circular economy will enfold as a marketing opportunity or as a game changer at a systemic level. The touchstone being, if sharing, reusing, refurbishment, remanufacturing and recycling enables a radical reduction in both primary resource use, waste and emissions. If this remains out of reach, a continued overstretching of global sources threatens reasonable living conditions for a majority of the global population. A successful circular economy holds manifold promises for meeting the SDGs via a concerted and integrated action. This report pushes in this direction and enables the tying up of the most crucial loose ends.

Material extraction, processing, usage and disposal are accounting for over 50% of global greenhouse gas emissions. To implement the Paris Agreement as well as to achieve sustainable consumption and production, circular economy is pivotal.

This second edition of the Circularity Gap Report brings forwards new challenging arguments, ideas and concept to foster the development of a more circular economy: the DISRUPT model and the Mass-Value carbon equation in particular will deserve attention from decision makers. The focus on the construction sector demonstrates again the circularity potential in this sector and very smartly highlights the importance of properly maintaining and renovating our built environment stock.

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals underline the importance of a sustainable use of resources. With the Circular Economy Package (CEP) and the Action Plan, the European Union has declared its commitment to pave the way for sustainable production and consumption in our common economic area. Austria is among the leading countries in this field. Now it is important to take the next steps based on a scientific background to make our progress towards a circular economy planned and measurable.

Climate crisis, overuse of natural resources and deteriorating functional capacity of ecosystems are forcing us to radically change how we are producing and consuming energy and natural resources. Transition to the circular economy is not only a must – it can also provide a huge opportunity to rethink our wellbeing and build more just and inclusive economies. Unfortunately, today we are far from the target. We must urgently create a common vision, roadmap and metrics: most of all we need global collaboration towards the vision.

The Circularity Gap Report offers not only a sober warning of the danger of climate inaction, but a clear map forward. Collaborative effort among government, business and civil society is necessary to scale the circular economy and drive down emissions. Only through collective investment in and commitment to circular practices can we shape a more sustainable, resilient future.

The European Commission and I personally, we have devoted last few years to put in place a conducive legal framework to build CE on. We do believe this work will help transform the European economy towards a more sustainable, low carbon and resource efficient future. But it’s just foundations that have been laid. A lot more is needed. This report is a useful reminder for all of us, public authorities, business, consumers, investors that there is still long way to go. The journey towards the global circular economy has just begun.

Reporting the state of Circularity is an important first step towards a better understanding of our physical economy. However, currently Circularity is still a quantitative concept and has to be upgraded with qualitative approaches in order to become purposeful with regard to sustainability goals.

This report demonstrates that circularity is key for achieving the climate goals of the Paris Agreement. However, the measurable progress in developing circular business, since the first Circularity Gap Report, is limited. The continuous development of robust frameworks and metrics is needed to accelerate the transition from a linear world, in which the use of resources and energy is in fact inefficient, to one which is circular, also preserving value better. Business has to lead this trajectory and drive the transition based on clear indicators.

For the first time the circular state of our global economy has been analysed. And it is frightening: our economy is only 9% circular! What a contrast with nature. ‘Waste’ is not in nature’s dictionary, nor part of nature’s fully circular economy. 3.8 billion years of research and development in nature teaches us that instead of solving problems we should rethink the blueprint. This important Circularity Gap Report not only gives us the data underlying this alarming circularity gap but it also defines crucial steps to bridge it and speed up the necessary transition.