Although national governments have a critical role to play in the design of circular strategies and roadmaps—especially as they hold the mandate to develop legislation and drive forward enabling incentives—subnational regions will also be crucial in accelerating circularity. Regions can work to bring governments closer to their communities and actively engage all relevant stakeholders to support access and broaden participation. They can understand their residents’ demands—and are often in a better position to respond to some of them. This makes regions and provinces critical facilitators for circularity, and positions them as key players in closing the Circularity Gap within their countries.

Regions are increasingly recognising the circular economy as a means to strengthen their communities and improve their residents' well-being, while contributing to their countries' environmental targets. However, circular solutions are not 'one size fits all': the most successful strategies are tailored and context-specific. The Circularity Gap Report for regions and provinces provides insights into the best interventions to boost circularity on a more local level, as well as the tools needed to monitor progress.