We are delighted to announce that Greater London has joined our Network as a Strategic Partner. The partnership will focus on scaling circular economy solutions to meet critical city challenges including the COVID-19 recovery, economic development, and climate change, as well as seek to inspire a generation of leaders and citizens to redesign the future.
The Foundation’s Strategic Partners already include global businesses, philanthropic organisations, and two cities — São Paulo and New York City. With London, we welcome a third global city with committed city leaders and engaged citizens that can drive momentum by creating and enabling the conditions needed for a circular economycircular economyA systems solution framework that tackles global challenges like climate change, biodiversity loss, waste, and pollution. It is based on three principles, driven by design: eliminate waste and pollution, circulate products and materials (at their highest value), and regenerate nature. to emerge and thrive.
London’s ambition to continue its journey as a circular economy pioneer, and inspire its communities, businesses, and other cities around the world, gives testimony to this strategic partnership. We look forward to working together to scale circular economy solutions and demonstrate them working in London.
- Andrew Morlet, CEO Ellen MacArthur Foundation
London is a world leading city in the transition to a circular economy and as such the Ellen MacArthur Foundation has been working with the Greater London Authority and ReLondon on various strategic projects since 2015. London has been a member of our network since 2015 and engaged in the Food Initiative as a Flagship City and the New Plastics Economy Initiative as a participant. The city has also had several touchpoints across various other Foundation activities such as the Disruptive Innovation Festival (ed. the precedent of The Circular Economy Show) and the Make Fashion Circular Initiative.
In the year of COP26 and as we embark on a green recovery from COVID-19, it has never been more important to focus on how we use resources sustainably.
The Mayor has committed to making London a zero-carbon city by 2030 and his Green New Deal supports projects and creates jobs that equip Londoners and businesses to benefit from the opportunities presented by the transition to a zero-carbon future. The London Plan includes a world-first requirement for all large-scale developments to incorporate a circular economy statement in their planning submission and the Mayor is proud to be investing in London’s environmental and circular economy businesses through his Green New Deal fund.
In London, we’re delighted to be taking a leading role by joining the Ellen Macarthur Foundation’s Network alongside São Paulo and New York City as Strategic Partner Cities. This builds on our existing work with the Foundation and ReLondon to create a more sustainable urban food system through the Food Flagship Initiative, cutting needless food waste and reducing the climate impacts of our food system. We look forward to working together to promote a resource-efficient future and embed circular economy principles into our way of life.
- Shirley Rodrigues, London’s Deputy Mayor for Environment and Energy
As cities look to recover from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, the circular economy offers a systems solutions framework to tackle the global challenges they also face, such as climate change, biodiversity loss, waste, and pollution.
To unlock all the economic, environmental, and society-wide benefits, cities will need to try new things and pioneer new collaborations that reimagine how we produce, consume and manage materials and resources.
Cities are the engine room of the circular economy. London is taking a lead in pioneering the shift required to tackle the CO2 emissions associated with the carbon footprint of the stuff we consume.
Our city already has a fledgling but burgeoning circular economy made up of businesses and community enterprises using innovative reduce, re-use, repairrepairOperation by which a faulty or broken product or component is returned back to a usable state to fulfil its intended use., rent, share and recyclerecycleTransform a product or component into its basic materials or substances and reprocessing them into new materials. models of working; and this strategic partnership with the Ellen MacArthur Foundation will help us inspire and empower even more action by boroughs, businesses and citizens to make transformational changes in their policies, practices and behaviours.
- Wayne Hubbard, CEO, ReLondon (formerly the London Waste & Recycling Board - LWARB)
Notes
The Ellen MacArthur Foundation is pleased to be supporting London’s Circular Economy Week 14th -18th June 2021.
As part of our strategic partnership with Greater London, the Foundation is already working with city actors to transform London’s food system. This includes supporting the demonstration of more local food production, healthy diets & menus and eliminating food waste. To get involved visit: https://relondon.gov.uk/food-flagship-initiative
To learn more about the Foundation’s Strategic Partner Cities, watch The Circular Economy Show on Tuesday 6th July, featuring speakers from London, New York City, and São Paulo
