Today the University of Exeter, with support from the Ellen MacArthur Foundation and the Foundation’s Pioneer University network, is hosting the first international academic symposium on the circular economy: Circular Economy Disruptions - Past, Present & Future.
The symposium will take place on the 18th and 19th June at the University’s new Global Centre for the Circular Economy. Participants will reflect on current circular economy research and discuss future innovation opportunities and challenges. It represents a significant step towards establishing the circular economy as an area of academic study key to informing systems-led frameworks, tools, and methodologies for fundamental and applied research.
Representatives of 33 universities from 25 different countries will attend, providing over 100 abstracts on a range of circular economy themes. All abstracts from the day can be found here.
Our aim is for this symposium to act as a catalyst to generate new collaborations, identify new lines of research enquiry and create new networks to expand interest in higher education globally.
Academia is uniquely placed to bridge the critical link between circular economy concept and application. The symposium signals a significant step towards understanding this key role and mobilising the global academic community to define and set the future circular research agenda.
A selection of symposium attendees will also participate in the Foundation’s Higher Education Workshop on the circular economy on Wednesday 20th June, and the Foundation’s Annual Summit on Thursday 21st June, both held in London.