How can you measure and report on the circularity of your organization's operations?

Measure circularity by tracking resource flows: how much you use, reuse, and recycle. Select relevant indicators like material circularity. Report clearly, using visuals and context.

Circular economy indicators are essential for assessing how efficiently an organization uses resources and manages waste. These indicators measure things like the percentage of recycled materials used, the amount of waste generated, and how products are designed for reuse or recycling. By tracking these indicators, organizations can see where they stand in terms of circularity and identify areas for improvement. This helps them move towards a more sustainable way of operating by reducing waste, conserving resources, and designing products with longevity in mind.

Measuring and reporting on the circularity of your organization's operations involves assessing various Measuring and reporting on the circularity of your organization's operations involves assessing various aspects of your activities, products, and processes to determine their alignment with circular economy principles. Circular economy indicators can help you track progress and identify areas for improvement. Calculating material circularity is crucial as it shows how much material is reintegrated into the material cycle through the technical cycle. Equally important is measuring energy and waste circularity to gauge efficiency and sustainability in resource usage and management.

Measuring circularity requires tracking key metrics across the organization and its value chain. This includes assessing material types and flows to quantify how much virgin, recycled, biobased or renewable content is used in products and packaging. Measure waste generation, diversions from landfills, and recovery of materials at end-of-life through recycling rates. Evaluate resource efficiency by examining energy, water, and material usage per unit of production. Use surveys to estimate consumer behavior around sharing products or buying secondhand. Develop a circularity index that aggregates metrics on material flows, longevity, and product life cycles. Set circular targets and track progress over time.

- Embracing the circular economy starts with businesses quantifying material flows to understand the input, use, and disposal of resources. - Tools like the Material Flow Analysis (MFA) provide insights into the efficiency and sustainability of these flows. - Next crucial step is a thorough review of the product lifecycle to identify opportunities for improvements- there’s always room to tweak designs, boost recycling, and champion reuse. - Now that we have systems in place to measure circularity, set up some KPIs to track progress, such as the percentage of recycled materials used, waste reduction rates, and product life extension achievements.

Circular economy frameworks provide structured approaches for organizations to evaluate their circularity. They outline principles and guidelines to follow, like minimizing waste and maximizing resource efficiency. These frameworks help organizations identify opportunities to redesign products, optimize processes, and enhance resource management. By applying circular economy frameworks, organizations can assess their current practices against these principles and identify areas for improvement. It's like having a roadmap to guide them toward more sustainable and circular operations, reducing environmental impact and promoting long-term viability.

Whether mandated or voluntary, reporting frameworks incorporate circularity indicators. However, the crucial aspect is not merely reporting; the emphasis lies on the actual achievement of circularity. A recent article highlighted that the recycling of PET bottles, often considered a circular practice, might, in reality, prolong the waste disposal process. What truly matters is sincere commitment, mindset, and innovation. It is well understood that innovation necessitates investment.

In pharma, circularity has still a long way to go. There are number of regulatory limitations to what can become circular. These issues need to be solved in collaboration with the regulators.

Circular economy frameworks offer valuable tools for organizations to measure and report on the circularity of their operations, enabling them to assess their performance, identify opportunities for improvement, and communicate their progress to stakeholders. By adopting these frameworks, organizations can contribute to the transition to a more sustainable and resilient economy, where resources are used more efficiently, waste is minimized, and value is retained throughout the product life cycle.

Utilizing a structured framework for measuring and reporting circularity streamlines data collection and enhances transparency in communication. Frameworks like CEAP, GRI Standards, and SASB Standards provide comprehensive methodologies and criteria for evaluating circularity performance. The adoption of such frameworks facilitates standardized reporting across industries, enabling organizations to demonstrate their commitment to circular economy principles and track progress effectively.

Circular economy reporting involves measuring and communicating an organization's efforts to minimize waste, promote sustainability, and enhance resource efficiency. It typically includes tracking metrics related to product life cycles, resource consumption, waste reduction, and recycling initiatives. This reporting helps businesses demonstrate their commitment to circular economy principles, fostering transparency and accountability in sustainable practices.

Circular economy reporting involves documenting and communicating an organization's efforts and progress toward circularity. It includes gathering data on key metrics such as resource usage, waste generation, and product lifespan. This information is then used to create reports that provide insights into the organization's circularity performance. By analyzing these reports, organizations can identify strengths and weaknesses in their circular practices, set goals for improvement, and track their progress over time. Circular economy reporting not only helps organizations understand where they stand in terms of circularity but also allows them to demonstrate their commitment to sustainability to stakeholders.

Circular economy reporting is essential for measuring and reporting on the circularity of an organization's operations. It enables organizations to set baselines and targets, monitor performance, identify hotspots and opportunities, assess impacts and benefits, engage stakeholders, enhance accountability and transparency, benchmark and comparison, and drive innovation and continuous improvement. By leveraging circular economy reporting effectively, organizations can advance their circularity goals, minimize environmental footprint, maximize resource efficiency, and create shared value for society.

Effectively communicating circularity results is pivotal for engaging stakeholders and demonstrating organizational commitment to sustainability. Reports should prioritize transparency, credibility, and consistency, aligning circularity efforts with broader sustainability goals and value creation. Employing a narrative format that outlines the circular economy vision, strategy, actions, and outcomes enhances understanding and resonance. Utilizing relevant, reliable, and comparable data and indicators fosters trust and facilitates benchmarking. Additionally, incorporating visuals and stories to showcase achievements and impacts underscores innovation and best practices, reinforcing the narrative of circularity success.

Circular economy reporting involves the process of measuring and communicating an organization's circular economy performance to stakeholders. This type of reporting is essential for transparency, accountability, and driving progress toward circularity. Here are some key aspects of circular economy reporting:Integration with Sustainability Reporting: Circular economy reporting is often integrated into broader sustainability or corporate social responsibility (CSR) reports. It can also be part of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) reporting frameworks.Key Performance Indicators (KPIs): Organizations should select KPIs that are relevant to their circular economy goals and strategies.

En mi experiencia, antes de definir indicadores debemos tener claridad de la fuente de origen, es decir cuánto residuo generamos? o cuánto insumo compramos? etc. Por ej. para determinar la cantidad promedio de residuos que genera la organización se puede realizar una caracterización de residuos y recién en base a ella definir los indicadores o metas como % de reciclaje, % de reducción, etc. Así, la formulación de estos indicadores tendrán una base objetiva.

Select relevant metrics: Circularity Gap Report Indicator (CGRI): Measures global/national circularity (circular vs linear material flow ratio) Material Circularity Indicator (MCI): Measures product/company circularity based on materials kept in use/returned to the system Circular Transition Indicators (CTI): Measures a company's circularity across strategy, innovation, operations, and outcomes Consider a mix of quantitative & qualitative metrics: Look beyond just numbers. Qualitative factors like design for recyclability or customer behavior towards reuse can be valuable Align with established frameworks: Utilize frameworks like the Circular Economy Indicators by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation for guidance

Assessing your organisation's circularity journey starts with clearly defining your goals and scope. Choose relevant metrics like material flows, resource efficiency, and product lifespans, guided by frameworks like CEAP or GRI. Gather data, track progress, and use compelling visuals to report your circularity performance to stakeholders. Remember, it's a continuous journey - start small, engage stakeholders, benchmark, and refine your approach for impactful communication and a more sustainable future.

ESG and circularity reporting is a journey, a dynamic, iterative and continual improvement process which evolve over time. Even if you don't have a complete picture yet, start by collecting data, doing hotspot analysis, select your indicators and at least perform an internal assessment. The best thing you can do is START. Look for examples from other companies and reporting requirements and standards (both global and regional). For example; European Union's Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), where companies are required to report on circular economy activities in line with the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS). Regularly review, update, find gaps and continuously seek opportunities for improvement.

En una empresa de fabricación de snacks aplicaron la economía circular en las cajas de cartón, estas eran usadas en una sola ocasión cando se surtía el pedido al cliente de la tienda, a él le dejaban la caja de cartón, con lo cual diariamente se tenían que comprar. Hoy en día la caja de cartón no se deja con el cliente y se reutiliza hasta que se rompa, esto incremento su uso de uno a siete veces, es decir que ahora una caja dura lo que antes duraban 7 cajas de cartón.