Circular Economy HotSpot Scotland took place on 1 October and 30 November. The event is an international meeting, where about 400 people from different countries, who work for governments, companies and organizations, demonstrated their policies and actions aimed at developing the circular economy. A party of us from Cluster del Packaging had the opportunity to participate as subscribing members of the Circular Economy Observatory of Catalonia.
"Miranda Schintger of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation discussing the Circular Economy in cities"
There were two intense days with several presentations at which we talked about the times we are in, shifts in circular economies, the importance of cooperation, new business opportunities, environmental initiatives in terms of cities and best practices on circularity carried out in Scotland.
Throughout the day, there was great emphasis on the fact that only 9.1% of the world economy is circular (The circularity GAP report), and that we must continue working so that a higher percentage becomes a reality. It was mentioned that designers must start thinking differently and start more circular initiatives and that how, as a society, waste has been normalized.
Another of the activities we were able to attend was a workshop on food waste and what the challenges are if we want to achieve reductions in it. Issues such as food waste prevention, England’s regulations for 2025 on food waste, redistribution of food and composting were subjects dealt with.
Visit to the Plastic Recycling Centre of Excellence.
On the second day, visits were made to different companies working with circularity. We visited a centre of excellence for plastic recycling (Scottish Plastic Recycling Centre of Excellence). The centre develops projects regarding recycling of plastic, technical support and certification services for plastic manufacturers. One of the innovative projects that is being developed at the centre is a prototype machine to be able to separate plastics based on their density.
At the close of the meeting, there was a verdict on the holding of the 2020 Congress, where the Catalan candidacy won out over the candidacies of Canada, Denmark, Taiwan and Slovenia, with a proposal that emphasized the work that the Catalan Government has been promoting for some years with the approval, at the time, of the Strategy for Promoting Green and Circular Economy; with the National Agreement for Industry and with the Ecodesign Strategy. The government delegation was very satisfied with the work done and the support given by entities, research centres and companies that took part in the meeting.
Submission of the candidature with the support of the entire Catalan delegation to the CE HotSpot Scot, with representatives of the Catalan Government, research centres and companies in Catalonia.
