Planet Ark to lead National Circular Economy Hub and Marketplace

Planet Ark to lead National Circular Economy Hub and Marketplace

By Josh Cole  May 6th, 2019

In an incredible achievement, Planet Ark received word last week that the Federal Government would provide us with $1.6M in funding to develop a National Circular Economy Hub and Marketplace, which will be Australia's leading platform to help Australian businesses implement circular economy principles.

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In an incredible achievement, Planet Ark received word last week that the Federal Government would provide us with $1.6M in funding to develop a National Circular Economy Hub and Marketplace, which will be Australia's leading platform to help Australian businesses implement circular economy principles.   These initiatives will address a key challenge facing recyclers and manufacturers – the availability and demand for recycled material. The problem is so pronounced for some materials that manufacturers must source them from overseas or reduce their ambitions for how much domestic recycled material they use. For other recycled materials there is poor demand due to lack of awareness or motivation to make products using recycled content. That challenge is one reason the Australian manufacturing economy is predominantly linear, otherwise known as a ‘take, make, use and, dispose’ modelOn the other hand, a circular economy replaces ‘dispose’ with ‘reduce, reuse, recycle and repurpose’ and keeps important materials like plastic, metals and paper in circulation for as long as possible and out of landfill.  The Circular Economy Hub will serve as a one-stop shop on circular economy thinking and implementation for Australian businesses. It will provide news, case studies, CEO interviews, advice, events and research for businesses seeking to implement circular economy practices.   “The Circular Economy Hub will provide businesses and other organisations with the knowledge and tools needed for their transition to a circular economy model, said Planet Ark’s CEO Paul Klymenko. “An important element will be the Circular Economy Marketplace, which will act as the B2B ‘eBay’ of the circular economy. Planet Ark is thrilled to have been entrusted with the development of these vital tools.”  Planet Ark’s Head of Sustainable Resource Programs, Ryan Collins, agrees: “This is fantastic news because it helps Planet Ark address one of the key challenges facing the Australian recycling industry, namely in developing the domestic market for recycled materials. We’re delighted to have been given the important responsibility to develop the technology behind the Circular Economy Marketplace to serve as the missing piece of the recycling puzzle.”  Planet Ark anticipates making further announcements regarding the Circular Economy Hub in the latter half of 2019 and will launch the Circular Economy Marketplace in 2020. Stay tuned for more news. Planet Ark is currently seeking corporate partners for the Circular Economy Hub. Please email kristie@planetark.org for more information.

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By Josh Cole

Josh comes to Planet Ark after a stint in legal communication and from a background in print journalism. He studied Communications and Media as a mature age student in Wollongong where he re-discovered his love for the natural environment.

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