The Circular Economy Forum of the Americas: The first step toward a Sustainable Continent

The Circular Economy Forum of the Americas (CEFA) is an initiative organized by the Circular Economy Platform of the Americas (CEP-Americas) and powered by the Americas Sustainable Development Foundation (ASDF). This Forum aims to enable the transition toward circular economies in the American Continent by creating knowledge and tools applicable to each nation of our region.

CEFA2017, being the inaugural version of this Forum, sets the precedents to start the regional discussions around Circular Economy which is gaining traction in the global context as a compelling strategy to create wealth while regenerating natural and human capitals. One of the main objectives of CEFA2017 is to connect key stakeholders to enable this transition in the Americas. Thus governments, academia, NGOs and entrepreneurs will meet in the same place to start to generate and exchange innovative ideas for this paradigm shift.

But, what is the real value of CEFA for the American Continent?

Firstly, under global and regional circumstances such as economy deceleration, and the different challenges in economic, social and environmental sustainability we must start raising awareness and proposing effective solutions to all these challenges. In this context, the Circular Economy has been acknowledged as the most logical strategy to address current challenges we are facing by rethinking the way we produce and consume goods and services. Furthermore, this new economic model boosts the elimination of negative externalities such as climate change, pollution and, the circulation of toxic materials which can damage human and environmental health.

Secondly, the transition towards a Circular Economy has started in different regions of the world. In this way, Europe has been leading this movement from the private sector and involving different stakeholders such as governments to implement public policies and changes within the financial and educational systems. Other regions such as the United States, China and Japan are as well advancing in the implementation of Circular Economy strategies. Thus, as a region we must urge ourselves to take action and to start understanding and contextualising the Circular Economy into our realities.

Thirdly, CEFA proposes to create a space to enable knowledge exchange to learn from the international experiences around the Circular Economy. This will provide support to the different change agents of our region in the conception of initiatives and projects which will establish the right enabling conditions for a Circular Economy transition in the Americas.

The expected results of CEFA2017 are ambitious and challenging and we kindly invite you to join us to reach and exceed these goals!

CEFA aims to:

To establish effective and synergistic partnerships between different key sectors for this transition in the Americas (Academic, Private, Public Sectors)
To have clarity on the Regional Agenda around the Circular Economy. This will be nurtured along the different versions of the Forum.
To recognize the existing practices of Circular Economy in the Region and expand their impact.
To create programs, initiatives or projects that contribute to advance the transition towards a Circular Economy in the Region.
To consolidate initiatives that generate knowledge, acknowledge the efforts of the region around Circular Economy and unify the key players of the continent such as the Platform for Circular Economy of the Americas.

If you or your organization would like to be part of this great opportunity to start generating positive and lasting changes in the different countries of the Americas, please do not hesitate to contact us at info@cep-americas.com

Lorena García, ASDF.

[i] Lorena García is a Project Manager at the Americas Sustainable Development Foundation. She holds a bachelor degree in Chemical Engineering and a Master's degree in Innovation and Technology Management from the University of Bath (UK). During her Master's, she performed research on the Circular Economy (CE) tailored to emerging countries, analyzing the opportunities and challenges to transition towards a CE in low and middle income countries in the American continent.

[i] The Americas Sustainable Development Foundation (ASDF) is an independent advisory foundation focused on linking people, ideas, and action to achieve sustainable development across the American continent. See for more information: www.sustainableamericas.com