December 2022 - You are accessing an archived version of our website. This website is no longer maintained or updated. The Sustainable Development Knowledge Platform has been migrated here: https://sdgs.un.org/
December 2022 - You are accessing an archived version of our website. This website is no longer maintained or updated. The Sustainable Development Knowledge Platform has been migrated here: https://sdgs.un.org/
As the efforts of all countries for the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals become more and more intense, it becomes more obvious that the current patterns of production and consumption are unsustainable in the long term.
Unsustainable natural resource use is having a huge impact on the environment. Projected increase in global population and the number of people living in cities is expected to further deplete natural resources beyond sustainable limits.
Large increase is projected for the global use of biomass, fossil fuels, metals and minerals, if we continue on the same paths of production and consumption. These trends would have huge impacts on our planet, in terms of climate change, environmental and land degradation, water stress, biodiversity loss and human health.
The new model of circular economy is meant to allow the planet to breathe, while leaving no one behind. By decoupling economic growth from resource use, setting global standards in product sustainability, keeping resource use within planetary boundaries and promoting the re-use of materials, circular economy may be the only sustainable economic model for the future. Not only could it lead to a healthier planet and more prosperous humankind in the long term, but it could also create jobs and new business models in the very near future.
This side event presents these new trends, by presenting successful business practices in the area of circular economy from different regions.
Greeting by Prof. Konstantinos Aravossis, Secretary General of the Ministry of Environment and Energy of Greece