The European Green Deal and the German Circular Economy
Discuss sustainability issues in the ‘Green Deal and Circular Economy’ group
Theme Networks® have now been in existence for a good year. As a small project that arose out of necessity during the pandemic and was raised by us in addition to our everyday professional life, our network is developing step by step. We now have around 350 members who can learn with and from each other. In addition to the thematic network groups that have existed since the network was founded, a new group has also been added: ‘Green Deal and Circular Economy’.
With the adoption of Agenda 2030 and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2015, the global community has set the course for a more sustainable future. This was followed in 2017 by the German Sustainability Strategy as a roadmap for implementing these 17 global goals for sustainable development in our country. With the Green Deal, the EU delivered yet another key building block for climate and environmental protection in 2019: Europe is to become the first climate-neutral continent by 2050.
Learning from and with others on sustainability topics
Number 12 of the SDGs ‘Produce and consume sustainably’ is dedicated to rules for dealing with limited resources: In practice, this means using resources instead of consuming them. Waste management companies and recycling centers are key players in the transition from a linear to a circular economy. Because they organize part of those resources that can be reused or recycled. Since Agenda 2030 at the latest, many regulations and their practical implementation for this purpose, e.g. with regard to the collection or sorting of waste and recyclables, have been measured against the overarching goal of a more sustainable world.
However, there is no one universal solution: What works well in large cities is by no means suitable for a community with 5,000 inhabitants. In many areas of public services, such as local public transport, the infrastructure in rural regions requires different solutions than in large cities. However, this does not necessarily apply to other areas: for example, with regard to public relations and waste consulting. While large waste management companies have their own communications departments, municipalities and small towns usually have only one or two people whose job it is to raise sustainability awareness in the region. If the ‘big ones’ pass on their knowledge here, the ‘little ones’ can also benefit. Good ideas and proven campaigns for waste prevention can be adapted in both directions. In this way, smaller companies can also provide new impulses that large cities can prepare for their citizens.
Managing the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Green Deal together.
Theme Networks® can be a connecting point here. The field of knowledge of our network includes in particular specialist areas relating to waste disposal, i.e. recycling centers, waste containers, urban cleanliness and winter services, municipal vehicles, digitalization, environmental communication and waste consulting. The thematic network groups are intended to be places of communication for all those who deal with these specialist areas in a professional context – regardless of whether they are people from small, medium-sized or metropolitan companies, whether they have a practical background or come from the scientific field. In the latest thematic network group ‘Green Deal and Circular Economy’, the focus is on the sustainability goals for our industry mentioned at the beginning: What approaches to solutions and what challenges are there for the circular economy of tomorrow?
Knowledge based on experience
With Theme Networks® we want to stimulate professional exchange and encourage personal initiative. Anyone with a question can ask the community for help. On the other hand, everyone can share their own experiences – whether in response to a question or out of curiosity about what colleagues think about this. “Knowledge is like a tree: the larger and more branched it is, the more pronounced its contact with the unknown.” – In order to be able to expand our ‘knowledge database’ according to this practical equation of the famous mathematician and philosopher Blaise Pascal, we would like to attract many more members who would like to use our network for their own questions and problems and share their experiences with others. If you are not yet familiar with Themennetzwerke®, we would be delighted if you would drop by https://themennetzwerke.de/ or the Themennetzwerke group ‘Green Deal and Circular Economy’.
