Circular economy

Current linear production and consumption patterns are unsustainable. The planet’s natural resources are rapidly depleting. And drastic change is needed.

A circular economy, where waste is turned into raw material with less spillage, and where products are designed to be smarter, so that they can be reused and recycled more. This will rebalance global economic growth, while providing ample opportunities for innovation and business worldwide. The Netherlands has one of the biggest carbon footprints in the world. We need to admit we lost track ourselves and that we can learn a lot from other countries. Going circular benefits us all, including countries on their way to economic growth, where this transition can create extra jobs. Ultimately, we believe a circular economy will result in a more robust and cross-functional economy and an improved quality of life for all.

The Netherlands aims to be a fully functioning circular economy by 2050. The Dutch government is working to create the right conditions for a circular economy, support the private sector to transition to circular business models and inform and educate society to become CE ready. To reach this ambitious target, circular innovations need to be initiated and adopted into daily use. Going circular requires the reshaping of an entire system, with everyone on board.

The Dutch are entrepreneurial people, and collaboration is in our DNA. In the Netherlands, government, knowledge institutions, businesses and civil society work together to make the circular shift. They set aside their own short-term interests to focus on the shared long-term objective: to become a fully circular economy. The government facilitates this ambition by helping entrepreneurs to develop, launch and scale-up their circular products and services. Initiatives like the Netherlands Circular Accelerator facilitate this.

To create an economy that is truly 100% circular, we need to go beyond national borders. Pioneers of the Dutch circular movement want to collaborate with their counterparts elsewhere. The Dutch government, companies, knowledge institutes and NGOs already work together with partners all over the world to exchange ideas and learn from each other’s mistakes and successes. The Netherlands is keen to collaborate with other countries – partnering up to create solutions in every step of the value chain. We can collaborate by sharing insights and tools on topics like circular agri & food, water and waste management, chemical recycling and innovative packaging. This can be facilitated through international initiatives like Holland Circular Hotspot and the PACE (Platform for Accelerating the Circular Economy) Action Hub.