Innovating for a circular economy in the Hunter
Experts and industry came together to exchange ideas and solutions for complex problems in recycling at the Innovation in the Circular Economy 2022 Conference at Newcastle City Hall last week.
Hosted by the NSW Smart Sensing Network, HunterNet Cooperative and the Hunter Circular Economic Zone, the two-day workshop brought together partners from government, industry and universities to discuss the science, technology, business and infrastructure requirements to transition to a sustainable circular economy for the Hunter Region.
In his welcome address, Minister for Science, Innovation and Technology, Alister Henskens SC MP said the key to NSW’s circular economy success will be collaboration between universities, industry and government to deliver innovative solutions to challenges.
Indeed, the key themes coming out of the event were that collaboration and innovation are critical to the success of a sustainable circular economy.
Presenters came from across government, industry and university sectors to discuss circular economy ideas & solutions. Photo: NSSN
In her opening address to the conference, Chief Executive Officer at Committee for the Hunter, Alice Thompson said the development of a thriving industry will depend on systems thinkers and people capable of working across sectors and disciplines to create the partnerships the circular economy needs to advance.
"There is an urgent need to reconcile the way that we live on Earth, our culture, economy and built environment with the processes of life of which we depend upon for health and wellbeing,” said Thompson.
The circular economy is also about rethinking how we approach industry said Circular Australia CEO, Lisa McLean.
“Business needs to drive change in their supply chains and be ambitious on how they can design out waste and carbon,” said McLean.
“It’s about changing behaviour, building markets, new supply chains and procurement processes.”
As the conference keynote speaker, 2022 NSW Australian of the Year and Director of the UNSW Sustainable Materials Research and Technology (SMaRT) Centre, Scientia Professor Veena Sahajwalla said the circular economy is becoming mainstream and everyone is excited by what that means and brings.
So what is the second key to the circular economy?
It’s got to deliver economic outcomes which will be a win-win outcome for both the environment and the economy said Prof. Sahajwalla.
“Circular solutions come through innovation and collaboration. It’s about holistically looking at the circular economy from producers and designers, end users, through to owners of waste materials.”
Several panel discussions featuring researchers, government and industry anchored the event.
A series of panel discussions explored a variety of circular economy topics. Photo: NSSN
The discussions explored topics such as how research can help business and governments to be more sustainable, what the future of the circular economy is, and what are the breakthroughs and roadblocks, including what role government must play to encourage and attract investment in the circular economy.
Encouragingly, in one of the final addresses to the conference, Federal Member for Newcastle, Sharon Claydon MP said the Federal Government was committed to designing out waste and pollution in regulation and policy to foster investment and markets that will support the circular economy by 2030.
The event wrapped with a dinner featuring a closing speech by Circular Australia Chair and former Federal MP Terri Butler that reinforced the key themes of the last two days around collaboration, innovation and the exchange of ideas that translate to solutions in the circular economy.
Circular Australia Chair and former Federal MP Terri Butler gave a closing speech at the event dinner. Photo: NSSN
“We want to champion circular economy. We want to drive change, measure impact and accelerate the circular economy transition,” said Butler.
“From governments, industry, business, and importantly, research, it is important to acknowledge that we can amplify the benefit of this work through collaboration.
“Events like this are so important because they bring people together across jurisdictions, disciplines, organisations and sectors, allowing for us all to be surrounded by ideas, sparking inspiration for innovation and application in different contexts.”
NSSN Industrial Futures Theme Leader and event facilitator Dr Don McCallum declared the conference an outstanding success saying that the event was the right thing to do, at the right time, with the right people, and at the right place.
“We are seeing various catalysts emerging from technology readiness, right through to real breakthrough projects with real dollar value capture,” said Dr McCallum.
“The conference had people with a broad understanding of the circular economy, and sustainability from across sectors collaborating for meaningful breakthroughs needed to be in place for a better world.
‘The Hunter Region has a unique mix of natural resources, skills and human resources, connectivity, proximity, energy, transport and logistics unlike anywhere in the world, demonstrating to the global community what a successful circular economy can look like.”
Event sponsorship came from the NSW Smart Sensing Network, The University of Newcastle and the NSW Energy and Resources Knowledge Hub.
The NSW Smart Sensing Network (NSSN), a consortium of nine leading universities across NSW and the ACT, is a not-for-profit innovation network that brings together universities, industry and government to translate world-class research into innovative smart sensing solutions that create value for NSW and beyond.