Circular Economy related highlights of ECTD serviced normative processes

The 27th session of the UN/CEFACT Plenary (19-20 April 2021) adopted a far-reaching package of solutions in support of a circular economy : UNECE Recommendation 46 “Enhancing Traceability and Transparency of Sustainable and Circular Value Chains in the Garment and Footwear Sector” and a Call to Action for Traceability, Transparency, Sustainability and Circularity of Value Chains in the Garment and Footwear Sector. With this UNECE-brokered package of recommendations, also called “The Sustainability Pledge”, governments and responsible companies can gather the information necessary for improving sustainability in the sector and prioritizing circular economic approaches to production.
The Team of Specialists on Innovation and Competitiveness Policies (ToS-ICP) has developed two policy papers on the identification of good practices for the platform economy and on innovation-enhancing procurement for sustainable development. One of the previous works of ToS-ICP on circularity includes policy paper “Towards the Circular Economy - Innovation Policies for Sustainable Production and Consumption”. The ToS-ICP is currently preparing summary policy documents, offering key elements of a policy solutions on innovation and circularity.
The fifth session of the Working Party on Public-Private Partnerships (PPP) (29-30 November 2021) endorsed UNECE’s People-first PPP Evaluation Methodology for the SDGs. Applying the methodology will foster the incorporation of circularity dimension in project evaluation and design and will better evaluate circularity-enhancing projects in different infrastructure sectors. The Team of Specialists on Innovation and Competitiveness Policies (ToS-ICP) has developed two policy papers on the identification of good practices for the platform economy and on innovation-enhancing procurement for sustainable development. One of the previous works of ToS-ICP on circularity includes policy paper “Towards the Circular Economy - Innovation Policies for Sustainable Production and Consumption”. The ToS-ICP is currently preparing summary policy documents, offering key elements of a policy solutions on innovation and circularity.
To mobilise public and private investment for the transition to a more circular economy ECTD is supporting UNECE’s Working Party on Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) in the advancement of Guidelines on Promoting People-first PPP Waste-to-Energy Projects for the Circular Economy, and the development of Guidelines to Catalyse the Circular Economy Agenda throughout the PPP process.
ECTD is also supporting the work of the UN Centre for Trade Facilitation and Electronic Business (UN/CEFACT) to create a Sustainable Development and Circular Economy Reference Data Model Support (SDCERDM). The Reference Data Model will ensure data compatibility and enable data interoperability among stakeholders in global value chains ensuring their compliance with sustainability requirements.
ECTD is serving the recently established Team of Specialists on Environmental, Social and Governance Traceability of Sustainable Value Chains in the Circular Economy, which is developing ESG traceability approaches and systems for the exchange of data and information along global value chains in priority industries for the circular transition.
ECTD is leading the implementation of a project “Accelerating the transition towards a more circular economy in the UNECE region” (multi-agency UNDA project, 2021-2024). Under the project, ECTD launched the CIRCULAR STEP network on 6 April 2022. Recording of the meeting is available here Circular Economy and Sustainable Use of Natural Resources – Institutional Arrangements - YouTube