The 30th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP30) is now underway in Belém, Brazil (10–21 November), bringing together governments, policymakers, scientists and industry leaders to assess global progress on tackling climate issues.
This year’s summit carries added weight: countries are under renewed pressure to submit updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs)—their formal plans for cutting greenhouse gas emissions. So far, only around a third have done so, though the UK has submitted an updated and more ambitious commitment.
Alongside its core focus on tracking progress against the 2015 Paris Agreement—aimed at limiting global temperature rise to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels—COP30 is addressing a range of long-standing challenges. Delegates are debating the global transition away from fossil fuels, setting out a roadmap for $1.3 trillion in climate finance for developing nations, and discussing how to triple worldwide renewable energy capacity. Brazil has also launched a major $125 billion initiative, the Tropical Forests Forever Facility, to protect vital forest ecosystems.
But this year, a new theme entered the global climate agenda. For the first time in the history of the global climate negotiations, COP30 hosted a dedicated Circular Economy Day on 11 November. The day spotlighted the role that circular practices—designing out waste, using materials more efficiently, and keeping resources in circulation for longer—must play in cutting emissions.
Climate change COPs can seem remote and frustrating to many people, due to the complexity and politics involved, but they are important and relevant for professional resource and waste managers
The addition reflects a growing recognition: while switching to renewable energy and phasing out fossil fuels could eliminate up to 55% of global greenhouse gas emissions, the remaining 45% comes from how the world produces, consumes, uses and disposes of materials. Addressing that gap requires systemic changes across supply chains, manufacturing, consumption habits, and resource and waste management.
Events throughout the day highlighted solutions based on waste prevention, repair and reuse, higher-quality recycling, and more thoughtful product design—areas long championed by the resource and waste management sector.
Dan Cooke, CIWM’s Director of Policy, Communications and External Affairs, said the new focus demonstrates that circularity is no longer peripheral to climate action.
“Climate change COPs can seem remote and frustrating to many people, due to the complexity and politics involved, but they are important and relevant for professional resource and waste managers,” he said.
“Our sector is built on the need to protect human health and the environment, and climate change is the most significant risk. Most of the current and incoming policies and regulations for our sector are grounded in the need to reduce carbon emissions.”
Cooke noted that UK progress has already been significant. A major shift away from landfill and towards higher recycling rates and energy recovery has driven down emissions. The resource and waste sector currently accounts for around 8% of UK greenhouse gases, but a roadmap—now in development by WRAP with CIWM as a key funder and partner—is expected next year and will set out further steps to reach net zero.
“We know that our sector services are the bedrock of a more circular economy,” Cooke added. “CIWM members and the wider sector are committed to positive change. It is encouraging to see the UK focusing on the economic, as well as social and environmental, benefits of climate leadership—and to see that the circular economy is now firmly on the agenda at COPs.”
The introduction of a Circular Economy Day may signal a broader shift within global climate negotiations—moving beyond energy systems alone to address the material foundations of the global economy.
With record demand for raw materials, rising waste generation, and many countries struggling to meet climate targets, the integration of circular economy principles into COP deliberations could set the tone for more ambitious resource-focused commitments in the years ahead.
For now, the message from Belém is clear: cutting emissions will require a transformation not just of how the world powers itself, but of how it designs, uses and manages the materials that underpin modern life.
The World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) and One Planet Network (hosted by UNEP) have announced the official launch of the Global Circularity Protocol for business (GCP) at the event, marking a major milestone in the global transition to a circular economy.
Developed in partnership with over 150 experts from more than 80 organisations – including leading businesses, policymakers, and scientific advisors – the GCP is the world’s first voluntary science-based, globally harmonised framework designed to help companies of all sizes measure, manage, and communicate their circular performance and impacts across value chains.