The circular economy is an uprising trend across the globe, not only is it a regenerative approach to production and consumption, but it also encourages creativity and cross-sector collaboration that, in the long run, would create new jobs and make business operations more sustainable and competitive.
However, this transformation requires systemic changes from enterprises and the active participation of stakeholders across different value chains.
This is according to Professor Llewelyn Hughes, Professor of Public Policy from Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University who delivered his keynote on the essentials on “Global Value Chains Transformation and its Implications for Businesses in the Transition Towards Circular Economy”.
He said, “The restructuring of global value chains is reshaping the international production, trade, and investment landscape. It is important that companies and governments start to re-assess risks and opportunities with a view to creating a circular economy that supports climate resilience and global sustainability.”
Ms. Teresa Yang, Vice Chairman of Esquel Group, gave the second keynote speech, “Accelerating Circularity Through Transformative Technologies and Business Model Innovations”. She remarked, “Our dedication to sustainability is not motivated by regulatory compliance.
Rather, it is embedded in our corporate vision and represents our unwavering commitment to responsible business practices. We believe that by investing in new technology, the long-term benefits of circularity will be rewarding not just for us as a company, but also for the customers and wider society.”
Mr. Kim Siu, the Director of Business Innovation and Planning at Watsons Water, shared the company’s circularity initiative in the keynote speech “Integrating Circularity into Long-term Business Strategies”.
He said: “We have learnt that to create a scalable circularity initiative, we cannot leave out the buy-in from top management and participation of customers. It won’t be a successful engagement if we do not put ourselves in their shoes and think of a plan that fulfil their needs.”
During the Open Floor Moderated Session hosted by Professor Wai-Fung Lam, Director of the Centre for Civil Society and Governance, HKU, the panelists discussed various aspects of progressing circular economy transformation in Hong Kong under the topic of “Building a Vibrant Ecosystem for Circular Economy”.
They took a deep dive into the key trends that influence the circularity transition, ranging from the reconfiguration of global value chains to the rise of sustainability-conscious consumers. They explored the opportunities the circular economy could bring to local businesses, sharing interesting business cases that demonstrated the roles of start-ups and technology in building ecosystems.
The Open Floor Moderated Session was followed by the SVC Commitment and SMEs Sustainability Leadership Recognition Schemes (The Scheme) award ceremony to recognize the achievement and contribution of the participating companies in Cohort 2022. A total of nine SVC signatory companies and six SMEs participated.
Partnership for Sustainability Leadership in Business
The “Partnership for Sustainability Leadership in Business” (PSLB) is a four-year project initiated by the Centre for Civil Society and Governance, HKU, and supported by The Hongkong Bank Foundation. The Project is led by Professor Wai-Fung Lam, together with a group of sustainability experts.
It is aimed at fostering sustainability leadership and collaboration in the business sector of Hong Kong through knowledge transfer, capacity building, and network development; in particular, the Project strives to foster strong partnerships between big corporations and SMEs in pursuit of sustainability.
The Project aspires to build a collaborative ecosystem which will enhance the capacity and role of SMEs in Hong Kong and the Greater Bay Area in attaining sustainable development. More details: https://ccsg.hku.hk/pslb
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