Circular Economy Hotspot

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BILL MCDONOUGH ANDRÉ KUIPERS NEELIE KROES EBERHARD VAN DER LAAN HANS DE BOER ANDY RIDLEY ELSE BOS JOS NIJHUIS AHMED ABOUTALEB PETER BAKKER SHARON DIJKSMA CHEN XU WIEBE DRAIJER COERT ZACHARIASSE JASPER SNOEK ERIKA KOEHLER GUIDO BRAAM

APRIL 2016

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Rarely have I been prouder than I am now, to share this magazine with you, its read-ers. We live in an era where the challenges facing us worldwide are at times simply overwhelming. Struggle and conflict dominate our news headlines. But the following pages will play you an uplifting tune, and paint a vision of a new era using brighter colours. Because that is what a circular economy has to offer: responsible and sus-tainable growth for a society in which people, businesses and our planet can flourish.

It has been truly inspiring to meet with the visionary personalities whose views and insights you are about to read. Although very different in background and profession, they are all focussed on finding solutions.

Circularity is all about optimism, ingenuity and common sense

Numerous discussions and visits to projects have strengthened my belief in the role the Netherlands can and should play in boosting the circular economy across the globe. Optimism, ingenuity, adaptability to change and a deeply rooted compass of common sense are all strong Dutch characteristics. The latter being the first core value of the circular economy: it just makes sense.

Over the past few years more and more Dutch companies and entrepreneurs, together with local and national governments, institutes, universities and NGOs have made impressive steps in the transition towards a circular economy. It is an exciting journey that generates a positive flow of energy throughout the country, and indeed is turning the Netherlands into a circular hotspot.

I have no doubt that you will find inspiration, new insights, and new questions in this magazine. Please consider it an invitation to join us – any of us – on this promising journey.

H.R.H. Prince Carlos de Bourbon de ParmeChairman of the campaign The Netherlands Circular Hotspot

ALL THINGS BRIGHT AND CIRCULAR

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‘Royal HaskoningDHV is about enhancing society together. The Circular Economy movement contributes to a true sustainable future. The transition is essential and can also provide business opportunities. We have initiat-ed the Green Fund, Zero Emission City Logistics; with partners we work together in e.g. Take Back Chemicals, Park4 all, a manure valorization project with FrieslandCampina: CODE® and the reclamation of an organic soil fertilizer during the drinking water process with Vitens. Initiatives we are very proud of.’ Erik Oostwegel - CEO Royal HaskoningDHV

The Netherlands Circular Hotspot is a campaign that is supported by the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Environment and 31 organizations that are committed to realizing a circular economy. Each of them has offered a statement to underline that commitment.

‘In the coming decades, transition will be key for the port of Rotterdam, in which an important element is the stimulation of a circular economy. This means: using much less raw materials, maximizing their yields and, especially, reusing them, creating opportunities that will enhance our current mode of production by attracting new business activity. That way, we will ensure that – also in the second half of the century – the port will remain a pillar of Dutch prosperity.’ Allard Castelein - CEO Port of Rotterdam

‘Banks play a crucial role in driving economic growth and progress, and it’s our duty to ensure they are sustainable. Global challenges such as climate change and resource scarcity require us to rethink current economic systems and find solutions. The circular economy, which decouples economic growth from resource use, is one such solution. ING proudly plays its part by leading the thinking on the role of financial services in the circular economy and by empow-ering clients to make the transition to circular and sustainable business models.’ Ralph Hamers - CEO ING

‘The activities of Deltares are at the service of the sustainable development of delta areas, coastal regions and river basins. We have a leading position in the field of environmental issues relating to soil and water. We develop inno-vative and sustainable solutions to enable delta life. It therefore goes without saying that we keep the environmental impact of our own business operations to a minimum. And we want to help and inspire others to do the same.’Maarten Smits - Managing Director Deltares

‘Rabobank believes it can make a substantial contribution to welfare and prosperity by promoting a circular economy. We’re also convinced we can in this way improve our customers’ competitive position and resilience and as a result their financeability. Circular enterprise furthermore lends itself extremely well for our role as financial linking pin. Rabobank offers customers circular economy challenge programmes as an opportunity for them to turn an idea into an action plan.’ Wiebe Draaijer - CEO Rabobank

‘Our ambition at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol is to become the world’s most sustainable airport. That means a commitment to zero waste by 2030, increased innovation, like our Blueveyor baggage belt and ‘light as a service’ in our new Departure Lounge 2. It means striving to design and building our new pier and terminal according to circular principles. It’s part of our commitment to transform the way we operate and develop our assets – for the next 100 years and beyond.’ Jos Nijhuis - CEO Schiphol

‘The Chemical Industry is a key enabler of the manufacturing industry. The expertise of chemical; engineers is exact-ly what is required to design basic materials in such a way that they can be used in multiple lifecycles. Circular use of basic building blocks provides a huge opportunity for radical resource efficiency and for a vital circular economy. A precondition to ensure that by 2050 9 billion can enjoy decent living standards within the boundaries of One Planet. Planet Possible!’ Andre Veneman - Corporate Director Sustainability AkzoNobel

‘The circular economy represents a massive opportunity for the Netherlands, a country with the right conditions and necessities to create a luminous example of business as an engine for change. Delta Development Group leads the way worldwide in the built environment towards the circular economy. With the development of Valley, our national hub for the CE, we aim to create a catalyst that will inspire, accelerate and develop the circular economy in the Netherlands and beyond.’ Coert Zachariasse - CEO Delta Development Group

‘Amsterdam has a leading role in the transition to a circular economy because of the innovations of the research institutes, businesses and start-ups in the city. We have a strong creative industry, necessary for, for example, circular (re)design of products. For now, it is important to gain a shared understanding of the opportunities that the circular economy has to offer, and when the government has to act and when it has to take distance in order to foster the development thereof.’ Abdeluheb Choho - Alderman Municipality of Amsterdam

‘PGGM believes that the financial sector must accelerate the transition to a circular economy. We also seek partners outside our sector to stimulate this transaction, such as designers, governments, policy makers, legislators, business leaders and consumers. I am convinced that the transition we are seeking will only be realized if all private and public stakeholders work together. Finances will be an important instrument to accelerate this deveopment, but we also need a disruptive change. In the real economy ánd in our financial sector.’ Else Bos - CEO PGGM

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26. A TALE OF TWO CITIES

Eberhard van der Laan and Ahmed Aboutaleb, mayors of Amsterdam and Rotterdam, on how to change everyday behaviour and create opportunities for circular businesses.

36. JOS NIJHUISThe Netherlands’ main air hub has grand circular ambitions, says Schiphol’s chairman. ‘We want to be one of the world’s greenest airports.’

44. HANS DE BOERThe chairman of VNO-NCW employer’s organizations sees lots of commercial prospects in waste. ‘We ought to have a kind of recycling ‘bank’ for raw materials.’

6. ICONIC PROJECTSThere are already hundreds of circular projects in the Netherlands. We made a subjective selection of eleven ‘iconic’ projects and asked photographer Barbara Kieboom to visualize ten of them in a personal interpretation (p. 9, 13, 16, 24, 31, 32, 35, 40, 43, 48).

10. ANDRÉ KUIPERSThe man who left earth and came back an environmentalist.

14. MONEYCircular business models have a great impact on finance.

17. TESTIMONIALSBill McDonough, Sharon Dijksma (p. 34), Chen Xu (p. 42), and Andy Ridley (p. 47) share their vision.

Contents

Frans Timmermans First Vice-President European Commission, a.o. responsible for sustainable development

Our planet and our economy cannot survive if we continue with the ‘take, make, use and throw away’ approach. We need to retain precious resources and fully exploit all the economic value within them. The circular economy is about reducing waste and protecting the environment, but it is also about a profound transformation of the way our entire economy works. I am happy to see that the Netherlands are a frontrunner in rethinking the way we produce, work and buy. This will generate new opportunities and create new jobs. Also at the European level, we are working to set a credible and ambitious path for better waste management in all our Member States with supportive actions that cover the full product cycle. This mix of smart regulation and incentives at EU level will help businesses and consumers, as well as national and local authorities, to drive this transformation.

FRONTRUNNER

COLOPHON

18. NEELIE KROESLady Europe is now the mother of innovation. ‘If we do nothing, we’ll be dependent on others for our raw materials in 20 years’ time.’

21. COLUMNSPeter Bakker, Else Bos (p. 39) and Erika Koehler (p. 50) weigh in on the importance of circularity.

22. THE VALLEYAn international showcase and nerve center for circular business. Near Amsterdam Schiphol Airport arises the most sustainable working environment in western Europe.


Circular hotspot project: A process solution to digest or renew cows’ manure into valuable end products such as biogas, recycled minerals and compost. FrieslandCampina is building the first dairy plant that partly runs on biogas from manure from its own farmers.

Organizations involved: In this innovation, Friesland-Campina collaborates with many different actors within and outside the dairy value chain: businesses, technology providers, knowledge institutes and (local) government.

Iconic because: The Dutch livestock sectors annually produce a volume of 74 million tons of manure. Wasted manure is a significant cost for farmers. A sound business case can be made for ‘fractionating’ manure into valuable components that can be brought back into the agricultural process, for example as a source of renewable energy. Collaborating with part-ners on manure digestion will help to develop the mar-ket for circular products like minerals, compost and biogas.

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When cities, companies, governmental ministries, branch-organizations, NGO’s and researchers who already started to shape a circular economy come together to share their experiences, something exciting happens. The result of several ‘round table’ events that were held last year: eight stepping stones to the next phase in circularity.

TO THE NEXT PHASE, AND BEYONDEIGHT STEPPING STONES TO CIRCULAR PROGRESS AND SUCCESS

The industrial Henry Ford said: ‘Coming together is a beginning; keeping together is progress; working togeth-er is success’. He perfectly described the three stages the Netherlands is going through in its journey to a circular economy. In 2016, the year of the Dutch EU Presidency and also the year after the launch of EU’s Circular Econ-omy Package, Dutch ‘circular frontrunners’ finished their years of ‘beginning of coming together’ and started the next phase: progress.Our current economy is a ‘take-make-waste’ model. It is a ‘linear’ and finite system. A circular economy is a regen-erative system in which infinite reuse of resources is the norm, but not at the expense of economic growth. The popularity of this transition is not surprising. Calculations by consultancy firm McKinsey indicate that a circular economy can lead to earnings of $340-630 billion per year in Europe alone. The Dutch research institute TNO concludes that a circular economy could deliver earn-ings of € 7.4 billion per year and 54,000 new jobs in the Netherlands alone; opportunities no country should ig-nore and the Dutch strive to play a major role in this chal-lenging transition. The Netherlands as a circular hotspot.

All over the Netherlands the circular economy is fuel-ling new business cases, technical and social innova-tions, investments and policies. It is also an economic ánd social transition that generates new challenges. The frontrunners in the Netherlands are discovering them through trial and error.

ROUND TABLESStarting in 2014 and inspired by the then upcoming Dutch EU Presidency in 2016, no less than 56 com-panies, 3 governmental ministries, 3 cities, 4 public organizations, 6 branch-organizations, 5 research in-stitutes and universities and 5 NGOs came together in several ‘round table’ events and openly exchanged thoughts and experiences on what they had learned so far. Their ambition: two assess the status of circular economy in the Netherlands, in order to distil the most important lessons learned and use these as stepping stones into the next phase of progress.They proudly share these stepping stones, so other countries, companies and organizations can equally benefit from what a circular economy has to offer.

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INNOVATION HAS BEGUN, NOW IT NEEDS LARGER SCALES FOR PROGRESSPro-active government: governments (national, regional, lo-cal) are a pro-active stakeholder in a circular economy. They actively stimulate innovation and circular business models, for instance through policy and their procurement.

Living labs: companies and municipalities jointly create cir-cular hubs and living labs, where for instance start-ups and larger corporations can connect and develop projects together.

PROGRESS MEANS MORE AND LARGER INVESTMENTS BY BANKS AND PENSION FUNDSNew financial game plans: banks and funds have learned that the financial structure of circular business models is far from ‘business as usual’. The current situation, in which they have to develop a custom made set of rules for each project, prevents progress to larger scales. It is imperative that banks, funds and government jointly work on new financial game plans.

WORKING TOGETHER IS NOT JUST AN OPTION, IT IS MANDATORYNew rulebooks for partnerships: the success of circular pro-jects depends on how well parties work together. A new rule-book includes an analysis at the start of a project: who needs to sit at the table? Take the time to understand each partner’s interests and their challenges. Share successful experiences as well as failures and create mutual trust.

THE AMOUNT OF PROGRESS EQUALS THE AMOUNT OF FINANCIAL INCENTIVESUpdate the tax system: current tax systems are based on a linear economy and put extremely high taxes on labour and hardly any on use of natural resources. The majority of ‘line-ar’ companies will only reconsider their business models and choices when confronted with different fiscal incentives and the same dynamic applies to consumers.

Create a level playing field: governments also play in im-portant role in creating a level playing field in which circular business models do not suffer from, for instance, subsidies for fossil fuels.

Take social and ecological values into account: accountancy firms play an important role in making standards and mone-tizing the so called ‘true costs’ of products and their processes.

RENEWABLE ENERGY IS THE ONLY FUEL FOR PROGRESSFossil fuels are an obstacle for a circular economy. In addition, companies don’t like volatility, and if anything, the price of oil is volatile. This year so far oil prices and the broader financial markets have suffered from acute bout of volatility, with no signs of letting up.

THE PROGRESS IS IN THE PUDDINGAssemble and show as many business opportunities as pos-sible: it is one thing for frontrunners to conclude that the Netherlands has enough circular cases to claim it’s a hotspot for the circular economy, it is another thing to make it known to others, in and outside the Netherlands. Focus on showing ánd sharing.

STUDENTS ARE THE AGENTS OF PROGRESS, SO TEACH THEM WELL.Include circular economy in different curricula: over the last decade there has been more interest in sustainability from stu-dents at Dutch universities and colleges. The upcoming circular economy seems to build on that interest. Since it is an interdisci-plinary development with economical, technical and social inno-vations, the curricula should not be limited to business schools.

RESPECT THAT CONSUMERS ARE CONSERVATIVE IN THEIR CHOICES. Make ‘circular’ the easy, fun and smart choice for consumers: accept that the general public does not change its behaviour based on only the incentive of doing the ‘right thing’. Make cir-cular innovations tangible, practical: what is in it for him or her and not (just) the planet. Don’t bother them with morals, but make the new, circular choices easy and affordable.

Already stakeholders in the Netherlands are acting on these stepping-stones: authoritative ministerial departments and councils have published thorough reports and studies to steer circular developments. A new study by the Social Economic Council is in the making. Captains of Dutch industries issued their visions, new coalitions of public and private organizations and NGOs joined forces with ministries to assemble circular frontrunners and their cases. Circular ‘hotbeds’ and expositions are being realised and trade missions organized. Major cities are implementing circular principles in their short and long term plans. The Netherlands is making progress on its circular way, encouraging others to work together for success. Just like Ford envisioned.

All over the Netherlands the circular economy is fuelling new business cases

From a linear system...

... to a circular system

Circular hotspot project: Researching the fiscal pos-sibilities of a fundamental tax shift from labour to the use of natural resources; a precondition for a successful circular economy.

Organizations involved: Deloitte, EY, KPMG Meijburg, PwC, The Ex’tax Project Foundation, DOEN, Adessium Foundation, MAVA Foundation.

Iconic because: The fundamental value of the project and the cooperating organizations. All reports and stud-

ies on circular economy agree that some of the current incentives at systems levels are perverse—for example, taxing labour instead of material. This seems like com-mon sense, but the complexity of our tax systems is a formidable barrier. In The Netherlands, the mentioned organizations joined forces, and together they are work-ing together on feasible fiscal possibilities and solutions for this tax shift. After finishing the Dutch case study in 2014, in 2016 the modelling of the tax shift for all EU countries will be finalized and available: sharing inno-vation.

THE BEAUTY OF TAXES

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ANDRÉ KUIPERS (57)

Education Medicine, University of Amsterdam

Career1991 - present dayMember of the European astronaut corps of the European Space Agency (ESA)

1987 - 1990Medical doctor, Royal Netherlands Air Force

Other positionsChairman - André Kuipers FoundationAmbassador - WWFAmbassador - Emma children’s hospitalAmbassador - Airsmiles FoundationAmbassador - WE FoundationAdvisory Board member - Nemo Science CenterSupervisory Board member - KNMIBoard member - Space Expo Noordwijk

InterestsFlying, diving, skiing, trekking, travel and history

Private lifeMarried, four children.

‘ If all these people want to live like us in the Netherlands, then we’d need 3.5 planet earths’

Dutch astronaut André Kuipers went into space an ordinary man but came back a committed environmentalist. With so many people demanding ever more from the Earth’s resources, cradle to cradle is our only way forward, he believes. ‘Up there, we are recycling all the time.’

THE MAN WHO FELL TO

A DIFFERENT EARTH

Early in the morning of 19 April 2004, Dutchman An-dré Kuipers, together with one Russian and one Amer-ican colleague, was launched into space from Kazakh-stan. Almost eight years later, on 21 December 2011, he went back to space. Once again a Soyuz rocket took him up to the ISS international space station for a mission that would last more than six months. Today, howev-er, André Kuipers – who now has a planetoid named after him – is no longer known simply for being an as-tronaut. Since his space missions he has also become a serious advocate for technology, science, nature and the environment. One of his roles is as ambassador for Techniekpact (technology pact); a project that the Dutch government hopes will encourage young people to study technological subjects. His other activities in-clude making appearances on TV science programmes and travelling around the country to give lectures and raise awareness of sustainable development.

Is saving the planet something that has al-ways been a major concern of yours?‘No, certainly not. I have a brother who’s a biologist and, when I was young, he was always very pessimistic about humanity’s negative impact on our world. He was fairly radical. He even thought we should stop having children and stop using cars. He has, by the way, since had his own children and he’s got a car, but he was fairly fanatical about all this back then. In that respect he was my conscience, because I actually looked at things from a totally different perspective. I had an optimistic out-look on life. While my brother could only see problems ahead, I thought: it’ll all be alright in the end.’

When did your attitude change?‘That happened during my space missions. I’d often go and sit by the window to enjoy the view, and when you look down on the earth you see two things: on the one

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hand it’s a fantastic, beautifully-coloured ball in space. I’d call it awe-inspiring. But as soon as you look past it, out into space, that feeling quickly fades away. Suddenly you notice just how thin the atmosphere is. Now the earth seems more like a single living cell surrounded by a paper-thin membrane that’s only about ten kilometres thick. That’s where the oxygen, wind and clouds are. That’s where it all happens. All our lives are played out in that narrow space. When you look at it from that kind of distance, you get the feeling you could just blow it all away with a single breath. It was then that I became really aware of the truly fragile nature of life on earth. That opened my eyes for good. If our atmosphere is ruined and we screw things up down here, we’ve got nowhere else to go. That’s the end of everything.’

Your views literally changed right then?‘Yes, that was how it happened. I can clearly remember flying over India and realising that one billion people live there. Mo-ments later we’d left India behind, but less than one and a half hours later we were over it again. Besides the fact that I sudden-ly became aware of how vulnerable the earth is, it also became clear to me how limited our space is down here. Our planet isn’t actually that big at all. One minute you’re flying over the Amazonian rainforest and a couple of seconds later you’re over the Brazilian coast. When you’re down on the ground, standing in the jungle, it all seems to go on forever. But when you look down from up above, you feel and see just how small the earth really is. All of us down here are like astronauts living in a small spacecraft with only a limited supply of resources. That’s all we have. Straight after my first space flight I got in contact with the World Wide Fund for Nature. I offered to help them make people aware of our planet’s vulnerability. Since then I’ve also gone on to do other things to promote sustainability, science and education.’

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What causes you the most concern?‘Humanity’s own impact on our future here. It was something I paid conscious attention to during my space missions. You could see the white trails left by airplanes. I could clearly see cities on the ground, and Dubai’s palm-tree islands. But, unfortunately, the air pollution was also clearly visible, especially over cities in China. I also saw columns of smoke all over the place, and bare patches on the ground – all the result of deforestation. Madagascar, for example, where the mountains are crumbling away because of the enormous quantity of trees being felled there. There was also the astounding number of fishing boats in the South China Sea. These enormous fleets - thousands of ships - suddenly make overfishing a very tangible thing. You can see man’s impact particularly well at night, when the earth is cloaked with millions of tiny lights. It’s like flying over a black carpet covered with a myriad golden stitches.’

What do you regard as the greatest threat posed by man?‘There are many, but overpopulation is one of the most worry-ing. A lot of people aren’t aware that no fewer than 200,000 new people join us on this planet every single day. And that’s just the total left after you subtract the number of deaths each day. In other words, that’s a daily increase equal to the size of a city like Eindhoven. Every single day! If all these people want to live like we do here in the Netherlands, then we’d need 3.5 planet Earths to achieve that. If everyone wants to live like the Americans, that goes up to 4.5 Earths. So, that’s clearly impos-sible. We can’t keep on continually growing without adopting a sustainable approach to our resources. In short, we have to do things differently.’

Where do you think we should be looking for the solutions?‘Fortunately, I can think of many solutions that keep me hope-ful about the future. Take food technology. Numerous scientists are working on things like using algae and insects in the food industry. Technological innovations in the field of sustainable energy also keep on coming. Wind and solar energy, for exam-ple, and the use of alternative fuels for things like cars. Those developments are coming at lightning speed.’

What did you think when you first heard about the circular economy?‘My immediate thoughts were about the cradle-to-cradle prin-

ciple and the fact that we really could be recycling much more than we are. It’s something we do all the time in space. After all, we only have limited room and resources up there, so we’ve got no choice. For example, we recycle our water. It costs €15,000 to launch a single kilo of weight into space, so we take as little water as possible and we recycle it. That means we also trap all the moisture in the air – whether it comes from perspiration or wet towels. We even collect urine. We use special equipment to remove the actual waste material and then process it to make drinking water. It’s often even cleaner than tap water. But we also need to keep extracting CO2 from the air. We don’t have any trees or plants to do that for us. And we use it too. If you mix hydrogen and CO2 you get water and methane. We take the water and dispose of the methane. You could also use these techniques on earth. We could, for example, store wind energy and use it to remove CO2 from the atmosphere. The wind energy could be stored in the form of the residual methane, providing a kind of battery that can produce energy when there’s no wind. That would save a great deal of energy.’

The United Nations’ 21st annual climate confer-ence, COP21, was held in Paris at the end of last year. What impression did it make on you? ‘It clearly showed that countries across the world are finally taking climate and the environment seriously – and with good reason. We have in fact already passed the ‘point of no return’. Climate change and global warming are already happening. We can’t turn back the clock. But, naturally, I’m also a bit wary. We can’t really expect any great changes to happen un-til the parties concerned realise that they are going to benefit financially by taking action on sustainability. There again, cli-mate change isn’t seen as a threat by everyone. It opens up pos-sibilities too. For example: as the polar ice in Greenland melts away, governments are suddenly realising that this is opening up the possibility of starting mining activities there.

Finally, what’s the Netherlands’ role in all of this? Are we a frontrunner?‘Definitely. There’s a lot of high-tech know-how here in the Netherlands and we can use that to make a more sustainable world. We need to spread that technological know-how even more than we’re doing now. We shouldn’t be wagging our fin-ger at others, but coming up with solutions. That’s something the Netherlands excels in.’

‘ We even collect urine and process it to make drinking water’ Circular hotspot project: Local fishermen collect dis-

carded nets, that wreak havoc with the marine eco-system, and sell them back into a global supply chain – giving those destructive, broken nets a second life as long-lasting carpet tile.

Organizations involved: Interface, the Zoological Soci-ety of London (ZSL), Aquafil (together the ‘Net-Works programme’).

Iconic because: Interface, ZSL and Aquafil are creating a solid business solution with long-term positive impacts on marine and freshwater ecosystems while also providing fi-nancial opportunities to some of the poorest people in the world. So far over 80.000 kilograms of discarded fishing nets have been collected in the Philippines – in Danajon Bank, the Bantayan Islands and Northern Iloilo. If not collected, these nets can persist for centuries, taking a toll on the environment and marine life.

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NET EFFECT


In a circular economy, business models will change radically. Fortunately, there is growing momentum within the finance market, say Wiebe Draijer and Jasper Snoek.

A GRAND FINANCIAL DESIGN

Few people are likely to doubt the importance of the circular economy. If humanity continues on its current path, our resources will go on dimin-ishing and the environment will grow ever more polluted. Circularity will put an end to this down-ward spiral. In a circular economy the process of value creation can be repeated over and over again into infinity, without harming the environ-ment. Not only will the world will become a bet-ter place and the earth more habitable, there will also be opportunities for business and commerce. To reach that stage, however, a massive transi-tion must take place – and this applies equally to the area of finance. Business models will change radically in a circular economy. If, for example, a manufacturer stops selling products to ‘buyers’, and leases those products to its customers instead – because that reduces waste production and also means more is re-used – this will have a major impact on the company’s balance sheet. Fortunately, there is growing momentum within the finance market for the transition to circular business models, as witnessed by the enthusiasm voiced by two influential figures in this field. Jasper Snoek is Financial Director of DOEN, a foundation that finances social and sustainable initiatives. Wiebe Draijer is the ceo of Rabo-bank, one of the four major Dutch banks, which plans to do a lot in the field of circular enterprise.

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‘The term ‘re-use’ now crops up in almost all growth-related business and govern-ment plans. So there’s a solid basis for Rabobank’s belief that circular enterprise is the number-one business model of the future. That’s the reason behind us doing things like launching the Rabobank Cir-cular Economy Challenge in which we’re encouraging our customers to come up with ‘circular’ business opportunities.The world needs a circular economy, not only because of the economic benefits but also to ensure that, in the future too, there will be enough food and energy for everyone. What this issue really needs is a ‘grand design’. The momentum’s already there, now it’s time for government, the business world and social organisations to take action and make cross-sectoral plans for a circular economy.Rabobank, together with the other ma-jor Dutch banks, has recently taken the first steps in this direction. We may compete with each like crazy, but we as a sector can also join forces when it’s necessary. But that’s not enough. We will also need things like new financing structures for circular business models, and new chain designs. That calls for a master plan that spells out which chains we’re going to prioritise for the radical

changes needed to make them circular. Make no mistake, the Netherlands has the potential to take the global lead on this issue. We’re a small country where a circular economy should be fairly easy to organise compared to larger countries. Relatively speaking, we aren’t overly de-pendent on raw materials and, on top of that, we’ve got enormous amounts of ex-pertise in this country. You could see that at the World Economic Forum in Davos. The ‘food agenda’ there was almost to-tally dominated by Dutch companies like Unilever, DSM and Rabobank. That expertise is also recognised inter-nationally. We often underestimate our own potential. But we as a country now have a real opportunity to set the global agenda. And let’s be clear about it, the circular economy isn’t at all the same thing as ‘sustainability’. That’s why it needs its own, separate agenda. The time has arrived, we have the expertise. Let’s do it.’

WIEBE DRAIJER (50)

‘The circular econ-omy is coming closer to being a reality. Using funds from the Dutch National Postcode Lottery, we support initiatives that truly dare to lead the way in this area. Think of examples like Ecovative, which makes degradable alternatives for packaging materials. A growing number of business-es are moving away from the traditional manufacturing principle and coming up with new, circular initiatives. We are also seeing an increasing number of large businesses taking a more serious approach to the concept of the circular economy. Not just making it an issue for their cor-porate social responsibility departments, but actually making it an integral part of their business operations. This could speed things up considerably.It’s exciting to see how financial processes and systems will change as a result. As it is, a large amount of financing takes place on the basis of assets. This system is going to change radically in the new economy. The sale of products to consumers won’t be the core business any more. Instead, consumers will hire products from sup-pliers and manufacturers for a certain time. This means it will take longer to earn back the initial investment, and so businesses will need a larger amount of pre-financing. The demand for capital will increase. At the same time there’ll be a steady stream of income from consumer subscriptions. So, that provides a certain form of security. Whatever else happens, the corporate balance sheet of the future will look com-pletely different. We’ll find the right ways to do this by businesses coming togeth-er and doing the necessary pioneering work. We at DOEN are posing questions to banks about this. For example: if we support an innovative circular-economy initiative in the initial phase, what needs to be done in order to ‘transfer’ the party concerned to you at a later stage? In this way we can both ensure that circular in-itiatives really have a chance to succeed, to ensure life on our planet becomes truly sustainable.’

JASPER SNOEK (46)

16. Mgmt. Scope

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Architect Bill McDonough builds ideas as well as buildings. The central idea behind his work is his Cradle to cradle philosophy of rethinking design as a positive regenerative thing, instead of a negative or destructive one. The Dutch concept of a Circu-lar Economy helps us, he says. ‘It sets the stage for a dialogue about how we are living. After all, recy-cling poisonous things and calling it circular is still poisoning.’McDonough, who spends a lot of time in the Neth-erlands, believes the key to reshaping the world is in-novation. ‘Commerce is the engine of change. Saying we want a thing that purifies the world and heals it, as our platform behaviour, leads me to innovate into that. People who get into sustainability and think, ‘My job

is to select green looking things so I can join the train’ quickly discover that what they thought was

a shopping cart exercise is not. It actually re-quires innovation. The great thing

about the Dutch economy is you have a culture of sharing – you can’t create a polder unless you work together. You live in a state of awareness of the global forces of nature. You’re under water. I think the Dutch are in a very good position to take stock of everyone’s experienc-es and realize that we are now

in a moment of the commoditi-zation of renewable power and say, what does that mean, and design into it. The Dutch are in a unique

position and that’s why I work here. Leibniz said If it’s possible, show it ex-

ists. My job is to make it exist, so that we can show that’s it possible. And I think

the Dutch have a unique moment of alignment and a strong convening power.

All this is going to take forever. That’s the point. But remember, humility is important for us as designers. We went to the moon before we put wheels on luggage. We’re not that smart but we’re working on it.’

NAME WILLIAM MCDONOUGHFUNCTION ARCHITECT AND THOUGHT LEADERCOMPANY WILLIAM MCDONOUGH + PARTNERS

‘WE NEED A DIALOGUE ABOUT HOW WE ARE LIVING’

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Circular hotspot project: Use-It-Wisely: a programme to develop tools and a design structure in which office furniture can be re-used or remanufactured, thereby re-ducing environmental impact, creating new business and contributing to the circular economy.

Organizations involved: Gispen, TNO.

Iconic because: Without new designs, there will be no circular economy. Currently most products in office inte-rior are designed, manufactured and sold to the end-user. In case of malfunction, changing functional requirements or trends, a new product is designed, produced and sold again. Gispen and TNO are exploring ways to ‘close’ the lifecycle of office furniture. Next steps for TNO and Gispen are the further integration of the circular econo-my into Gispen’s daily business, with the design of a cir-cularity checklist and circular design framework that can be applied to different products and services.

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You’ve got a great deal of experience with large busi-nesses. What’s your view of how they’re reacting to all the new developments with startups? ‘Some of them are playing a positive part and reaping the benefits of all these innovations. There’s a good example in Eindhoven, where one major company is surrounded by a cluster of startups which, in turn, are fed by the research conducted at the univer-sity. Large companies that have the right kind of focus on the future – think of DSM, for example – often take a highly intelli-gent approach when it comes to working with smaller partners.’

Has the business climate for innovation changed? ‘Of course, there have always been inventors who’ve come up with brilliant ideas, but they were often the ‘absent-minded professor’ types, working on new inventions in the attic or in their garage. Nowadays the system is much more open. It’s much easier to find the money needed to finance innovation, and the resulting know-how and knowledge are now shared much more quickly. The driving principle today is that we’ll all be better off as a result.’

What’s Europe’s role? ‘Well, naturally, innovation doesn’t suddenly stop at the border. It would be shortsighted of us not to regard Europe as one single digital market. However, in reality we are still living in a world of borders: physical, fiscal and political. Say, for example, you’ve got a great startup here in the Netherlands. The business is doing well and you want to expand into Belgium or Germany, you’ll still have to hire a lawyer or tax advisor first. The system isn’t fully geared up for this kind of thing yet. But we do have a gold mine at our door: an enormous economic market. We really need to make the very most of that.’

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In the past ‘Everything is speeding up’ was a phrase to describe computer processing speeds and sports cars on Top Gear. According to former European Commissioner Neelie Kroes, it also now refers to the pace at which young companies in the Netherlands turn ideas into valuable circular business practices.

NECESSITY IS ONE MOTHER OF INVENTIONTHE OTHER IS NEELIE KROES

When asked what she regards as the essential importance of sustainability, Neelie Kroes quotes the advertising slo-gan of a well-known wristwatch brand: You never actually own it, you merely look after it for the next generation. Ms Kroes says, ‘It’s our duty to make sure we pass the earth on to our children in a way that won’t cause us to hang our heads in shame.’ It’s a question of shouldering respon-sibility, not standing on the sidelines, and of taking ac-tion. If one thing characterises Neelie Kroes it’s her drive. For the past 18 months she’s been campaigning on behalf of StartupDelta, a project that’s put the Netherlands on the world map as an attractive location for startups. New, innovative businesses in the fields of technology, finance, healthcare, and education want to grow rapidly in a cli-mate that encourages enterprise, and to establish ties with larger companies, research institutes and financiers. No one could be better qualified than Ms Kroes to be Start-upDelta’s special envoy. As a former Dutch government minister and ex-European Commissioner (Competition and, later, Digital Agenda) she has a large network, and her words carry weight. At the core of StartupDelta’s ef-

forts lies innovation in business and industry, and inno-vation nowadays almost always goes hand in hand with sustainability and socially responsible enterprise. This is why Neelie Kroes was happy to speak to Prince Carlos de Bourbon de Parme, who – as chair of the Netherlands Circular Economy Hotspot campaign – is working hard on initiatives aimed at giving the Netherlands a circular economy.

With you as ambassador for StartupDelta, the Netherlands has moved up into the top 5 of the Global Startup Ecosystem Ranking. How do you see the role of innovation in the Dutch economy? ‘Innovation is essential when it comes to maintaining your ability to compete, to keep on staying ahead of the game. Innovation means you have to ask yourself: what will tomorrow’s earnings model be, how will the coming generation do things? It also means looking at all kinds of different scenarios, including the social and climatologi-cal, as well as economic ones.’

‘ If we do nothing, we’ll be dependent on others for our raw materials in 20 years’ time’

NEELIE KROES (74)

Education Economics, Erasmus University Rotterdam

Career2015 - present day Special Envoy Startup Delta

2009 - 2014 European Commissioner Digital Agenda

2004 - 2009 European Commissioner Competition

1991 - 2000 President Nijenrode University

1989 - 1991 Advisor to the European Transport Commissioner

1977 - 1989 Vice Minister (until 1981), Cabinet Minister of Transport, Public Works and Telecommunication

1971 - 1977 Member of Parliament

1969 - 1971 Member of the Rotterdam Municipal Council

1965 - 1971 Ass. Professor Transport Economics, Erasmus University

Other positionsSpecial adviser Bank of America Merril LynchDirector Salesforce

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In September of 2015, world leaders adopted the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that aim to eradicate poverty, promote peace, fuel inclusive growth and protect the environment. At last, the world has a holistic agenda for development by 2030 that addresses the critical social, environmental and economic challenges our societies face.

There are solutions for many of those challenges, and business holds the key. By using resources efficiently and sustainably, we can benefit our economies, societies and the environment. Business must shift away from the traditional linear model of ‘take-make-dispose’ towards a circular, closed-loop model, where the concept of waste becomes obsolete.

The end of the take-make-dispose era has arrived

A circular economic approach includes new business models that incorporate dif-ferent value-chain networks and opportunities for co-innovation. We have to re-think material use and product design to deliver service-based function rather than the traditional ownership model. Used products and materials, including wood, can be re-engineered and used again, or reduced to raw materials to manufacture other products. The input costs saving on materials could be as much as 20 percent or US$ 700 bn per year.

At the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), we work with the world’s leading companies to accelerate the transition to a sustainable world. To advance the circular economy, we have developed a Horizon2020 proposal for a large-scale system change in the EU’s secondary raw materials market. Devel-oped in partnership with Lancaster University, a new digital platform coupled with eco-innovation hubs will direct materials that are not easily reused or recycled. It aims to improve resource productivity and significantly reduce residual waste.

We believe in the potential of business innovation to improve lives across the planet and help protect our environment. Business has a responsibility and a key role to play in the transition to a sustainable economy. The end of the ‘take-make-dispose’ era has arrived. Sustainable profits call for a circular future where waste becomes the new engine for value-creation.

... OLD MATERIALS, NEW PROFITSon the way we are now, we’ll be totally dependent on others for our raw materials in 20 years’ time. And, indeed, this needs to happen at the European level. If you set up a programme for the Netherlands alone, that will be much more expensive than if you were to invest in three modern processing plants across Europe.’

Should the Netherlands be taking the lead on issues like this – in partnership, for example, with two or three other European countries?‘We should. If you work bilaterally or as a group of three and can come up with three examples of working projects, the rest will soon join in as well. We in the Netherlands could lead the pack in that regard. However, these circular initiatives will also need the support of our Ministry of Finance, and we’ve noticed with StartupDelta that they aren’t the most progressive of organisa-tions.’

In your opinion, why do we need to move towards a circular economy?‘My feelings on the issue are two-fold. Firstly, we can’t continue as we are now, because everyone knows that the system isn’t sus-tainable. In the past, it was perhaps possible to close your eyes to the situation, but things like climate change are now having a concrete impact. In the future, how will we be able to explain to our children and grandchildren that we made a total mess of things even though we knew exactly what was happening? Secondly, there’s a global economic process going on in terms of sustainable development which you not only need to join in with, but which also offers a whole range of possibilities for you to stand out from the crowd.’

The system will have to change radically. How do you, as a former politician, think it will be possible to get the general public to support and participate in that change? ‘It involves forcing people to make difficult choices. I recall from my time as a government minister (Transport and Public Works, 1982-1989) that we had initiatives to get people to use their cars less. That created something of a dilemma because car ownership was finally something almost everyone could afford. It was the same with air travel. Is the answer to force people to change? Nowadays you see that the sustainable alternative – whether that is transport, or food, or drink – is often the more expensive op-tion. You need to take this social factor into account. People’s first priority is to earn a living. In terms of the political debate about these issues, however much you stick to the facts, you sim-ply can’t ever afford to ignore people’s feelings.’

Making money and making the world more sustain-able aren’t mutually exclusive anymore. Have you seen examples of this in practice? ‘We organised a breakfast meeting recently, and Boyan Slat was there. He’s the young man behind the Ocean Cleanup campaign. It was fantastic. He’s not only thought up a clever way of cleaning up all the plastic in the oceans, he’s also got plans for a whole chain of operations to put that plastic to use and also to ensure that the entire process runs on a sound business footing. The level of energy and leadership he displayed there made a deep impression on me. There are very many more initiatives like that out there.’

What surprises you the most when you look at the these startups and the work they’re doing? ‘Two things: there’s much more happening than is generally known – in fields like the biotech industry, life sciences, and the list goes on. Secondly, and this is connected with the first aspect, the speed of development is without parallel. Once a concept has been developed it’s on the market in no time. That used to take years. It’s forcing large businesses to stay on their toes, and to keep looking at what’s going on around them. Incidentally, when you’re talking about the interaction between the world of business and industry and the sustainability sector, I think the latter could look to the it industry for an example in terms of the speed they need.’

In what way?‘In the sustainability sector, innovation and processes move more slowly than in the it business. It would be a good thing for the two sectors to support each other more. In the case of it, they have to act extremely quickly just to keep up with the game. In that respect, there’s less pressure on the sustainability sector. Communication also plays a role here. Amazing things are hap-pening in the fields of innovation and sustainability here in the Netherlands. They could act as a driving force for the rest of the sector, but often we’re much too modest about these things.’

We’re paying the Chinese to recycle our batteries, adding valuable raw materials to their resources. Why aren’t we doing that ourselves? ‘There’s no short-term benefit to be gained from doing so. That’s the point. We tried to address issues like this, with the help of big business and industry, during my time in Brussels. At that time many businesses said: the market prices are fine, we don’t need to recycle that particular kind of waste here in Europe. But I agree with you that this isn’t a sustainable position. If we go

‘ Inventors used to be absent-minded professor types in the attic. Not anymore’


The most sustainable working environment in western Europe: this is the ambition of The Valley, 350 hectares of land currently being turned into a circular business nerve-centre and showcase.

THE VALLEYAN INTERNATIONAL SHOWCASE FOR CIRCULAR ENTERPRISE

The Valley, part of Schiphol Trade Park, is a collabora-tive effort by project developers, sustainability organisa-tions, Amsterdam Schiphol Airport and the municipality of Haarlemmermeer. A place where businesses, research institutions, logistics partners and sustainability organi-sations all come together in a green, park-style environ-ment. The aim is to take the very best circular principles and apply them to the creation of a climate where busi-ness, skills and know-how can flourish. The Valley will act as a kind of test lab where sustainability and innova-tion can come together – an international showcase for successful circular projects and initiatives. Grand ambitions maybe, but – according to Coert Zacha-riasse and Guido Braam – not a moment too soon. These two men, both involved with The Valley project from the outset, think it’s high time the Netherlands showed the world how it’s blazing the trail on the path to the circular economy and sustainable enterprise. Coert Zachariasse is director and owner of Delta Development Group, a project development business that has embraced cradle-to-cradle principles since its foundation. Guido Braam is a social entrepreneur, a partner in Kirkman Company, a former director of Circle Economy, and responsible for the first ‘circular’ international trade mission, due to visit the Netherlands in April.

THE VALLEYZachariasse: ‘’There are loads of people and businesses who can’t wait to get going on circular projects, but they aren’t sure where to start. We want The Valley to provide a central location where innovative businesses with cir-cular ambitions can respond to regional demand. A col-

lection of ‘stories’, where we have concrete business cases that allow us to show the kind of energy this issue is gen-erating. People need to be able to touch it, see it, taste it.’

Braam: ‘The Valley will be the epicentre of circular inno-vation in the Netherlands. The circular economy is in the exciting phase where new concepts surface all the time, but too often they do not have a proper place to land, or a haven to develop and grow. This is exactly what The Valley has to offer. In one location you will be able to find multinationals, SMEs and policymakers working in-dependently and in groups. Projects will be born there, but also developed and eventually realized, with an Expo to showcase the latest successes.’ Zachariasse: ‘What we have at the Valley is a fantastic place to show the world just exactly what we can do. There’s a wide demand for circular projects here – from places like the municipality of Haarlemmermeer to the Flower Auction in Aalsmeer. We’re turning those wish-es into deeds. The scariest thing we could do right now would be to stay where we are and do nothing.’

THE IMPORTANCE OF CIRCULARITYZachariasse: ‘Our world can’t continue to exist if we keep going the way we are now, that I’m sure of. If we keep on using our natural resources and turning them into waste, we face a double hazard: more pollution and an end to our supplies of raw materials. The principles on which the circular economy is built are very simple – it’s basically a question of closing cycles. Just look at nature, it’s been go-ing on there for billions of years, right in front of our very noses. Each of us human beings has an intrinsic desire to

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GUIDO BRAAM (38)

leave the world behind in better shape than they found it. If you get someone to look at two pictures – one showing a child at a filthy garbage dump, the other with a child standing next to a pristine lake – and then ask, ‘which of these two worlds do you prefer?’ everyone will choose the last one. But once we’re part of the ‘system’, start wearing a suit and carrying business cards, suddenly it’s ‘Yes, I really do want to, but I can’t’. We have to change that.’

THE NETHERLANDSBraam: ‘The Netherlands is an ideal country for experiments or pilots, which is why the transition to a circular econ-omy is such a natural fit. Systems don’t change overnight; it’s a lengthy process of trial and error. And it’s not just about technology and economics, but also about process: companies, national and local governments, the academic world, they need to work together. In this respect the Dutch have the advantage that they do not value hierarchy very much, which makes it relatively easy to create unusual partnerships and coalitions. In 2014 The Dutch Social Economic Council organized two meetings with over forty representatives of a wide vari-ety of businesses and organizations. Mul-tinationals, SMEs, NGOs, municipalities, and representatives from every corner of government, gathered in one room, with a Dutch Prince as chairman. Within the hour everybody was discussing the op-portunities and challenges of the circular

economy, without any acknowledgement of hierarchy whatsoever. These meetings quickly led to concrete actions. I don’t think there are many countries in the world where a process like this could take place.’

BUSINESSZachariasse: ‘The circular economy is es-sentially about collaborating on the basis of shared values. The construction indus-try has always been transaction based, i.e. it has to cost as little as possible and ‘your loss is my gain’. But that’s turned upside down in the circular model where you say to your partners, ‘this is our budget, let’s share our thoughts and ideas about what your role could mean for the total quality of the project’. In that way everyone ulti-mately benefits.Take Mitsubishi, who manufacture lifts for big buildings. When they do business with a building contractor they really get squeezed. The price must be as low as pos-sible and quality suffers as a result. Con-sequently, the lifts are worn out within seven years, yet lifts like that could have a useful working life of at least 40 years. So Mitsubishi are now experimenting with leasing out their lifts. They remain the property of the manufacturer, who will supply a top quality product and also ensure it’s regularly serviced and main-tained. At the end of their useful lives the lifts all go back to Mitsubishi to be re-cy-cled. That’s circular: spreading the usage costs and maximising residual value. And

it’s cost-effective: the new ‘lease-based’ method makes a difference of €15,000 on a lift worth € 80,000.’ Braam: ‘The Netherlands holds the EU presidency in 2016. We took this oppor-tunity to organize a very special ‘incoming trade mission’. No less than 130 guests from all over the world will participate in a three-day programme that will show them the most prominent and inspir-ing circular projects and activities in the Netherlands. We have people joining us from countries like Luxembourg, Taiwan, England and several South-American countries. In addition to the many busi-nesses and organizations they’ll visit, we will also encourage them to share their knowledge and networks with each other. That is one of the most fascinating things about the circular economy: it is all about new partnerships and cooperation.’


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Organizations involved: In 2015 more than twenty different organizations and companies signed the Circular Buiksloterham Manifesto. Together they are working to transform Buiksloterham into a sustainable and circular district.

Iconic because: The circular city and sustainability are broad ideas. They embrace themes like energy, intelligent use of materials, recycling, climate resilience, and sustain-able mobility, as well as the shift from ownership to user-ship and the development of new models for production, consumption, distribution and logistics. Buiksloterham Amsterdam Municipality is a great example of how also citizens can get involved in these themes.

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CIRCULAR LIVING


about being very aware of how we use our raw materials, the importance of insulating homes and reducing fine-dust emis-sions, and so on. We need to become a city that, on balance, isn’t an energy user but an energy producer.’

AN ENTIRE PHILOSOPHY Rotterdam, together with The Hague, has asked Jeremy Rifkin, the well-known ‘future economy’ expert, to draft a ‘develop-ment philosophy’ for the two cities as they move further down the road to sustainability. Mr Rifkin, who also advises the Eu-ropean Union and the Chinese government in this area, has already said that within fifteen years the port of Rotterdam could be fully automated, manned only by robots controlled via a ‘super internet’ without human intervention. He has also said that oil will have lost most of its importance by then, because homes and businesses will be generating their own energy with solar panels. According to Mr Rifkin, in the future instead of handling fossil fuels, the port of Rotterdam will bring in things like powder for use in 3D printers. Jeremy Rifkin is drafting a Next Economy ‘road map’ for the Rotterdam-Hague metropolitan region in which he will spec-ify the investments needed to bring about this transition. Mr Aboutaleb insists this will be an entire philosophy, not just an-

the circular economy, the two mayors demonstrate their en-thusiasm as they talk about promoting initiatives in their re-spective cities. The city of Amsterdam wants to adopt a more intelligent and responsible approach to energy, water, raw ma-terials and food, says Mr van der Laan. ‘We want to be part of an economy where waste is treated as a resource and where we generate the energy we need from renewable sources. And we want to do that by applying circular principles wherever possible – recovering raw materials and using them again to create new things.’ That requires new models for production, consumption, distribution and logistics: ‘The movement that’s already under way, the one that’s leading us away from owning goods to leasing goods, that’s something we want to get going faster. Onwards and upwards to the sharing economy. When I was eighteen, people would almost commit murder, so to speak, to get a driving licence and own their own car. People in their twenties nowadays aren’t obsessed with that at all. They’re quite happy to share a car with other road users. In their eyes, owning a car is a thing of the past.’ Aboutaleb points to the importance of public and commercial awareness: ‘In the case of Rotterdam, the circular economy isn’t just a question of us using as little energy as possible or cutting back on the amount of waste we produce. First and foremost it’s

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Eberhard van der Laan (60) has been Mayor of Amsterdam since 2010. After studying law at university, he became a lawyer and later co-founded the legal firm of Kennedy Van der Laan. In 1990 he won a seat on Amsterdam’s city council as a member of the Labour party. Three years later he was leading his party in the council chamber. Mr van der Laan was the government Minister for Housing, Communities and Integration from 2008 to 2010.

Ahmed Aboutaleb (54) started his career as a reporter with broadcasting organisations Veronica, NOS Radio and then RTL News. He went on to be a press officer at the Ministry of Welfare, Public Health and Culture and then for the Social Economic Council. He became director of Forum in 1998, and joined the PvdA Labour party in Amsterdam in 2003. He became an Amsterdam Council executive board member in 2004. Three years later he was appointed government State Secretary for Social Affairs and Employment. Mr Aboutaleb’s term as Mayor of Rotterdam began in 2009.

Amsterdam and Rotterdam lead the pack in the pursuit of a circular economy. The cities’ mayors – Eberhard van der Laan (Amsterdam) and Ahmed Aboutaleb (Rotterdam) – open up about the innovative power of circular businesses, how to change everyday behaviour, and the switch from owning to sharing.

AMSTERDAM AND ROTTERDAM

A TALE OF TWO CIRCULAR CITIES

Their backgrounds couldn’t be more different. Whereas Ahmed Aboutaleb was born the son of an imam in Mo-rocco’s Rif mountains, Eberhard van der Laan is the son of a GP and grew up in a protestant family in Rijnsburg. Yet the two mayors also have a lot in common. For ex-ample, neither of these social democrats entered politics until late in their careers. Mr van der Laan began as a lawyer, Mr Aboutaleb as a journalist. But politics soon beckoned both men. Mr van der Laan became a member of Amsterdam’s city council for the Dutch Labour Party (PvdA) in 1990. Just two years later he was party leader in the council chamber. In 1988, Mr Aboutaleb became director of the Forum Institute, an amalgamation of var-ious organisations in the field of immigration and mul-ti-cultural affairs. He moved to the Labour party in 2003, becoming an Amsterdam council executive board mem-ber one year later. Both men then joined the national

government for a brief period. In 2007, Mr Aboutaleb be-came State Secretary for Social Affairs and Employment. Just two years later, he was sworn in as mayor of Rotter-dam. Mr van der Laan became the government minister for Housing, Communities and Integration in 2008. He, too, became a mayor just two years later, in Amsterdam. Something else the two mayors have in common: they speak their minds and make no attempt to hide their en-thusiasm. Mr Aboutaleb, for example, advised Muslim extremists ‘to shove off ’ and said he ‘would like to destroy Isis, root and branch’ following the attacks in Paris. And four years ago, Mr van der Laan described the cuts on the national culture budget as ‘a grim attack on our city. Cuts are necessary, vandalism isn’t’.

A SHARING ECONOMY Speaking to Prince Carlos de Bourbon de Parme about


the new homes we’re planning to build right now. That would generate €150 million per year in additional net added value, as well as 700 extra jobs. And if we started collecting all our vegetable and fruit waste separately, that would generate an additional €150 million per year, and 1200 new jobs. But we shouldn’t get fixated on those figures. You need to be cautious. You never know in advance whether those jobs will actually materialise.’ In this connection, Mr Aboutaleb mentions Bill Clinton: ‘He had some research carried out at one point and it showed that while building a new power station would create 2,000 extra jobs, retrofitting buildings to save an equivalent amount of en-ergy would generate 4,000 new jobs. In short, it’s demonstrably better in economic terms to insulate existing buildings than to create additional energy-generating capacity.’

INTER CITY COOPERATIONTowns and cities both in the Netherlands and abroad are be-coming increasingly open about sharing their knowledge and experiences in the field of circular activities. That’s really im-proved in recent years, says Mayor van der Laan: ‘We, together with Rotterdam, The Hague and Utrecht, form what’s known as the G4. That used to be a club that wrote nagging letters to the cabinet, but now we’re really trying to help one another. I travel abroad a good deal and colleagues from the other cities very often go with me. As far as people abroad are concerned, that’s only logical. To the average person in China, Amsterdam and Rotterdam are two centres within one urban area, and The Hague and Utrecht are part of that too. To them, our “Green Heart” looks like some kind of oversized Central Park.’ This is

der Laan continues: ‘We’re an enterprising little country. Look at the creativity going on in our towns and cities. That attracts foreign businesses, and intelligent people too. Once all these elements come together, all kinds of things start happening. They trigger each other in a good and positive way.’ Mr Aboutaleb points to the innovative strength of Dutch busi-nesses in the food industry: ‘Not only because we manage to produce such enormous amounts of food per square kilometre – and with limited water use, by the way – but also because we’re really good at coming up with innovative, sustaina-bly-produced food products. Know-how of the kind we’ve built up with our cattle industry – with things like cheese, milk and meat production – that’s a first-class export product too.’

MORE JOBS? When the need for the circular economy is discussed, one of the arguments often raised is that one of its logical side effects will be large numbers of new jobs. Consultancy firm McKinsey has calculated on behalf of the Ellen McArthur Foundation, for example, that a circular economy in Europe could generate additional added value worth around €500 billion per annum. And the TNO research institute has calculated that, in the case of the Netherlands, this will work out at around €7.3 billion in extra added value, and approximately 54,000 jobs. There are great opportunities here, particularly in the construction indus-try and in food chains, both in terms of creating added value and additional employment, as well as limiting CO2 emissions and reducing the use of raw-materials. Mr van der Laan: ‘We’ve also been doing the sums for our city. Just suppose that we ap-ply circular design and construction methods to all 70,000 of

other of many plans: ‘I’m quite capable of drafting a plan too, but that wouldn’t be enough. A plan usually focuses on just one direction. A philosophy entails a complete, comprehen-sive ‘story’ where the elements needed to achieve sustainable development and a circular economy all come together and form a whole.’

CHANGING BEHAVIOURThe mayor of Rotterdam wants to involve many parties in developing this philosophy – government, business, and the general public. ‘Obviously, you simply have to make a clear dis-tinction between these groups, because this can’t all come from government.’ In contrast, Mr van der Laan says he wouldn’t necessarily use the word philosophy. He would rather speak about people’s attitudes - garbage is an issue for each and every citizen, for example. ‘Last November I was in Tokyo, one of the cleanest cities in the world as far as I can see, and while I was there I noticed something that both surprised and inspired me. In this city, with its population of no fewer than 37 million people, you can’t find any waste bins at all in public areas!’ This came about as a result of the chemical attack on the To-kyo subway system in 1995. The city government took away all the public waste receptacles and told the city’s inhabitants that they shouldn’t pass their rubbish on to the community, but take care of it themselves. ‘And their message was accepted too. What can we learn from that? That you can indeed radically alter people’s behaviour.’ But would that work in Amsterdam? Mr van der Laan says, ‘Why not? In the 1980s one of the big-gest irritations in our city was dog excrement. Who would have thought back then that the problem would have disappeared totally by now, simply because all our dog owners trail after their pets with a small plastic bag in their hands?’ THE POWER TO ATTRACTBoth mayors say that the circular economy fits Rotterdam and Amsterdam like a glove. But why is that? Mr Van der Laan: ‘We have enormous innovative strength in Amsterdam because of the combination of startups, established business and indus-try. Startup Delta - which aims to bring startups, government, knowledge institutions, business and financiers together - isn’t based here for nothing. Our harbour district is already home to a range of businesses that are operating in the circular and bio-based economy. And we have the requisite spinoffs from our universities, such as Photanol, which is located in Amsterdam’s Science Park district. This company aims to use bacteria as part of a process that will turn CO2 and sunlight into chemical prod-ucts. We have a strong creative sector that’s well positioned to develop products for the circular economy. And, last but not least, Amsterdam is a city of entrepreneurs. When I talk to young entrepreneurs it strikes me again and again how they re-gard the circular business model as the logical way to go.’ More broadly, this also applies to the Netherlands as a whole, Mr van

EXAMPLES OF CIRCULAR ACTIVITY INAMSTERDAM

Buiksloterham a ‘circular’ residential areaNorth Amsterdam’s Buiksloterham district is set to become a model example of how ‘circular’ towns of the future could look. This is where raw materials, foodstuffs and water will be re-used, and energy generated from renewable sources, as much as possible. More than 20 organisations, including the City of Amsterdam, water company Waternet, the Amsterdam Economic Board, energy company Alliander and Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences, are supporting sustainable projects here, as well as developing new ones. This district will become a ‘living lab’ where new innovations, such as self-sustaining communities, can be tried out in practice. Buiksloterham is already home to a number of sustainable and innovative projects. These include a large number of ‘self builders’ who are constructing their own homes from recycled materials. From bricks to window frames, everything is recycled. Another example is De Ceuvel, a fertile haven for creative entrepreneurs which is itself largely self-supporting in terms of energy and materials.

Port of Amsterdama breeding ground for circular enterpriseAmsterdam’s port and harbour area is growing into a breeding ground for businesses in the circular and bio-based economy. These include Orgaworld, which uses organic waste to produce green energy and other products; Waternet, which is processing wastewater to make phosphates; and Chaincraft, which is developing techniques to produce bio-based products for the chemical industry. The presence of strong base-clusters for things like energy, food, agricultural bulk commodities and recycling puts the Amsterdam port area in a strong position in terms of developing a bio-based economy. Agricultural activities in the immediate vicinity of the port, such as the flower auction and local horticulture, mean there are ready supplies of organic material. In addition, re-usable organic materials and waste flows are plentiful in the Amsterdam region.

‘ We have enormous innovative strength’ EBERHARD VAN DER LAAN


the scale that business parties abroad are used to dealing with. ‘This is why we like to present ourselves abroad as a combina-tion of four cities: Amsterdam as the creative hotspot where foreigners and their businesses want to be located; The Hague as the city of peace, and Rotterdam with its amazing port.’ Mr van der Laan smiles broadly as he reveals how his own civ-il servants sometimes question the compliments that get paid to the Port of Rotterdam, pointing out to him that the port of Amsterdam is equally fantastic and also good at things like transhipping cocoa and petrol. ‘I tell them that this isn’t the point, and that we all need to give each other a share of the limelight. Our city isn’t in competition with cities like Rot-terdam or Eindhoven, but with major metropolitan areas like London and Paris.’

JUSTIFIED PRIDEMr Aboutaleb brings up the C40, the global network of towns and cities that are focussing on the move to sustainable devel-opment and working closely together to tackle the effects of climate change. Representatives from these cities also attended the UN Climate Summit in Paris in December. Mr Aboutaleb was invited to speak there about sustainable transport in the port of Rotterdam. Invitations to speak publicly about his city’s progress are nothing new. A couple of years ago he was invit-ed to New York by the Clinton Global Initiative. Bill Clinton and New York’s then mayor, Michael Bloomberg, were among the people he spoke to. ‘They’d asked me to talk about the impact of climate change on coastal and shoreline cities. This was prompted by Hurricane Sandy, the disastrous storm that caused considerable damage across parts of the United States. They were really eager to know how Rotterdam protects itself against flooding. This international interest in Rotterdam’s sto-ry is really great. It’s a promising sign for us, and something we as a city can be proud of.’

EXAMPLES OF CIRCULAR ACTIVITY INROTTERDAM

Heat from Rotterdam’s refuse Using residual heat from industrial processes to heat homes and business – this is now a reality in Rotterdam. Construction of a warm water transport system - known as the Northern Pipeline and almost 17 kilometres in length – has connected Rotterdam’s entire urban heating network to a supply of excess heat from the city’s port. The use of residual industrial heat is cutting CO2 emissions by 60 per cent, as well as reducing the amount of fine-particle pollution in the atmosphere. Work on this pipeline network started in 2013 in Rotterdam, Rozenburg, Vlaardingen and Schiedam. Energy company Eneco is also using this system to feed residual heat from AVR’s (a waste-processing company) waste and energy plant in Rozenburg into Rotterdam’s city heating network. This renewable source now accounts for 80 per cent of the heating energy formerly generated by gas-fired power plants.This pipeline network is the first step in what should ultimately be a much larger ‘heat roundabout’, a large heating network in and around Rotterdam, which will supply heat from industry and underground sources to urban areas and horticultural greenhouse operations.

Shipping switches to cleaner shore-based powerVessels waiting to be loaded or unloaded in the port of Rotterdam often leave their heavy, diesel-fuelled engines running while anchored. For some time now, the port has had a generator ban in place for inland waterway vessels tied up at public moorings. The port now offers an alternative in the shape of cleaner shore-based power. This cuts CO2 emissions and reduces the local impact of nitrogen and fine dust particles. It also means that the surrounding area no longer has to endure the irritating sounds of on-board generators and engines. ‘Green’ vessels also get a discount on the harbour fees charged by the port of Rotterdam.

‘ Our know-how is a first-class export product’ AHMED ABOUTALEB

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Circular hotspot project: Producing fully transparent PET-bottles from old PET-bottles. Organizations involved: Port of Rotterdam, SUEZ, Ioniqa (a spin-off from the Eindhoven University of Technology and the Dutch Polymer Institute) and plant One. Iconic because: In its vision document the Port of Rotterdam defined many pathways to a circular econo-my in the Rotterdam/Delta region, including recycling plastic waste to higher value applications. The success-

ful industrial symbiosis between Port of Rotterdam, SUEZ and Ioniqa, is an iconic example of a ‘new path-way’, as is the technology involved. A true circular economy is about infinitely closing the loop, which is especially crucial for plastic waste. SUEZ and Ioniqa are doing just this. SUEZ by collecting and sorting out the monostream PET and closing the loop with partners. And Ioniqa through a treatment which results in virgin quality PET/Polyester that is identi-cal to the current quality produced from fossil fuels. It’s completely colourless and fully reusable. A game changing innovation.

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Organizations involved: Vitens, University of Wagenin-gen, RoyalHaskoningDHV.

Iconic because: Annually, Vitens produces 350 million m3 of drinking water. This releases about 60,000 tons of by-products, such as calcium, iron and humic acid, which

are expensive to separate. The company discovered that these by-products could be used effectively in other sec-tors and even be sold at a profit. This innovation is a big circular step forward, because for a long time, the agricul-tural industry which shares Vitens’ catchment areas has pursued its own, sometimes conflicting, agenda. Now that the company can produce such natural soil improvers as humic acid and chalk pellets, they are able to cooperate productively and complement each other’s objectives: better crop yields and high-quality drinking water.

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MAKING EVERY DROP COUNT

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Circular hotspot project: Don’t buy jeans. Lease them from MUD jeans for a fixed period, then decide whether to keep them or send them back for upcycling into so-called vintage models. Recycling is also an option; the fibres of the denim fabric are used to make other products.

Organizations involved: MUD Jeans, and among others DOEN Foundation, Social Enterprise NL, Max Havelaar Fair Trade.

Iconic because: The fashion industry is in urgent need of circular business models. It is the third most pollut-ing industry in the world, cotton being the most pesti-cide-intensive crop grown on the planet. MUD Jeans shows that jeans brands can be hip, happening ánd cir-cular at the same time. Even the labels are made from waste cotton and printed in organic ink. All products are made from organic cotton only by fair-trade organ-izations.

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The circular economy is about to enter into a period of amazing growth. If Sharon Dijksma gets her way, it will become a truly global movement instead of a scattered collection of individual initiatives. Dijksma: ‘The circular economy is generating a lot of en-thusiasm among the public, businesses and in government circles. It’s not seen - as environmental policy once was – as a threat, but as an opportunity. That’s a good thing. And it’s an opportunity we should all be seizing together. Countries, businesses, or private individuals – everyone can make their own contribution. All the lights are green. This is why we’re currently working on a nationwide pro-gramme involving all the government departments and ministries. We’ve asked the Social and Economic Council to give us its recommendations, and it should be issuing concrete proposals in the second quarter of 2016 about using eco-nomic and ecological opportunities. The government is going to set out a common vision on this issue. This should ensure it becomes a fixed item on the political and democratic agendas.If we really want to take the circular economy to the next level, then government, private citizens and the business world need to work together on this issue – both at home and internationally. The great thing is that we can actually achieve extremely good co-operation where this issue is concerned. Parties are increasingly speaking the same language, because everyone stands to benefit. As a result, some great initiatives have already been launched. The Neth-erlands, United Kingdom, France and Flanders, for example, recently signed an international raw ma-terials agreement with the business world and envi-ronmental organisations. This Green Deal for the North Sea Resources Roundabout makes it easier to market and re-use the raw materials recovered from waste incineration.But great things are also happening on a much smaller scale. Take the group of women in Gro-ningen who are making boxer shorts from old shirts, or G-Star’s trendy jeans made out of plastic recovered from the sea. We as a society now face the challenge of making sure the circular economy becomes a true movement and not just an array of fantastic but scattered initiatives.’

NAME SHARON DIJKSMAFUNCTION STATE SECRETARY FOR INFRASTRUCTURE AND THE ENVIRONMENT

‘CIRCULAR MEANS GLOBAL, NOT JUST LOCAL’

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This issue is a task for all our line managers, so that’s what we’ve done: put it in their hands. After all, they’re the ones that have to do the actual work. In this respect, my definition of sustainability is a very broad one. For example, we also be-lieve it should include the way we treat our personnel. Sus-tainable employment is one of the conditions needed for the airport’s solid economic development. People need to be given opportunities for personal development. Altogether, around 65,000 people work at Schiphol. Alongside our own personnel, the airport as a whole also houses approximately 500 businesses of various kinds. Take, for example, the 3,000 cleaning staff who work at the airport. They’re not our own staff, but we do make sure that they have decent terms and conditions of em-ployment.’

Do you have any examples of sustainable devel-opments at Schiphol that are making a real differ-ence? ‘A good example is some of the crops we grow around the air-port to discourage birds, like flax and elephant grass. The flax is also used to make linseed oil, a basis for natural paint. We have used that paint for our new parking garage, for example. The elephant grass is converted into bio-concrete. Together with the local government and other parties we’ve created bench-es at Schiphol Plaza, built with this bio-concrete. The outside material of the benches is a special bio-composite, which has a luxurious appearance. It’s a very durable and cost-effective solution. Once the benches have reached the end of their life, they are broken up and used to make insulation material.Not necessarily circular but very sustainable are our 35 elec-tric buses which are used to transfer passengers from planes to the gates. Busses aren’t allowed to drive any faster than 30 kilometres per hour anywhere near the runways, and that’s too slow to achieve the right level of combustion in a traditional bus with a diesel engine. The extremely short distances these buses travel, and the long time they spend standing still to let passengers on and off, means the emission levels would be even higher than those generated by a diesel engine in ‘normal’ use. This is why we chose electric buses. The buses have their own charging station at the airport, and the electricity comes di-rectly from our own solar panels.’

To what extent is Schiphol introducing circular measures?‘Well, let’s not forget that switching to a sustainable approach can yield solid financial returns. Think of the reduction in en-ergy use, for example. We’ve got a long-term agreement with the government which requires us to cut our annual increase in energy use by two percent each year up to 2020, relative to pro-jected increases in passenger numbers and building expansion. Our aim is to meet a large part of our energy needs from renew-able sources. One way to achieve this is, for example, thermal storage in the ground and in building-concrete. We also want to push ahead further with the switch from halogen to LED light-ing, which means a 70-percent reduction in energy consump-

tion. Some of our circular measures have only limited environ-mental impact, yet their appeal is strong and they’re popular with a large number of our employees. It’s a welcome side effect that we’re also able to inspire the workforce in this way.’

Do you experiment with new circular ideas? ‘In economic and business terms, Schiphol is doing well. That gives us the opportunity to experiment with sustainable meas-ures and also means we can afford to make the occasional mis-take along the way. About five years ago, for example, we came up with the idea of using algae to remove glycol from water. Glycol is sprayed on airplanes to prevent ice formation and we also use it as a de-icer to tackle snow in the winter. These agents remove oxygen from water as they break down. The sys-

Air travel is never going to win any green earth awards but at Amsterdam Schiphol airport sustainability initiatives are the norm; from recycled luggage belts to electric transfer buses. Ambitions are high, says Schiphol’s ceo Jos Nijhuis. ‘We want to be one of the world’s greenest airports.’

PLANES, BRAINS AND ELECTRIC AUTOMOBILES

Jos Nijhuis smiles as he taps on a grey and red lacquered coffee table – made from a pallet previously used at Am-sterdam’s Schiphol Airport. Mr Nijhuis, president and ceo of Schiphol Airport since 2009, explains: ‘This is increasingly how we handle building waste. Our ambi-tion is ‘zero waste’ by 2030, but there is a lot of work still to be done.’ Jos Nijhuis started out as an accountant and worked at PwC for 28 years, culminating in six years as chairman of the board. His drive towards sustainability and the circular economy is inspired by Peter Bakker, former ceo at TNT and one of the clients whose books were once audited by Nijhuis the accountant. ‘Bakker’s heartfelt argument for sustainability really made an impression on me. Much like Paul Polman of Unilever - an inspir-ing leader when it comes to turning businesses into sus-tainable operations.’

What impact have circular economy princi-ples been having on Schiphol? ‘The fact is that airports are, by their very nature, not prime examples of sustainable businesses. Nevertheless, we can still do an enormous amount in all our operations to make what we do cleaner, smarter, more economical and more socially responsible. We want to be one of the

world’s ‘greenest’ airports. We’re extremely aware of the impact the aviation business has on the environment and our surroundings. In fact, our efforts to minimise the impact on our surroundings have a long history. They began way back in the 1950s when we first tried to limit the level of noise experienced by the local population. Quite simply, what we want to do is improve the quality of life near our airports. Our mission is to provide the Netherlands with the best possible connections to the rest of the world, ‘Connect-ing to compete’. This is essential to the success of the Dutch economy. But there’s more to it than that. You also need to focus on sustainability and the human as-pects, and we call that, “Connecting to complete”. After all, those connections make it possible for people from different countries to meet and establish social networks. In this respect, I like to cite Maslow’s well-known ‘hier-archy of needs’: connections contribute to the well-be-ing of individuals and societies all over the world.’

How have you increased sustainability and implemented circular-economy principles at the airport?‘We don’t have a separate ‘Sustainability’ department or something like that. I don’t believe in that approach.

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Money, as we know, makes the world go round. But, if used well, it can also make our economy more circular. At PGGM, we believe that the financial sector can – and must – accelerate the transition to a circular economy. Through an efficient allocation of capital, the financial sector can enable companies to make urgently needed changes.

The circular economy is about risks and opportunities. Companies that continue to produce in the conventional, linear way are exposed to price volatility and ultimately shortages of raw materials. In the long run, investments in such companies are at risk. By contrast, circular companies may well be tomorrow’s winners.

Circularity also brings non-financial benefits that contribute to a better world for future generations. Less waste means better air and water quality and ultimately better health. It also reduces the probability of severe climate change. The circular economy model thus benefits planet, people and profit.

The circular economy is about risks and opportunities

As a long-term investor, PGGM strives to accelerate the transition to a circular econo-my in various ways. We look for attractive investment opportunities in circular compa-nies and projects. We engage with companies and encourage them to introduce circular business models and thinking into their operations. And finally, we take initiatives to increase understanding of the implications of the circular economy for the financial sector. For instance, pay-per-use models require more and more patient working capital than pay-for-ownership models, and bring different legal and technological risks. For this reason, PGGM set up the working group FinanCE at the Ellen McArthur Foun-dation.

I am excited that the Netherlands has embraced the circular economy. It is encourag-ing that the public and private sectors share this common goal and are working closely together. Staying linear is no longer an option. PGGM is proud to be part of the tran-sition to a circular world.

... PAVED WITH FINANCE: THE ROAD FROM LINEAR TO CIRCULAR

To what extent is Schiphol cooperating with sup-pliers and other partners in the field of sustaina-bility? ‘That’s growing all the time. Other businesses, such as suppliers like Philips and Cofely, are also setting the pace for us. One of our lounges, for example, now has ‘circular’ lighting. How does that work? Well, we ‘lease’ the lighting system on the basis of a service and performance contract that regulates things like performance requirements and energy use. We pay Philips and Cofely – which handled all the technical installation work – for this service. The light fittings and installations in our lounges remain the property of Philips. They are responsible for the lighting system’s performance and durability. By using recyclable materials and energy-efficient LED lamps electricity consumption is being cut in half! And this type of light fitting has a useful life that’s 75 percent longer than normal. The new design has also created a better lighting experience. The hard-ware and raw materials used in this circular lighting system will be re-used wherever possible, and that’s what I find so attrac-tive about it. Across the board we’re seeing a growing level of creativity among our suppliers. Take Vanderlande, for example. They’ve made luggage conveyor belts for us from non-toxic and re-useable materials. These belts have also been designed to use 60 percent less energy. They last for about seven years and can then be used again to make new belts.’

Since the climate conference in Paris, the Nether-lands has often been referred to as a circular econ-omy hotspot. How do you see this? ‘That could very well be the case. The political world, in any case, thinks it’s an interesting issue, and that’s progress in itself. But for a lot of parties this is a new field, so there’s always an element of trial and error to it.’

Does the ‘circular hotspot’ label suit the Nether-lands?‘Definitely. I’ve got the impression that people abroad think it does suit us – this small country with its very high population density and level of infrastructure and industrial activity. But we shouldn’t get ahead of ourselves. There’s still a lot of work to be done to give more substance to that circular economy hot-spot status – even though we are indeed already leading the way in waste management and in the switchover to electric cars.’

tem was working, but we had some trouble working together with our business partner. Things like that happen.’

Do you watch other airports to see how they tackle sustainability? ‘Of course. One bonus in that regard is that airports - because of their regional function - are much less focussed on com-peting with each other than, say, airlines. We’re fairly open about sharing our know-how either directly or through Air-ports Council International, our professional association. On a recent visit to Chicago airport, which likes to present itself as a sustainable operation, I was met by someone driving a Tesla. He proudly told me that his airport had three Tesla cars. I kept quiet about us having 167 Tesla electric cars in use at Schiphol – which makes us the airport with the world’s largest fleet of electric taxis.’

JOS NIJHUIS (58)

Education- HEAO-BE - NIVRA

Career2009 - present President and ceo of Schiphol Group

2008 - 2009 Member of Directors Team, Schiphol Group

2002 - 2008 Chairman of the Board of Directors of PwC

2001 - 2002 Vice-chairman of the Board of Directors of PwC

1998-2001 PwC, Partner Financial Advisory Services Nederland

1980 - 1998 PwC, various positions

1978-1980 Berk accountants and tax consultants

Private lifeMarried, three children

‘ By using energy-efficient LED lamps our electricity consumption is cut in half’


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ctCircular hotspot project: At Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, the electricity consumption of the refurbished Departure Lounge 2 will be reduced by no less than fifty percent as a result of using reusable materials and ener-gy-efficient LED lighting.

Organizations involved: Philips, Cofely, Amsterdam Schiphol Aiport.

Iconic because: Together with Philips and Cofely, the airport developed ‘light as a service’ for its revamped De-

parture Lounge 2. With this ‘circular lighting’, Schiphol pays for the performance while Philips remains the own-er of the lighting fixtures and installations. Philips and Cofely are responsible for the system’s performance and life cycle.Not only decreasing electricity consumption by fifty percent, but also improving the visual perception of the lighting.Other circular projects By Schiphol are the develop-ment of new, 99% recyclable baggage conveyors and benches made from elephant grass

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Circular hotspot project: The World’s first Green Car-bon Black, through a new process that turns old tires into the world’s first high performance, pure, ecological carbon black.

Organizations involved: Black Bear Carbon, Circle Econ-omy, EU Eco-Innovation Initiative, ASTM International.

Iconic because: Black Bear ceo Martijn Lopes Cardozo probably says it best: ‘Tens of millions of tires are burned

annually, wasting massive amounts of valuable carbon black. Petroleum is used for the production of new car-bon black. Black Bear thought of something smart.’ The standard way of producing carbon black is very pollut-ing, but it has a high surface-area-to-volume ratio, which makes it widely applied as a reinforcing filler in tyres and other products. Black Bear has developed a process ena-bling the recovery of high quality carbon black from waste tires, thereby providing a sustainable solution for a prob-lematic waste stream.

THE NEW BLACK

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CROUCHING GREENS, HIDDEN PROFIT

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As the world’s largest manufacturer, China has the power to make or break the circular economy model. The coun-try claims the growth of its circular economy is outpacing even that of its GDP. But, the policymakers agree, there is more to be done and learned.Xu: ‘We realize it’s a great challenge for us in China to strike a balance between economic growth, social progress and environmental protection. Now we have a new fixed pillar of society – eco-civilization, promoting green inno-vation and coordination, together with the principles of openness and sharing. If we want to leave a better world to the next generation we have to be serious about the circular economy. We are moving in the right direction, and we are becoming more aware of global governance. This is a process and in some ways China is still catching up. Even if it slows our economic growth a little bit, we need to make sure our growth is green. And innovation is top of the list in the factors needed to make that happen. We need to benefit from the Dutch in this area; how you organize yourselves in the green economy, the best use of water and land, and in manufacturing. Although we are very different countries in size and population, you are really advanced in many areas.Among Chinese people the Netherlands are known for their ‘Four Treasures’ – tulips, windmills, cheeses and clogs. But economically the Chinese are impressed by the way you organize yourselves. I think the majority of Dutch are market oriented. The size of this country is small but its impact is big, and goes beyond the borders of Europe. Innovation is the driving force here, along with trade and business.In the Chinese system we can organize many people at the same time to concentrate our force to finish one pro-ject. Of course, you have to move forward with the mod-el that is suitable to your national condition; we cannot mechanically copy the American or the European style. And in China our huge population means we need a strong central government to move ahead in a stable and steady manner.The circular economy is not only important for ener-gy-saving and environmental protection, but is also widely applicable in sectors such as heavy industry, agri-culture, and services. Strengthening cooperation in the circular economy is essential. I believe the businesses of both our countries will find more space to cooperate in the future.’

NAME CHEN XUFUNCTION CHINA’S AMBASSADOR TO THE NETHERLANDS

44. Mgmt. Scope

The motivation to make all our endeavours circular is no longer purely idealistic – business and government are now moving forces as well. ‘And that combination has a great potential to bring many benefits to our country,’ says Hans de Boer, chairman of the Confederation of Netherlands Industry and Employers.

GOVERNMENT MUST LEAD THE WAY TO

THE CIRCLE

‘If you make a mess, then it’s fairly standard for you to clean that up yourself, isn’t it?’ Hans de Boer (61) is known for his plain speaking. In recent years, the chair-man of the VNO-NCW employers’ organisation has be-come aware that our prosperity cannot continue indefi-nitely unless we develop circular systems and activities. But as long ago as the mid-1990s, he discovered that waste materials need not be seen exclusively as a prob-lem, but that they also offer interesting commercial pros-pects for the business community. At that time he was Chairman of the Supervisory Board of De Meerlanden, a waste processing company, which he co-founded, oper-ating in the region of Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport and the Aalsmeer Flower Auction. ‘We were the first waste processor in the Netherlands to have a gasification and fermentation plant. It was used to process waste from the flower auction, and it proved to be a technological and commercial success from the start.’

If this awareness of the potential of waste processing already existed twenty years ago, why didn’t circular economic activities devel-op here much sooner, particularly when you think about the jobs they create?Hans de Boer: ‘That’s a good point. Look, we already knew about “Lansink’s Ladder” back then (named af-ter Dutch politician Ad Lansink). His environmental concerns led him to draw up a system of standards for waste management. According to his ‘waste hierarchy’, re-use and waste prevention have top priority. They come before recycling, and definitely take precedence over incineration and waste dumping. But we’ve had to wait a long time for businesses to take an active in-terest in this, or turn it into a commercial proposition. Forty years ago this was an issue for the ‘tree-hugging, sandal-wearing’ community. That’s changed totally. It’s now become an important issue for the world of business

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HANS DE BOER (61)

Education Econometrics and Public Finance, VU University Amsterdam

Career2014 - present Chairman of VNO-NCW

2007 - 2014 ceo, LSI project investment

2003 - 2007 Co-founder of various businesses, including PolicyProductions and Verzekerd Wonen

1997 - 2003 Chairman, MKB Nederland

1994 - 1997 Director, KPMG

1986 - 1994 Founder, Economic Research and Policy Consulting Bureau

1982 - 1986 Policy advisor, government of the Netherlands Antilles

1978 - 1982 Academic associate, Institute for Research on Public Expenditure

Private lifeMarried, two children.

and industry. Ideals have combined with business interests to form the moving force behind circular enterprise. It’s ex-citing and could have many benefits. It’s maybe also a mat-ter of time. Don’t forget, a very large number of things have changed for the better over recent decades. I can clearly recall my parents taking me to visit relatives in Rotterdam when I was a child. We were country folk, from Friesland. My father used to take a jerry can of ‘fresh water’ along as a present for our city-dwelling brethren! The water there was so filthy you couldn’t make a decent cup of tea with it.’

To what extent are the members of the Employ-ers’ Confederation aware of the commercial and job-creation potential of circular enterprise? ‘They’re appreciating it more and more, to my great satis-faction. As I see it, the combination of wanting to do the right thing – in other words, shouldering your social respon-sibility – with sound business motives is the best mix you could find.’ Could you provide an example to illustrate that? ‘Before I started here at VNO-NCW, I worked in the real estate business for seven years. For a long time, those ugly ‘construction kit’ buildings were about the only things be-ing built around our towns and cities. They were relatively cheap. They were also the first things to fall vacant when the financial crisis struck. They should really be demol-ished, but that’s not happening. That’s the total opposite of sustainability. In recent years, however, a fantastic coun-ter trend has been gaining ground. Now, the only buildings being built in our urban centres are sustainable, or we’re upgrading existing buildings, or knocking them down and re-using the materials. And the reasons why this is happen-ing are both social and economic. The crucial thing is that real estate investors are willing to pay a higher price for sus-tainable buildings. It would, by the way, be good if lenders were to follow that lead and come up with more attractive financing conditions for investors like these.

‘ We ought to have a kind of recycling ‘bank’ for raw materials’


What’s the best way for us to get that message across outside the Netherlands? ‘We simply have to do that. I regularly go on trade missions, and the government organises regular trips under the ‘circular enterprise’ banner. We’re going to Indonesia soon, for exam-ple, probably on the theme of urbanisation. So, business people who know about combatting air pollution, about water puri-fication and other circular activities, could be going with us. One thing we also want to promote throughout the Netherlands is the project to get the 2025 World Expo held in Rotterdam. One unique aspect of this is that our bid is based entirely on circular ideas and principles. New construction is kept to the bare minimum, and any new pavilions built will have a designated post-Expo use before they’re even built. Ex-isting buildings – in Rotterdam’s port district, for instance – will be ‘re-used’ for this World Expo. The philosophy here is one of no left-overs’.

What role should government be playing in terms of stimulating the circular economy? ‘I’m an enormous believer in government playing a leading role in the initial phase of developments – what we used to call the ‘infant industry argument’. Why wouldn’t the government do that? It should be encouraging rapid growth towards a circular economy with policies that support and facilitate that. Every-one now believes in the need for the circular economy and the opportunities it brings. The government should be inviting businesses to come to the table, and it also has a key role when it comes to its own investments and acquisitions. When a new office building is being built for a government department, then it should be standard for it to meet the most stringent energy and circular requirements. By the way, when it comes to pur-chasing policy you also need to create a climate in which the party handling the acquisitions isn’t judged on whether they negotiate the lowest price, but on the total cost of ownership. After all, we know that the initial price of circular investments is often relatively high, while the costs over the investment’s entire lifetime are in fact lower.’

In conclusion, what do you see as the essential val-ue of the circular economy? ‘That you can do something that benefits the planet while, at the same time, you as an organisation or private citizen also benefit or gain knowledge from doing it. And on a personal level? That we do the right thing in the most efficient way possible. Personally speaking, that’s something that makes me really happy.’

Another positive aspect is that people who lease these sustain-able office buildings like to publicise the fact that they’ve cho-sen ‘green’ premises. That’s something they can, quite rightly, use to make a good impression. We’ve reached a new stage now. These days newly-built office buildings are usually energy neutral, they’re easy to disassem-ble, which means the building materials can be re-used at some point in the future, and so on. Our architects and builders are getting better and better at marketing this circular know-how abroad. And that automatically means new jobs.’

I often hear from people abroad that they regard the Netherlands and Dutch business as real lead-ers on the circular economy. Do you agree with me that we in this country are not sufficiently aware of that? ‘The PR for ‘Netherlands Inc.’ is indeed not strong. The strange thing is that we tend to get a bit big headed at the wrong moments. Our timing isn’t that good. It’s a bit like the way most Dutch people dance – with a distinct lack of rhythm. Take our dairy farmers. Their milk production generates thirty to forty percent less in CO2 emissions than the foreign com-petition. In the same context, you have a business like Fries-landCampina that’s developing clever ways of handling cow manure – things like fermentation, which cuts CO2 emissions considerably; and extracting useful nutrients from the manure. Yet, what’s the average Dutch man or woman saying about our dairy farmers? They just moan about mega dairies, about ‘the industrialisation of farming’, etcetera. Personally, I find that really irritating.’

Do we have sufficient ammunition to put the Netherlands on the ‘circular’ map internationally? ‘We’re in the Top 5 of the world’s largest agricultural producers. And we’re definitely a global leader in logistics. The combina-tion of the scarcity of resources, our experience with re-using materials, plus the fact that we’re a logistics and agricultural hotspot, all offer enormous opportunities for circular activities and development. So it would be a good idea for us to keep those scarce resources ‘inside’ our economy – and I mean that literally. We ought to have a kind of recycling ‘bank’ for raw materials. That’s extremely important from a strategic point of view. Importing and exporting all those raw materials and waste materials is, in any event, a massive exercise in logistics. We’re good at that; we’re skilled at designing processes. It’s not for nothing that we have such a high productivity level compared to other countries.’

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Australian green movement pioneer Andy Ridley is now one year into his role as Managing Director of Circle Economy, the Amsterdam based cooperative working on a range of sustainability projects. For Ridley, the salient question is: how do you move the topic of the circular economy from rhetoric to reality? One of the ingredients to the answer is, he says, the Netherlands.Ridley: ‘What you have here is a very unusual gather-ing of companies and people who get the idea of the circular economy and are endeavoring, in some cases successfully, to implement it. So if you want to learn about it, come here.You’ve got this extraordinary expertise building up here in the Netherlands. Your next big leap is export,

because you’ve got a gift to bring to a lot of other places. The circular economy is in China’s next five-year plan, so next is practical implementa-tion. And that’s why I like working here at Circle Economy, that’s what we do. Implementation is what you see when you’re at Philips. Or another

example, at Friesland Campina, which exports pow-dered milk to China. Systemic changes have taken place on their farms, how they run them and maintain happy cows. The way they’re trying to look after the land, how they use manure. In Australia farmers don’t like waste and it’s the same here, the circularity is get-ting deeply integrated.When I first came there it was a bit of a culture shock for me. There’s much more discussion before a deci-sion gets made than in the Anglo-Saxon business cul-ture. I think that has a great bearing on the circular economy because it requires so much interaction be-tween the different elements. I think there’s a unique entrepreneurial spirit here in the Netherlands. The word entrepreneur is used here as a compliment.’Here in the Netherlands a lot of companies are iden-tifying some of the issues that obstruct the circular economy. One of those is how do you change the con-sumer’s expectations? No one’s engaged the creative industries yet on this and I’d love to see that happen.’

FROM DOWN UNDER TO UP AND OVER

47. Mgmt. Scope

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NAME ANDY RIDLEY FUNCTION CEOCOMPANY CIRCLE ECONOMY

‘ The philosophy here is one of no left-overs’


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Circular hotspot project: Park 20|20, the first worldwide Cradle to Cradle® business park near Hoofddorp.

Organizations involved: Delta Development Group, VolkerWessels and the Reggeborgh Group and among others: Gemeente Haarlemmermeer, Arizona State Uni-versity, TU Delft, Ellen MacArthur Foundation, Dutch Green Building Council and the Cradle to Cradle Prod-ucts Innovation Institute.

Iconic because: It’s simply the business park of the future. Park 20|20 combines an optimal ecological approach with a ‘circular’ view on doing business. Human well-be-ing is the central element, which is so often forgotten in office buidlings. This focus results in an inspiring and healthy work environment. The park is made up of ap-prox. 88.000 m2 of office buildings and about 3.500 m2 for amenities. Renewable energy through heat and cold storage and photovoltaic cells as well as water purification by means of helophyte filters are amongst its features.

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GREEN WORKS

50. Mgmt. Scope

Coming in to land at Schiphol airport, spreading beneath you is a small country with plenty of water. Surprisingly for such a densely populated place, instead of sky-scrapers we see meticulously planned farmland, company sites, waterways and roads that, together, reflect the entrepreneurship that went into building them. And yet, few passengers know that the Netherlands is a world leader in agricultural efficiency, photonics, chip technology, logistics, and bio-based production, to name but a few. Once on the ground, after noticing some challenging weather, visitors will find a country populated by happy, healthy people.

Addressing the criticism of the OECD, that the Netherlands lacks productivi-ty-boosting megacities, I would therefore reply that the country in fact is one green megacity of the future. Or, put more modestly: a Sustainable Urban Delta.

The Netherlands is one green megacity of the future

The Netherlands has centuries of experience in public-private co-creation. It can share its expertise with countries around the world in all aspects of urbanization and create for itself a new, uniquely Dutch, industry. This is the theme for the Innovation Expo in April 2016, held in Amsterdam. During its 2016 EU Presidency, the Neth-erlands is hosting many events on innovation, of which the Innovation Expo is the largest. It was initiated by the government fourteen years ago and is co-organized by start-ups, topsectors, civil projects, universities, polytechnics, and the media. More than 4000 people are gathering to see 220 showcases, and to exchange ideas.I feel proud to be a project-manager of the Innovation Expo, but it goes further than that.

It is my belief that the Netherlands needs to become a living laboratory for the dreams that lie underneath the innovations I’ve mentioned. Naturally, circular pro-duction is what we all want, but most people are unsure about how to make that happen. The government should take the lead, by forbidding plastic bags in shops, for example. Yes, personalized medicine is wonderful, but the most important thing is a healthy lifestyle. Of course, coding is important, just like reading and writing, but imagination and cooperation should be the most important results of a child’s educa-tion. It’s the mentality and the dreams people share, that bring meaningful change.

What’s next? The Circular Hotspot Valley opening in Schiphol’s Trade park is a great initiative providing our circular businesses with more international visibility. Why not combine a number of national innovation events to produce a large bi-an-nual event? Then when people think of Holland they will think of innovation.

... SHARED DREAMS, MEANINGFUL CHANGE

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‘Participating in a circular economy will become a license to operate for Waste to Energy plants. More specifically, the reuse of all aggregates and metals in their ash will help them in becoming more circular. It decreases the industry’s carbon footprint and preserves our nature’s scarce resources for future generations. Inashco’s mission is to be the partner of choice for the Waste to Energy sector and other stakeholders focussing on responsible ash management.’Arno La Haye - CEO Inashco

‘True cooperation is key to transform to the circular economy. Besides the fact that cooperation is a necessity, it is also much more fun. It enriches life in all ways and above all, we huma ns cannot survive alone. Cooperation is the only natural way.’ Cas van Arendonk - Managing Partner Powered by Meaning

‘Through our work with organisations that are making the transition towards a circular economy KPMG is well- positioned to enable change with its clients. Companies and governments aim to show the value that the circular economy create. This is where our experience in valuating societal impact comes in and supports leading companies to show the environmental, social and economic costs and benefits of their solutions. Through this we aim to inspire other players and create momentum.’ Bernd Hendriksen - Practice Leader of Sustainability KPMG

‘Circular Economy is a new approach of managing and eliminating all aspects of waste and recycling. Using renew-able resources, available capacity, embedded value of resources and generating new innovative services will create value that is both good for the economy ánd the planet. As digital technologies play a critical role in supporting these circular business models and will help companies to put them at the core of their strategies, the best time to act is now’ Manon van Beek - Managing Director Accenture Netherlands

‘I believe it’s not only our moral duty but also economic sense to actively pursue a more sustainable, circular economy. Rotterdam operates at the forefront of circular economy developments, leading the way in water management and delta technology. Reducing and recycling waste also results in lower cost levels for the city, its companies and inhab-itants, simultaneously creating new jobs. Rotterdam actively supports initiatives by companies, knowledge institutes and individuals who can take the circular economy forward.’ Ron Voskuilen - CEO Rotterdam Partners

‘As a utility company, we continually look for innovative solutions for a circular economy where waste no longer exists and energy is sustainable. That’s not utopian, it is inevitable. Scarce raw materials will be depleted and the demand for energy will only increase in a growing global population of nearly 9 billion and a rapidly expanding digitalization of society. Together we can create a resilient circular economy. We must strive for an economy where consumption is replaced by reuse.’ Wim van Lieshout - CEO HVC

‘Dutch Water Authorities (DWA) consider waste water to be a valuable source of renewable energy, raw materials, and clean water. It has set up the Energy & Resource Factory network organization, in which energy and raw materi-als are being recovered from waste water. However, the waste status of these materials and different EU quality stand-ards hamper innovation. We therefore ask for EU wide ‘end of waste’ criteria for secondary materials, including waste water, to create a level playing field.’ Ingrid ter Woorst - Board Member DWA ‘Water quality & sustainability

‘Of course we feel responsible for our extensive ‘raw material bank’; thousands of kilometers of cable and pipe and a lot of technical installations that we install and maintain for decades. It helps us that the properties and challenges of the energy transition and material transition are comparable. Both can amplify each other to harvest from the technological, financial and social opportunities.’ Peter Molengraaf - CEO Alliander

‘The circular economy needs a runway. Now, right at this moment! Lots of people are willing to change the system. Here – in Haarlemmermeer- you’ll find a local government with great ambitions and companies and organizations who are innovative and eager. That makes us an ideal living lab for the circular society. And that’s why last year the Circular Hotspot started here.’ John Nederstigt - Alderman Municipality of Haarlemmermeer

‘ROCKWOOL believes that buildings should be a part of the circular economy vision. Buildings can only be sus-tainable if they are comfortable, safe and designed for the people who work, learn, heal and live in them. However, this needs a coordinated political vision and strategy, including positive legislative drivers such as waste prevention targets, promotion of products that are easier to reuse and remanufacture, but also tender policies and building assess-ment methods that include social impact.’ Hannie Stappers - Director Public Affairs ROCKWOOL B.V.

‘At LUNE we make Dutch designed waste bins that are used for sorting waste at the source. They have been devel-oped and manufactured to fulfil the objectives of the circular economy. They play an important role in the end of life and retrieval of other products and are designed to last! Furthermore, our bins are designed for disassembly, to facilitate an efficient repair-, re-use- and refurbish process.’ Wido F.I. van den Bosch - CEO LUNE

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‘Black Bear has a circular economy solution for the waste tire problem and an alternative for the fossil based carbon black that is used for tire production. For each upcycling facility we can save more CO2 than 1 million trees can consume. Even better, there are enough tires in the world to build over 800 facilities! We believe that the Netherlands can lead the circular economy by creating successful examples that can be upscaled internationally.’ Martijn Lopes Cardozo - CEO Black Bear Carbon

‘Sustainability is one of our company’s most important guidelines. As a global company and as part of a regional society, Siemens wants to contribute to economic, ecological and social developments. We do not only take owner-ship and responsibility when it comes to serving our different stakeholders in the short term, we also take account of the effects for future generations. In a nutshell: finding the optimal balance between ‘people, planet and profit’ Ab van der Touw - CEO Siemens

‘Business leaders must ensure we don’t reduce the circular economy to a mere varnish for yesterdays’ business as usual. The course of change is never smooth, but it requires you to uproot fundamental assumptions of your business, add a strong dose of conviction and be determined to build a new core competence that future-proofs your organisation and the wider economy. This is the time to act, for it enables us, business leaders, to do true good in our markets.’ Rob Boogaard - president en CEO Interface EMEA

‘In our conversations with business leaders, we sense a renaissance of ‘stewardship’: the responsible management of something entrusted to one’s care. True leaders understand they are ‘mere’ stewards, and that their stewardship includes the responsibility for a sustainable world. At TEN we believe the leaders of the future are the leaders for the future. Courageous, creative, with the power of will and a belief in the benefit of sharing, they strive to achieve goals that are larger than life.’ Marty Tuk - Partner The Executive Network (TEN)

‘The recycling centre collects and passes on. That is why it’s not just an environment-friendly place to dump waste, but a point of conversion; a circulation site where people give products and materials new uses. That is why Modulo intends to turn the recycling centre into an inviting place that involves people in the natural cycle of waste, reuse and creation. Each person has to take their own responsibility. The market is shifting from linear to circular!’ Ron van Ommeren - CEO Modulo Milieustraten

‘To DSM, the transition to a circular economy is a necessity to meet global demands for more value from the available resources, to combat climate change and to reduce and start reusing our waste. I believe we are nearing the tipping point of that transition: at COP21 we found many multi-nationals, governments and NGOs fully aware of the urgency and willing to make this transition happen. The Netherlands, a highly dense urban delta, simply hás to act and is moving into the right direction.’ Feike Sijbesma - CEO Royal DSM

‘Philips embraces circular economy, because of the intrinsic benefits for societies and because it is a driver for econom-ic growth. We already took significant steps in redesigning our product propositions, business models and end-to-end value chains. We are pioneering asset tracking to close the loop on re-use of parts, designed consumer products from recycled plastics and have been selling refurbished medical equipment for years. A large part of our R&D activities is based in the Netherlands; an ideal testing ground to jump start innovations.’ Frans van Houten - CEO Royal Philips

‘We regard products as the temporary storage of valuable raw materials. At Van Gansewinkel we want to prevent waste and ensure that it only reaches our recycling processes after many cycles. This is how we partner with our clients toward the realisation of the circular economy. Van Gansewinkel is the bridge-builder, able to complete the circle from waste to raw material. We make sustainability tangible by recovering scarce raw materials and resupplying them as the ingredients for new products.’ Marc Zwaaneveld - CEO Van Gansewinkel

‘As a circular company, we have a stronger relationship with our customers. At the end of the lifespan of their office interior, we take the complete interior back from our clients, with guaranteed residual value. We aim to reuse as much as possible. By revitalizing and remodelling the furniture, we give it a second and third cycle. Through the three-year repurchase program, the life of office furniture is extended up to 21 years. We give our customers all the tools to be sustainable.’ Michael Kuiper - CEO Desko

‘We’re shifting from a linear economy, where everything is based on ‘take-make-dispose’, towards more circular processes. We’re moving from ownership to access and this is coming to fruition in the sharing economy, not only for consumers, but also for businesses. At FLOOW2 we facilitate this change towards more efficient use of what companies already have with an online B2B Sharing Marketplace on which businesses can share equipment, services, but also the skills and knowledge of personnel worldwide.’ Kim Tjoa - Co-Founder FLOOW2

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Documents

Circular Economy Hotspot