BITC Environment Director, Gudrun Cartwright and a panel of Business in the Community (BITC) business champions will share their ambitions and plans for the recently launched BITC Cymru Waste to Wealth Commitment at this year’s Resource Conference Cymru.
Waste to Wealth brings together business, government, academia and civil society to unlock opportunities to double the nation’s resource productivity and reduce avoidable waste by 2030 through an ambitious programme of research, learning and practical action and current champions include Sainsburys, Burger King, Nestle, JLL, Interface and EMR Metal Recycling.
We recently interview BITC’s Director Matt Appleby about their involvement in this year’s event:
Can you tell us a bit about why the upcoming Resource Conference Cymru is of interest to BITC Cymru?
“Our members are increasingly seeking to improve their sustainability and numerous Wales members have committed to reducing waste, recycling, creating a more sustainable future – so the Resource Conference is the ideal platform for them and for us. We know we have just 12 years to prevent catastrophic climate change. Together with our Welsh members, we’re determined to act now to unlock the opportunities in our production cycles, to find smarter ways of working that reduce waste and create innovative new products. We’re encouraging as many of our members as possible to attend so that they, like us, can learn from the experts.”
“BITC has made the commitment to resource efficiency and creating wealth, and the CIWM Resource Conference is the perfect launch pad for the #WasteToWealth initiative in Wales.”
What are you most looking forward to about the event?
“I’m looking forward to hearing the expert view; picking up practical advice which we can share and being part of an event which puts production, waste reduction and recycling on the map. The circular office, or circular workplace in general, is something we need to build together and this event is a great place to start collaborating.”
Why do you think it’s important/useful for people to attend conferences like this?
“It is vital for us to act together now and it’s important for business, partners and Government to collaborate at an event such as this one.
We cannot continue as we do.
- The UK produces more than 200m tonnes of waste each year, over half of which comes from construction and demolition activities.
- UK businesses could save £7.2bn by improving the productivity of energy and resources.
Waste reduction can save your organisation up to £1,000 per year per employee. BITC’s findings show that a more circular UK economy could create 200,000 jobs and increase productivity by 3% annually. This, in turn, could translate into 7% GDP growth by 2030 and improve the UK’s balance of trade by 1-2% of GDP.”
“We have just 12 years to prevent catastrophic climate change so it’s vital for us to act together now and turn from waste to wealth. The CIWM Resource Conference Cymru is a chance for our environmentally-responsible businesses to get together, hear from experts, exchange experiences and plan collaboratively for a greener future. Together with our members we can unlock the opportunities in our production cycles, find smarter ways of working that reduce waste, and create innovative new products”.
To hear more from BITC and the many hot topics being discussed at this year’s event visit www.ciwm.co.uk/wales-conferenceand follow the conversations on twitter #ciwmresource19
CIWM Media Centre