Manufacturing and the Circular Economy

Navigating Opportunities and Challenges in a Volatile World

Manufacturing and the circular economy: Navigating opportunities and challenges in a volatile world

About the Event

3rd June 2025, the Shard

This is a one-day interactive workshop, targeting manufacturing, business and policy sectors of the UK economy and governance. The workshop will use the urgency of the current geopolitical chaos situated further in the VUCA world – a world of increasing vulnerability, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity – to seek collective solutions and support UK industries and businesses to become more resilient, and self-reliant to manage the global shock waves more efficiently. This is the second in a series of workshops and other interventions to develop a more sustainable framework for economic growth and societal development of the UK and globally. The workshop will offer opportunities for learning and interactive development of solutions and critical thinking in relation to the circular economy principles and systems’ thinking.

The event is organised by the Sustainability SpotlightLink opens in a new window, in partnership with Warwick Business School (WBS), Link opens in a new window Warwick Manufacturing Group (WMG),Link opens in a new window and the Institute for Global Sustainable Development (IGSD).

Registration Joining Information Programme People

Key Objectives

For industry and businesses

Explore practical ideas from industries and businesses to build more resilience and sustainability into your processes of supply, design, manufacturing, and end-of-life by adopting Circular Economy Principles.
Generate relevant ideas about changes in 4 critical areas to generate cost savings, resource efficiency and increase longer-term resilience of your organisation.
Identify areas where further research and innovation could support you to overcome the barriers to creating more resilient, sustainable processes.

For policy

Establish what is needed from policy/regulation or innovation to drive progress towards more resilience in the manufacturing process?
Build on ideas from existing good practice of how adopting Circular Economy practice can build profits and drive resilience.
Establish networks with key players within the UK industry, businesses and researchers for future co-creation.

Key Outputs

Network and connections between participants and with Warwick researchers who can support further ideas and innovation.
Easy to follow 4-step model as part of the conference resource– explored in a workshop.
Follow up on the 4 Step Model Toolkit/instruction manual on the Padlet.
Recommendations for the government and Circular Economy TASK FORCE, based on the workshop's discussions.
Opinion polling and further ideas collected from Menti, during the day, available on Padlet.

Watch the Keynote Address from Lord Teverson, member of the House of Lords (Industry and Regulators Select Committee) and the Honorary member of IGSD Warwick. His address inspires us with a reminder that what is required is a system's change - from a mindset and daily behaviour to government decision-making and strategic planning. Only then the current linear economy can be transformed into a circular economy, with long-lasting benefits for the society and the planet.

Research