Our place on the planet

It is interesting to have conversations about the state of the planet with different generations. While teens and young adults may be accused of being completely immersed in all things technology, the one thing that they have an acute awareness of is the state of the planet and the role we as humans have played in that. By contrast, much older generations prefer to talk about the “good old days”, when life was simpler and shopping was done at the local grocer or butcher instead of online.

But the “simpler life” is a somewhat a jaded view that conveniently forgets the cost of economic growth. Statistics reflect quite clearly that the greatest negative impact on the planet has been in the past 50 to 100 years.  The entrenched linear economy and requirement for growth has resulted in a combination of habitat and biodiversity loss, industrial pollution in many forms, and health and resource security issues on every continent. We see it unfolding with each new crisis, and the calls for accelerated change get louder, yet still there’s hesitation.  

The general indifference to climate change over the past few decades has resulted in an irreversible global crisis. It’s not just the increase in all of these adverse factors that’s cause for alarm, it’s the accelerated pace of damage. Now we’re living those effects: a global pandemic spanning more than two years, an energy crisis resulting from over reliance on fossil fuels, as well as having to live through extreme heat waves, devastating rain and snow storms. It’s almost as if as human’s we believed we’re so advanced that we could manage and find a solution to anything.

What’s next, what’s best?

Granted there isn’t a particularly positive outlook for our planet. Scientists warn that the time for stopping climate change has already passed. Things are too far gone to hope to halt or reverse the effects of what’s already taking place.  So what now? Is the next best option trying to mitigate the impacts as best we can or are there still opportunities to make a positive impact?

What’s really encouraging though are the conversations taking place within the resource management sector. There is an overwhelming consensus that the role of resource management is changing. More than that, the sector is ideally positioned to be an enabler, coordinator and collaborator to other sectors. There is a wealth of knowledge and expertise in resource management that other sectors are only just starting to realise they need.

Circular as a solution

As knowledge and initiative of the circular economy continues to grow so does the realisation that production, consumption, and waste have a direct impact on climate change. But in case we believed that industry moguls are suddenly gaining a climate conscience, the other more pressing factor driving decisions is resource scarcity and rising costs of materials. This is increasing interest in alternate materials that have been recycled or repurposed.  Additionally, in recent months, the conflict on Ukraine has brought to light how reliant we still are on fossil fuels. Despite advances towards renewables, it’s blatantly clear that the UK is still very far from securing energy independence.

Business leaders and consumers alike are finally starting to make the connections of how interrelated everything is. The problem is that there’s still hesitation in actively being part of the solution and this is where the waste management industry has a pivotal role to play. Where other industries may be lacking in expertise, waste management is already ahead in understanding some of the fundamentals, and complexities in transitioning to the circular economy.

A prime example is food packaging. Historically, many retailers designed packaging with the primary objective of retaining food freshness without taking into consideration ease of recycling or if all the packaging was really necessary. More recently feedback from the recycling sector and pressure from consumers had lead retailers to rethink food packaging. Many have stopped using hard to recycle plastics and made a concerted effort to reduce multiple layers of packaging.  There’s a strong business case for this that goes beyond environmental benefits. It meets consumer expectations for reducing packaging waste and can also reduce packaging costs. But it also highlights the need for collaboration between industries if circular economies are to be achieved.

It’s not hard to get despondent about the state of the planet and the massive challenges ahead, to wonder about our place on the planet and if we can have any impact. While we may not have all the answers, I believe the resource management sector has a pivotal role to play in making as much progress as possible in reducing negative industry impacts. Knowledge and expertise is the sector’s greatest asset and there’s no shortage of innovation either. Rather than being the sector that picks up what everyone else discards, resource management is leading the way in helping other sectors make progress towards their sustainability goals.