In the run-up to the Stockholm+ 50 UN Conference in June, the Royal Institute of International Affairs (Chatham House) has convened a series of international online workshops and stakeholder consultations on the opportunities to elevate the circular economy to advance global development and environmental goals. The aim was to identify initiatives and approaches which have potential to significantly advance the transition to a circular economy globally and help it gain a stronger foothold through enhanced international cooperation.

Based on Chatham House’s research on the circular economy, and the suggestions and feedback received in the workshops and bilateral conversations, the framework of a global roadmap process for an inclusive circular economy was developed. Initiated off the back of Stockholm+50, such a process could help address this gap on the international level.

The roadmap process could provide an open, transparent, voluntary and inclusive space for all stakeholders to work towards a common vision and to tackle common challenges collectively. Without creating additional multilateral structures, it could enable closer cooperation and support delivery of existing global commitments such as the Paris Agreement and the SDGs in which the circular economy can play a key role. The process could also be designed to align bottom-up initiatives of high transformative potential with government-to-government coordination on key national policies - in particular, national circular economy roadmaps and action plans.