Circular Ukraine – WATCH the Replay

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“Adopting circular business models lays the groundwork for Ukraine’s reconstruction, enabling the efficient reuse of industrial waste. We want to build Ukraine back better and this means build Ukraine back greener,” stated Nadiya Bigun, Ukraine’s Deputy Minister of Economy. In her address at the World Circular Economy Forum 2024 (WCEF) in Brussels, Belgium, the Deputy Minister highlighted Ukraine’s commitment to adopting leading practices in environmentally friendly and resource-efficient solutions.

Ukraine’s circular reconstruction was the focus of the forum’s Accelerator session, hosted by the EU’s Directorate-General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations (DG Near) and UNIDO. The EU is supporting Ukraine to build a brighter future on a foundation of environmental sustainability – with funding but also with technical and legislative capacity, which is provided by the UNIDO and some other organizations. 

The session highlighted demonstrate practical applications of circular economy strategies in Ukraine. A panel discussion explored how integrating circular economy principles can mitigate construction waste, stimulate economic growth, and foster new opportunities in Ukraine. The event initiated discussions with experts regarding the sustainable reconstruction requirements.

Further, the session highlighted successful examples of the circular economy implemented in practice and facilitated dialogue with construction professionals on the crucial prerequisites for sustainable rebuilding. “The actual success of implementing resource efficiency activities by enterprises and support of circular transition at the national level are necessary to ensure the country’s green recovery,” said Tatiana Chernyavskaya, UNIDO’s Project Manager of the EU-funded EU4Environment Action. “The international best practices and available solutions can contribute to increasing circularity in selected priority sectors of Ukraine.

The Accelerator Session organised on the occasion of the annual WCEF attracted over 100 online and on-site stakeholders from industry, business, government, academia, among others.

This event was an accelerator session at the World Circular Economy Forum 2024

SPEAKERS included:

  • Ms. Nadiya Bihun, UA Deputy Minister of Economy 
  • Mr. Smail Alhilali, Chief of Division on Circular Economy and Chemicals management, UNIDO 
  • Ms. Morgane Veillet Lavallée, Senior Project Lead of UNIDO International Partner, Circle Economy Foundation  
  • Mr. Ricardo Seidl da Fonseca, UNIDO Senior Advisor on Technology Foresight  
  • Mr. Morten Albertsen, Good Valley LLC  
  • Ms. Kateryna Savchuk, Director, Regional Development Agency of Khmelnytskyi oblast  
  • Ms. Tetiana Dehodya, Deputy Director, Resource Efficient and Cleaner Production Center 
  • Ms. Viktoria Spivak , Kovalska Group 
  • Mr. Philip Crampton, President FIEC 
  • Mr. Oleksandr Chervac, Ukrainian Construction Federation 
  • Mr. Martin Bjerregaard, 3D consulting
  • Dr. Sergei Skokov, EU technical Lead of Sustainable promotion and consumption patterns in Ukraine