Circle Economy, in collaboration with Circular Economy Switzerland and Deloitte Switzerland launched in March 2023 the first Circularity Gap report (CGR) for Switzerland. It indicates that Switzerland's circularity rate – the rate at which used materials are cycled back into the economy – is 6.9%, lower than the global average of 7.2%, but also less circular than other countries such as the UK at 7.5% and Poland at 10.2%. Switzerland’s current position is unsustainable: the country consumes 163 million tonnes of virgin materials per year: around 19 tonnes per capita, significantly more than the estimated sustainable level at 8 tonnes per capita. This means that, to sustain its living quality and economic growth, Switzerland is causing environmental degradation and contributing to climate change, most of which takes place outside its territory (around 70%). To progress more sustainably, the circular economy provides pathways for societies to decouple economic growth from material use. As such, the first Swiss CGR provides five scenarios to achieve this, which are:

• embrace a circular lifestyle
• advance circular manufacturing
• rethink transport and mobility
• build a circular built environment
• nurture a circular food system.
  

Tackling the above scenarios would indeed provide ways for Switzerland to progress towards reaching its climate goals. The challenge, however, is that those are macro-level indicators, leaving economic and policy actors with the task of finding ways to actively incorporate these indicators into their own strategy. To support these actors and work collaboratively to build the roadmap for a more circular Switzerland, a multi-stakeholder coalition was created bringing together various industry, academia, and public sector stakeholders, including Circular Economy Switzerland and Deloitte Switzerland.

As part of this national roadmap effort, a first circularity incubator was organised at Deloitte Switzerland, inviting three major Swiss companies to share their most pressing circular challenges and allow for a first collaborative brainstorming towards the design of initial solutions. During the incubator, the followingthree main challenges were discussed with invited companies and participants:

Switzerland has long been considered a leader in sustainability, an image enhanced by its natural beauty and pristine landscapes which attract millions of tourists every year. But with a growing population and an increasing demand for resources, the country faces significant challenges meeting the needs of its population while respecting environmental limits. The circular roadmap is an ambitious initiative that aims to address these challenges.

By working together, businesses, individuals, and policymakers can create a more sustainable future for Switzerland, its people, and its environment. With the first circularity incubator, some of the challenges and the workable solutions were identified. These solutions could serve as a baseline for the topic nationally and we will report in future on how Switzerland’s recycling initiatives are progressing.