Companies, knowledge and educational institutions and governments in the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area are preparing for important and joint steps towards a more circular approach to textiles, strengthening the position of the region as a bicycle hotspot, many more new-build houses made of wood and more technical talent in sustainable jobs. As a result, we invest faster and more effectively in the economy of today and tomorrow. The aim is to create jobs in the short term, to fill existing vacancies and to achieve greater well-being and prosperity in the long term.

The worldwide use of natural resources is growing at an alarming speed. If we maintain our present consumption and production patterns, we will need three Earths by the year 2050. The circular economy can bend this curve: it closes the loops of products, materials and resources, yielding the lowest possible environmental impacts, while using renewable energy sources and safeguarding the planet’s biodiversity. In the book ’How Network Governance Powers the Circular Economy’, Board member Jacqueline Cramer shows how network governance can power the circular economy.