Circular Economy - Norway
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The embassy follows the developments in the field
Both the Netherlands and Norway actively work on the transition of our linear economy towards a more circular economy. With the differences in geography, economy and culture the approach of each country is very different. This makes it interesting to cooperate: to learn from and inspire each other and co-creating a bigger impact.
The Netherlands embassy in Norway has been a strong advocate of the circular economy for several years. We have been active in sharing Dutch initiatives, strategies and innovations with Norway. More concrete, the embassy has been organizing meetings with Norwegian ministers, branch organisations, companies and networks to discuss each other’s approach. The embassy invites Dutch experts to share their knowledge at events and assists delegations in finding the right people to talk to when organizing a study trip.
Cooperation between Holland Circular Hotspot and Nordic Circular Hotspot
In the autumn of 2021 a formal Partnership Agreement was signed between the Holland Circular Hotspot and the Nordic Circular Hotspot. The signing ceremony took place during the state visit of King Willem Alexander and Queen Máxima to Norway.
The organizations Holland Circular Hotspot and Nordic Circular Hotspot have been working together for several years to accelerate the transition to a circular economy. They do this by organizing (network) events, initiating projects, sharing knowledge and stimulating collaboration between various stakeholders, both nationally, regionally and internationally. By signing the formal partnership agreement both organisations stated the importance of a long term relation with each other.
The aim of the agreement is to organize more joint initiatives and events, to exchange knowledge and experience, and to further stimulate business opportunities and other partnerships between the Netherlands and the Nordic countries.
Cooperation between the embassies in the Nordics and the Nordic Circular Hotspot
The role of regional clusters in the circular transition
Circular Public Procurement
In November 2022 the Dutch embassies in Finland, Sweden, Denmark and Norway organized a webinar on circular public procurement. We discussed questions such as: How can we stimulate circular public procurement? What are the hurdles that prevent us from implementing circular procurement criteria more effectively?
We had chosen this topic because creating a more circular public procurement can make a huge impact. Not only because enormous amounts of materials are being used in public procurement projects (for example infrastructure and construction) but also because governments can lead by example.
During the webinar we shared best practices and challenges from the Netherlands and the Nordics. The webinar attracted hundreds of participants from all over Europe.
Further reading
Both the Dutch and the Norwegian government work actively with the transition to a circular economy and have written several documents to stimulate the transition. Some examples for further reading:
- The Netherlands wants to be fully circular by 2050. To achieve this ambitious goal, the government has developed a government-wide programme for the Circular Economy Circular economy | Government.nl. The programme exists of a strategy, action plans and agreements for branches.
- Strategy ‘A Circular Economy in the Netherlands by 2050’ (2016) A Circular Economy in the Netherlands by 2050 | Policy note | Government.nl
- In 2017, 180 parties signed the Raw Materials Agreement, which sets out what is to be done to ensure that the Dutch economy can run on renewable resources: More than 180 signatories for the National Raw Materials Agreement | News item | Government.nl.
- Reports on the progress of the transition can be found on the website of the Netherlandse Environmental Assessment Agency: Circular Economy | PBL Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency
Norway is also working hard to create a more circular economy. In 2021 the National Strategy for a green, circular economy was launched: Sirkulær økonomi - regjeringen.no
Contact
Please do not hesitate to contact the Netherlands embassy in Oslo for more information.