RWM in partnership with CIWM returns to the NEC on 16 – 18 September, a free-to-attend event. The centrepiece of this year’s programme is the new Circular Economy Connect area, with presentations and mentoring opportunities on closing the loop.
AT this year’s event around 200 resource efficiency and waste management experts will speak in more than 70 seminars across three theatres in the free, CPD-accredited conference programme. It all adds up to what the organiser’s suggest will provide “a unique opportunity to hear informed opinion and the latest issues and challenges facing the sector at every level”.
Key issues to be addressed in the conference include packaging and PRNs, WEEE, the latest legislation, the circular economy, financing infrastructure and waste prevention.
One of the world’s brightest environmentalists, Professor Walter Stahel, will share his views in the new Circular Economy Connect theatre. Distinguished as the person to first coin the term ‘circular economy’, Stahel is also considered to be one of the world’s most eminent thinkers on this topic.
And the keynote speaker in the Circular Economy Connect theatre was confirmed in June to be Sir Stuart Rose, former Executive Chairman of Marks & Spencer. He will deliver the keynote on day one, Tuesday 16 September, at 1pm.
Circular Economy Connect will, according to the organisers, address the key issues confronting the circular economy and investigate those who can best benefit from the closed-loop model. Speakers and practitioners will share their experiences and advise on the critical steps for taking closed-loop procedures company-wide.
The theatre will address the issue of designing for circularity, looking at how particular sectors are already engaging designers, engineers and architects to prevent waste and enable recycling and remanufacture. It will also communicate the benefits of circular thinking to suppliers and address how you can motivate customers to reduce waste, reuse and recycle. In addition to the three-day theatre programme, Circular Economy Connect (sponsored by SITA) will provide a dedicated space where visitors can network, share ideas and find new resource management solutions to help them towards a more circular economy.
Sir Stuart Rose is one of more than 200 speakers, delivering more than 70 presentations and talks at RWM. Focusing on collaboration, he will discuss the best ways to communicate the full potential of the circular economy to members of the board and how to engage with all organisational roles to gain a broader picture of how sustainability works in practice. He is expected to highlight how the linear model is out-dated and that sustainable business is the future.
Sarah Porter, divisional director for the environment events at i2i, which includes RWM in partnership with CIWM, said: “We’re delighted to announce Sir Stuart Rose as one of our keynote speakers in the new Circular Economy Connect area of RWM. He is widely regarded as one of the most inspirational people in British retail and has a track record for turning around struggling retailers. He is credited with reviving the fortunes of fashion group Arcadia and will have a wealth of insights on stakeholder engagement and refreshing approaches to inspire our visitors with.”
Nigel Marsh, Global Head of Environment at Rolls Royce, James Walker, Group Head of Innovation at Kingfisher and Lars Lundquist, Packaging Environmental Sustainability Expert at Nestlé are also speaking in the new CEC Theatre, in addition to heavyweights from Hewlett Packard, Dell and Kyocera, who will be speaking about how they are engaging designers, engineers and architects to prevent waste, extend product lifecycles, enable pre-cycling, and successfully adopting a business culture of access over ownership.
Visitors interested in closing the loop on clothing and scaling up localised success should attend sessions with London College of Fashion and Marks & Spencer who will be exploring social incentivisation for consumers to adopt sustainable practices. For more information, please visit: www.rwmexhibition.com/Content/Introduction-to-Circular-Economy-Connect-1-2.
Local Authority waste needs, including best-practice case studies, TEEP guidelines and targeting recycling engagement, will be addressed in the Local Authority Theatre. Leading industry speakers in the Local Authority Theatre include David Palmer-Jones, Chairman at ESA, Dr Liz Goodwin, Chief Executive Officer at WRAP, Andy Rees, Head of Waste Strategy, Welsh Government and Ray Georgeson, CEO at Resource Association.
Once again, peer-to-peer learning and case study presentations will play a central role in the Local Authority Theatre programme. Councillor Nick Naylor, Environment Cabinet Member for South Bucks District Council and Tommy Wallace, Director of Fleet and Waste Management at Birmingham City Council are just two such speakers sharing their waste management strategies.
Returning to the event, the popular Energy from Waste theatre will see Geraldine Faulkner, Editor, Waste and Recycling World and Robin Latchem, Editor, MRW take to the stage. Also confirmed are Stuart Pohler, Recovered Paper Sector Manager, Confederation of Paper Industries, Adam Read, Practice Director, Ricardo-AEA and Chindarat Taylor, Director, Resource Efficiency Pathway.
Exhibitors
Confirmed exhibitors so far include plant and vehicle suppliers JCB, Isuzu Trucks and Mercedes Benz.
A host of key names in collection and cleansing will also showcase their latest innovations, including Faun Zoeller, Geesink Norba, Dennis Eagle, Johnston Sweepers and Terberg Matec. Major materials reprocessors, including Smurfit Kappa, Novelis and Biffa Polymers, return this year.
Networking
With networking a priority for visitors, the RWM organisers have created more networking opportunities than ever before, with numerous face-to-face meetings, social events, matchmaking sessions, official functions, debates and informal get-togethers taking place throughout the show.
• The RWM in partnership with CIWM exhibition and conference is once again co-located with The Water Event, The Energy Event and The Renewables Event, all taking place on 16 and 17 September 2014 in halls 3 and 3a. To register your interest in attending (registration is sponsored by Novelis), please visit www.rwmexhibition.com. To enquire about exhibiting, please call 020 3033 2159 or email info@rwmexhibition.com.
