Local and national officials recently visited Sweden and Denmark for a week-long tour to learn about the observance of a circular economy, organized by the Nordic Embassies in the Philippines, through the support of the Nordic Council of Ministers.

Delegates from Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), Department of Science and Technology (DoST), and City government of Pasig were part of the contingent to benchmark best practices from Nordic countries regarding circularity.

Philippine Ambassador to Sweden Patrick Chuasotto hosted a dinner to welcome the delegation, highlighting the opportunities for Filipino stakeholders to learn from Scandinavia’s strong tradition of sustainability.

Green technology

This collective tradition for sustainable practices was well showcased at LOOP Forum where the delegates witnessed firsthand some of the most innovative technologies by Nordic companies towards a circular economy.

Through meetings and site visits, the delegates drew inspiration from Denmark’s and Sweden’s experiences on relevant key issues for the Philippine circular economy agenda such as extended producers’ responsibility, deposit return system, and waste and wastewater management.

The government representatives visited, among others, Amager Bakke (also known as Copenhill) which sustainably combines a waste-to-energy facility with a recreational skiing area in Denmark, the Sjöstadsverket Water Innovation Centre in Sweden, one of the world’s leading research and development facilities, and a reverse vending machine made by a Norwegian company TOMRA where delegates returned beverage bottles and cans themselves at a local supermarket.

The study visit also presented the implementation of the circular economy locally through in-depth discussions and demonstration of installed technologies in Copenhagen and Stockholm, particularly on efficient and intelligent waste collection systems.

Aside from the deployment of state-of-the-art technologies, the Philippine delegation has also taken note of the successful model of cross-sectoral collaboration that drives not only innovation but also social behavioral change that is equally critical towards achieving a circular economy.

“The Nordic study visit showcased how innovation, policy, and community engagement seamlessly converge to drive sustainable urban transformation,” according to the representatives from DoST.

For Pasig City, the more fundamental work of civic education, constant communication, social preparation, and institutionalization seen in the Nordic countries are only secondary to advanced technologies and capital-intensive infrastructure.

“Nothing is truly unaffordable if industries, civil society, and the academe have a unified vision of the common good, and are willing to invest in it,” highlighted by the representatives of Pasig City who were impressed by the catalyzing role of non-profits supported by public-private partnership in Denmark and Sweden in terms of research and development, market sounding, data gathering, and monitoring and evaluation.