Capacity Building for Recycling-Based Economy

From APEC HRDWG Wiki

One of the primary HRD projects supporting sustainable growth is Capacity Building for a Recycling-Based Economy (RBE) in APEC. This is one of the important activities of the APEC human resource development field to achieve the objective of sustainable development. The multi-year project highlights RBE in the APEC Region and is sponsored by the Japanese Institute for International Studies and Training (IIST) and the project overseer is Takato Ojimi.

The RBE recognizes that in order for us to enjoy continued well-being for human life, we cannot afford to waste scarce natural resources or energy. Neither can we get away with polluting the environment, nor monopolizing wealth at the expense of others. It is indispensable, and inevitable, to establish a recycle-based society in this region as expeditiously as possible to achieve sustainable development, while maintaining a sound global environment.

APEC is a highly appropriate forum to tackle these environmental challenges that all economies are now facing in this region, taking into account the differences of situation amongst member economies as well as the cooperative features of the APEC capacity building exercise. RBE in APEC is still in its infancy and most APEC members are at their starting points. Therefore, it is of great importance for APEC as a whole to share experiences and best practices amongst its members, and identify common issues and address them jointly to develop capacity in APEC economies.

Project Outcomes

The project outcomes for “Capacity Building for a Recycling-Based Economy (RBE) is summarized in the Final Report. The highlights of this report include:

A Recycling Based Economy: The Vision
Current Status of RBE in the APEC Region
Issues in the APEC Region
Lesson Learnt for APEC Members to Support Addressing Issues

Project Details:

The project was implemented in four phases:

Kick-Off Workshop	The Kick-Off Workshop highlighted China’s RBE Development Strategy; Implementation of Reduce, Reuse & Recycle in Indonesia; JBMIA's Efforts for Recycling-Oriented Society; Measures Concerning WEEE; Japanese Transboundary Movements of Re-usable and Recyclable Materials; Impacts from Inappropriate Reuse of End of Life Vehicles; Waste Management System in Korea; and recycling examples in Mexico, New Zealand, the Philippines, Chinese Taipei, and Thailand.
Mexico Roundtable Discussion	The Mexico roundtable discussion featured presentations from Canada, Chile, Peru, the United States, and others.
Yinchuan Conference	This conference highlighted Experience and Trends in Developed and Developing Economies; Asian Response to Resource and Environmental Limitatitaions; Development of a Recycling Based Economy in New Zealand; Current Status of Recycling-based Economy in APEC; and Policy Options.
Pattaya Symposium	This Symposium Highlighted appropriate recycling and re-use; ELV Recycling in Japan; textile industry examples from Thailand and Japan; and a summary of guidelines for Thailalnd.