The Circulars 2016 Finalist - City of Sydney, Australia

Category: Government, Cities & Regions

Video Context: Better Buildings Partnership – Towards a circular economy event - Esther Bailey, Manager of the Better Buildings Partnership and Sustainability Program Leader (Buildings) from the City of Sydney, talks about the role of the Partnership and opportunities for waste within the commercial property sector at a circular economy focused event hosted by the partnership.

Summary: In Sydney, Australia, 80% of the 25,000 tons of waste generated by office space release goes to landfill. The Better Buildings Partnership, a collaboration of 23 major property owners and influencers, overseen by the City of Sydney, has seized the opportunity for radical market change and is working on systemic and practical ways of raising recovery rates towards an 80%recovery target by 2020. Via large scale collaborations, proof-of-concept trials and changes to waste management processes, the Better Buildings Partnership has already demonstrated that it can achieve 60% recovery at no additional project cost. In addition, the City of Sydney formed a partnership with Good 360, to distribute unwanted commercial goods to charities through a national distribution network, and has rehomed 200 tons of materials since 2013 to those who need them most.