Explore circular economy initiatives
Many Canadians are participating in the circular economy and the Government of Canada is working to support and expand these efforts. We are also working to:
- Recover additional materials
- Keep them out of landfill
- Reintegrate them in the economy
This is possible by:
- Identifying and exploring new systems of collection
- Processing, remanufacturing and redesigning
- Creating secondary markets for reclaimed materials
These efforts help create new jobs, support Canadian businesses, and advance a more sustainable and resilient economy.
Government of Canada initiatives
- Retaining product value supports the transition to a circular economy, and contributes to the Canada-wide Strategy and Action Plans on Zero Plastic Waste
- Canadian Plastics Innovation Challenges:
- The Government of Canada has committed over $25 million to Canadian small and medium-sized businesses to:
- Innovate
- Develop solutions to address plastic pollution and waste
- The Government of Canada has committed over $25 million to Canadian small and medium-sized businesses to:
- Greening Government Strategy
- Seeks to establish Canada as a global leader in government operations that are low-carbon, resilient and green
- Includes the adoption of circular economy solutions
- 2030 Emissions Reduction Plan: Canada’s Next Steps for Clean Air and a Strong Economy
- Canada’s first roadmap under the Canadian Net-Zero Emissions Accountability Act. It recognizes the potential of a circular economy to offer new opportunities for sustainable economic growth. It also supports net zero strategies
- World Circular Economy Forum 2021
- Canada hosted the first North American edition of the World Circular Economy Forum (WCEF) in September 2021.
- WCEF2021 brought together over 4,000 experts and enthusiasts from around the world. The objective was to uncover circular solutions needed for a prosperous, inclusive, and equitable future.
- The event summary report can be found here: WCEF2021 Summary Report
- Information on two important side events on the circular transition in Canada can be found here:
- Turning Point - the Circular Economy in Canada: a World Circular Economy Forum side event (December 3, 2021)
- Circular North America: a World Circular Economy Forum side event (November 19, 2020). Find the supporting discussion paper here: Circular North America: accelerating the transition to a thriving and resilient low-carbon economy - Canada.ca
Federal, Provincial, Territorial initiatives
- A Renewed Forest Bioeconomy Framework for Canada
- The 2022 Renewed Framework builds on previous efforts (including the 2017 Framework) to accelerate the contributions of Canada’s forest bioeconomy to the goal of net-zero emissions by 2050. This includes circular approaches that maximize value from forest biomass harvested sustainably
- Canada-wide Strategy on Zero Plastic Waste [PDF]
- Outlines areas where changes are needed across the plastic lifecycle from:
- Design to collection
- Clean-up
- Value recovery
- Outlines areas where changes are needed across the plastic lifecycle from:
It also underscores the economic and business opportunities resulting from long-lasting and durable plastics
- Canada-wide Action Plan on Zero Plastic Waste
- Sets out tangible actions and clear timelines to implement the Canada-wide Strategy on Zero Plastic Waste. The goal is to better prevent, reduce, reuse, recover, capture and clean up plastic waste and pollution in Canada
- Canada-wide Action Plan on Zero Plastic Waste Phase 1 [PDF]: Focuses on:
- Product design
- Single-use plastics
- Collection systems
- Recycling capacity
- Domestic markets
- Canada-wide Action Plan on Zero Plastic Waste Phase 2 [PDF]: Focuses on:
- Consumer awareness
- Aquatic activities
- Research and monitoring
- Clean-up
- Global action
- Canadian Minerals and Metals Plan (CMMP)
- Envisions a circular economy where mine wastes are transformed into useful products
International initiatives supported by the Government of Canada
- Circular North America: a World Circular Economy Forum side event
- Environment and Climate Change Canada and the United Nations Environment Programme North America Office co-hosted Circular North America on November 19, 2020
- Global Alliance on Circular Economy and Resource Efficiency (GACERE)
- Aims to provide a global impetus for initiatives related to:
- The circular economy transition
- Resource efficiency
- Sustainable consumption and production
- Aims to provide a global impetus for initiatives related to:
- International Resource Panel (IRP)
- Provides advice and connections between policymakers, industry, and the community on ways to improve global and local resource management
- Ocean Plastics Charter
- Lays the groundwork to ensure plastics are designed for reuse and recycling
- Partners who sign commit to using resources more efficiently and managing plastics responsibly on land and at sea
- G7 Alliance on Resource Efficiency (G7 ARE)
- Established in 2015, the G7 ARE is an international forum. To advance regional and global resource efficiency, it connects:
- Policymakers
- Businesses
- Researchers
- Relevant stakeholders
- Established in 2015, the G7 ARE is an international forum. To advance regional and global resource efficiency, it connects:
Circular economy research and innovation
Efforts are underway to establish and expand circular opportunities for existing and additional sectors in Canada. Keep reading to learn about cutting-edge research, pilot projects, and consultations in Canada’s circular economy.
Cross-sectoral research
- The Data Dilemma: Motivating, Enabling, and Evaluating a Circular Economy (English only)
- Western University’s Ivey Business School conducted this 2025 study with support from ECCC, to:
- Explore types of circularity data
- Explain how Canadian businesses can use them to increase circular performance
- Identify the barriers to their collection and reporting
- Western University’s Ivey Business School conducted this 2025 study with support from ECCC, to:
- Building Canada’s Circular Economy Knowledge Base: Inventories of Circular Economy Policies and Initiatives (English only)
- Evergreen cross-jurisdictional databases of circular economy related policies and initiatives in Canada
- Financing the Circular Economy: A Guidance Document for Canadian Financial Institutions
- To scale circular business models in Canada, this report identifies:
- Key investment opportunities
- Barriers
- Policy actions
- To scale circular business models in Canada, this report identifies:
- The Next Wave of Climate Action: How circularity can contribute to emissions reductions in Canada
- This 2023 report explores how circular practices can help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by using resources and materials more efficiently
- Turning Point: The Expert Panel on the Circular Economy in Canada
- 2021 report by the Council of Canadian Academies(CCA) on the opportunities and challenges for a circular economy in Canada. It includes the potential economic, environmental, and social impacts of a circular transition
- Socio-economic and Environmental Study of the Canadian Remanufacturing Sector and Other Value-retention Processes in the Context of a Circular Economy
- This study, prepared for ECCC, quantifies the potential benefits, costs, and barriers of value retention processes in Canada
- Preliminary Resource Recovery Report Card and Gaps Assessment for Canada [PDF]
- This report comprehensively assesses Canada's recycling and resource recovery efforts across materials, products, and industrial residuals
- Circular North America: Accelerating the Transition to a Thriving and Resilient Low-carbon Economy
- This ECCC-commissioned paper outlines a North American roadmap for advancing the circular economy through regional collaboration
Construction, renovation and demolition
- Advancing Circularity of Construction, Renovation and Demolition Material
- This is a summary Report from a recent multi-stakeholder workshop. It explores circular practices of CRD Material, with a focus on wood
- CRD Wood Supply and Demand in Canada - Stakeholders
- Diagram of stakeholders in Canada’s salvaged wood ecosystem
- Material flow: Reintegrating Wood from the Construction, Renovation and Demolition (CRD) Sector
- Beyond the Landfill: Tiny Houses As An Opportunity For Higher Value Usage of CRD Wood Waste
- ECCC contracted research from 2024 exploring how CRD wood waste may be used in tiny house design and construction
- Economic & Environmental Assessment of Waste Diversion in Canada’s Construction & Demolition (C&D) Sector Study
- This 2023 report explores the systems and secondary markets that foster demand for reclaimed materials
- It also quantifies the economic and environmental impacts of increased C&D waste diversion in Canada for:
- Wood
- Metal
- Drywall
- Concrete
- Circular Economy & the Built Environment Sector in Canada [PDF]
- This 2021 study examines how circular economy principles can transform Canada’s built environment by:
- Reducing waste
- Extending material lifecycles
- Promoting sustainable construction and infrastructure practices
- This 2021 study examines how circular economy principles can transform Canada’s built environment by:
- Deconstruction overview video from San Antonio’s Office of Historic Preservation (English only)
- The economic, environmental and community benefits of deconstruction
- The careful disassembly of buildings to maximize material
- Deconstruction as a tool for waste reduction and circular economy advancement reuse, in this video
Mining, Metals and Minerals
- Mining research and innovation at CanmetMINING
- Research on critical minerals, technologies for improved efficiencies, climate change adaptation and mitigation
Plastics
- Economic Study of the Canadian Plastic Industry, Markets and Waste: Summary Report
- This 2018 study by Deloitte and Cheminfo Services Inc. examines Canada’s plastics value chain, from raw material and manufacturing to use and end-of-life
- Consultation Document: Proposed Roadmap to Extend the Life of Plastics in End-of-Use Electronics
The Government of Canada is working towards a roadmap to encourage product life extension solutions. It will address the growing problem of plastic waste and pollution from electronics
Textiles
- Opportunity for circularity in apparel textiles in Canada
- This summary report from a multi-stakeholder workshop explores innovative circular practices of post-consumer textiles in Canada
- Addressing Plastic Waste and Pollution from the Textile and Apparel Sector
- In 2024, a Consultation Document was published for a 60-day comment period on the potential elements of a draft roadmap to address plastic waste and pollution from the textile and apparel sector
- The What We Heard Report summarizes comments received during the consultation
- A Feasibility Study of Textile Recycling in Canada [PDF]
Food Loss and Waste
- Food Waste Reduction Challenge
- Running from 2020 to 2024, the $20 million Challenge supported high-impact solutions to food waste in Canada
Energy
- Circularity of Solar and Wind Energy Technologies in Canada
- ECCC funded a study by Smart Prosperity Institute on the circularity of solar and wind energy technologies in Canada