Get involved in the Circular Economy

All Canadians—individuals, communities, and businesses—can play a part in building an environmentally friendly, sustainable circular economy. Learn how individuals and businesses can use circular economy strategies, and find funding opportunities and resources below.

Strategies for individuals, communities and businesses

For individuals

We’re all working towards a greener, more prosperous future. As Canadians, we’re finding creative ways to repurpose items, reduce food waste, and repair things instead of throwing them out. Being part of a circular economy doesn’t have to be difficult to make a difference.

Here are some ways you can help:

use sharing programs like tool libraries, vehicle and bike shares, and movie and music streaming services
buy products made from recycled materials
fix items or buy refurbished products instead of new ones
support businesses that will take back their packaging or products after they are used
reuse or upcycle used household items
look for package-free and zero-waste options

Check out other ways you can help, like try aiming for zero plastic waste.

For communities

Canadian communities are demonstrating leadership in the circular economy through the development of innovative programs and policies, becoming models that can be adapted to other locations.

Community program and policy innovations across Canada include:

zero waste strategies and targets
clothing diversion plans and single-use item reduction strategies
reduce and reuse programs
repair hubs (e.g., sewing, bicycles)
tool lending libraries and sharing centres
circular economy roadmaps
circular procurement frameworks
building communities of practice
circular food economy strategies

For businesses

Many Canadian innovators and industries are already leading the way, using circular business models to save money, improve efficiency, and open up new market opportunities.

Across all sectors and industries we’re finding ways to re-imagine how to use our resources. Canadian businesses are seizing circular economy opportunities to:

design products for a longer life
use recycled material
recover and refurbish used products, and
repurpose and sell waste materials.

From coast to coast, we are seeing new technologies and innovative ideas that:

increase resource productivity
create new jobs
reduce environmental impacts
make supply chains greener, and
use clean technology to build a sustainable and competitive Canadian economy.

Circular economy in a product’s life cycle

At various points of a product’s life cycle, there can be ways to include circular economy strategies. For example:

Design

In a circular economy, at the beginning of its life, a product is designed for durability and reparability. Its end-of-life is also planned for by its original manufacturers, and it can be taken apart or recycled easily once it is no longer usable in its original form.

The goal of circular design is to:

build products for a longer life
use highly recyclable materials
eliminate the use of harmful chemicals and substances
include processes to refurbish or remanufacture used products, and
offer collection points for products at the end of their life.

Manufacturing

There are circular opportunities at every stage of the production cycle—from the way raw materials are extracted, processed into goods, and used by consumers, to how they are eventually refurbished, remanufactured, or recycled.

When we find ways to keep the value of the parts that make up the things we use, we end up with greener, more sustainable possibilities to use products longer and create more value.

Recycling

Businesses can hold on to the value of their materials when they recycle costly resources like metals and alloys—the basic, yet expensive components that make up many of the products we use regularly. Using recycled materials can costs less than extracting, transporting, and processing new materials for products.

Waste

Waste materials can be an opportunity to create a profit—some businesses’ sole mission is to find ways to repurpose waste products. For example, many companies recover and process valuable materials from industrial wastewater, scrap building materials, organic-waste products, and electronic waste.

Funding opportunities

Do you have business ideas, projects, or research related to the circular economy?

Explore some of the latest Government of Canada funding opportunities:

Agricultural Clean Technology Program
- Aims to develop and adopt of clean technology to achieve a low-carbon economy and promote sustainable growth in Canada’s agriculture and agri-food sector.
Clean Growth Program
- Covers environmental challenges and economic opportunities for Canada’s natural resource operations:
  - reducing greenhouse gas and air-polluting emissions
  - minimizing landscape disturbances and improving waste management
  - producing and using advanced materials and bioproducts
  - producing and using energy efficiently
  - reducing water use and impacts on aquatic ecosystems
Food Waste Reduction Challenge
- Supports new solutions and business models to reduce food waste, to increase food availability, save consumers and businesses money, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and strengthen food systems.
Industrial Research Assistance Program
- Helps small and medium-sized businesses in Canada develop and commercialize technologies.
Innovative Solutions Canada
- Supports businesses in the early development, testing and validation of prototypes, as well as preparing a pathway to commercialization.
Low Carbon Economy Challenge
- Leverages Canadian ingenuity to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and generate clean growth in support of Canada’s clean growth and climate action plan.
Smart Cities Challenge
- Empowers communities to adopt a smart cities approach to improve the lives of their residents with digital innovation, data, and connected technology.
Strategic Innovation Fund
- Supports large-scale, transformative, and collaborative projects that help position Canada to prosper in the global knowledge-based economy. Funding is for business innovation and growth, and for collaborations and networks.

Selected reports and studies about the circular economy

Explore a selection of studies about the circular economy in Canada from the Government of Canada and more:

Resources

Learn more about a selection of circular economy initiatives in Canada:

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