A CIRCULAR ECONOMY FOR PLASTIC PRODUCTS IN SELECTED COUNTRIES AND EXPERIENCE FOR VIETNAM.

A CIRCULAR ECONOMY FOR PLASTIC PRODUCTS IN SELECTED COUNTRIES AND EXPERIENCE FOR VIETNAM.A CIRCULAR ECONOMY FOR PLASTIC PRODUCTS IN SELECTED COUNTRIES AND EXPERIENCE FOR VIETNAM.A CIRCULAR ECONOMY FOR PLASTIC PRODUCTS IN SELECTED COUNTRIES AND EXPERIENCE FOR VIETNAM.A CIRCULAR ECONOMY FOR PLASTIC PRODUCTS IN SELECTED COUNTRIES AND EXPERIENCE FOR VIETNAM.A CIRCULAR ECONOMY FOR PLASTIC PRODUCTS IN SELECTED COUNTRIES AND EXPERIENCE FOR VIETNAM.

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING FOREIGN TRADE UNIVERSITY MASTER THESIS A CIRCULAR ECONOMY FOR PLASTIC PRODUCTS IN SELECTED COUNTRIES AND EXPERIENCE FOR VIETNAM Specialization: Master of Research in International Economics HOANG THI HA LINH Ha Noi, 2020 MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING FOREIGN TRADE UNIVERSITY MASTER THESIS A CIRCULAR ECONOMY FOR PLASTIC PRODUCTS IN SELECTED COUNTRIES AND EXPERIENCE FOR VIETNAM Major: International Economics Specialization: Master of Research in International Economics Code: 8310106 Full name: Hoang Thi Ha Linh Supervisor: Dr Luong Thi Ngoc Oanh Ha Noi, 2020 ACKNOWLEDMENT In the process of completing this thesis, I have received great deal of helps, guidance and encouragements from teachers and friends First of all, I would like to express my deepest thanks to my supervisor, Dr Luong Thi Ngoc Oanh who given me suggestions on how to shape the study and always been most willing and ready to give me valuable advice, helpful comments as well as correction of my study Next, I would like to express my gratitude to all teachers in Foreign Trade University – International Economics Faculty that help me much in completing this thesis Last but not least, I would like to thank my family and my friends who have always encouraged, supported and helped me to complete this thesis LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1: Status of Natural Resources Depletion in Viet Nam 1988-2014 59 Figure 2: Viet Nam’s GDP Anual Growth Rate .63 Figure 3: Productivity of Asian Countries 65 Figure 4: Viet Nam’s Import Structure in 2012, 2013, 2014 66 Figure 5: Vietnamese Consumer’s Behaviours Towards Sustainable Consumption 70 Figure 6: Intention to Buy Eco-products 71 Figure 7: Share of Firms Doing Research on and Adapation of Technology 72 Figure Constraints on Firms’ Economic Performance 76 LIST OF TABLES Table 1: Ranking of African countries based on the amount of plastic imports and consumption between 1990 and 2017 40 Table 2: Plastics resin production and consumption in African countries 44 TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION .1 Rationales for the research Research questions .3 The objective of the study The methodology of the study Scope of research .4 Structure of reasearch .4 CHAPTER 1: LITERATURE REVIEW ON CIRCULAR ECONOMY FOR PLASTIC PRODUCTS 1.1 Negative impacts of plastics 1.2 The definition of circular economy .8 1.3 Circular economy as solutions for the plastic sector 1.4 Circular Economy and Circular Solutions 12 1.6 The overview of circular economy 13 1.7 New plastics economy: a circular economy for plastic 16 1.7.1 The impacts of plastic product on society and enviroment .16 1.7.2 Novel sources, designs and business models for plastic products in a circular economy .23 1.7.3 Circular after –use pathway for plastic products 28 CHARPTER 2: AN ANALYSIS OF PLASTIC PRODUCT CONSUMPTION IN SELECTED COUNTRIES AND VIETNAM 36 2.1 The status of plastic product consumption in the world 36 2.1.1 Asian countries 37 2.1.2 Africa .38 2.1.3 Brasil 47 2.2 Experience for Vietnam 51 2.2.1 The status of plastic product consumption in Vietnam 51 2.2.2 Apply the circular economy for plastic for Vietnam .56 2.3 Conclusions 77 CHAPTER 3: RECOMMENDATIONS TO BOOST CIRCULAR ECONOMY FOR PLASTIC PRODUCTS IN VIETNAM .78 3.1 Recommendations 78 3.1.1 New material .78 3.1.2 Business models, product and service design 79 3.2.The Limitation of the Study 82 REFERENCES 84 INTRODUCTION Rationales for the research Nowaday, plastic products is an important part of daily life Strong, lightweight, and moldable, plastics are used in thousands of products that add comfort, convenience, and safety to our everyday lives Plastics in carpets, blankets, and pillows keep us comfortable in our homes Plastic products is applied popularly in many fields such as: packaging, transportation, energy efficiency, sports, medicine, electronics Plastic’s light weight, strength, and ability to be molded into any form makes it an ideal packaging material Plastic is used for food and non-food packaging Advances in plastic technology has made plastic packaging more efficient: the average packaging weight for a product has been reduced over 28 percent in the last decade Plastic packaging is convenient for consumers: clear plastic lets shoppers view the item they are purchasing and plastic packaging is easy to open Plastic packaging protects food, medicine, and other products from contamination and germs when it is displayed and handled Plastic also protects consumers Plastics make up ten percent of new vehicle’s total weight, and over 50 percent of their volume Steering wheels, door liners, and stereo components are made of plastic, as are less visible parts, such as engine components As plastic technology advances, many car companies envision using more plastic to lighten the weight of cars and trucks to make them more fuelefficient For every ten percent reduction in weight, a car or truck will save five to seven percent in fuel usage Reduction in vehicle weight translates into a reduction in carbon dioxide emissions: every pound of vehicle weight that can be eliminated means 25.3 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions are saved over the vehicle’s life Plastics can make your home more energy-efficient Plastic sealants and caulks can seal up window leaks and plastic foam weather stripping can make doors and windows draft-free Clear plastic sheeting for windows improves insulation and decreases drafts in the winter Plastic blinds, window shades, and drapes help insulate windows by keeping out the sun in warm months to keep the house cooler and by keeping in heat during the winter months Plastic awnings and reflective films also help shade the home Many brands of high efficiency LED light bulbs are made from recycled plastic Plastic insulation in the walls, floors, attic, and roof of your home keeps heat in during the winter and out during the summer, which saves you energy and money on your heating and cooling Plastic foam spray fills large and small holes in walls, doors, and attics Plastic’s strength, light weight, and moldability have revolutionized electronics Plastic cables and cords on everything from computers to paper shredders keep electronics powered Plastic insulation for cables and electrical equipment keeps equipment cool and protects users from over-heating Household appliances, from toasters to DVD players, use plastic to make them lightweight and affordable The liquid crystalline plastics in LCD flat screen televisions give beautiful pictures and save energy, using less power than traditional cathode ray tube screens The touch screens on mobile phones, computers, and other electronics are made of polycarbonate film The tiny microphones in mobile phones are made of polymers for their shock-resistance Handsets and earpieces are lighter and more comfortable because of plastics Plastic products consumption has been growing rapidly and impacting negatively on enviroment, so it is necessary to find solution for this issue A circular economy for plastic products may be help reducing plastic pollution The circular economy is gaining growing attention as a potential way for our society to increase prosperity, while reducing demands on finite raw materials and minimizing negative externalities Such a transition requires a systemic approach, which entails moving beyond incremental improvements to the existing model as well as developing new collaboration mechanisms The challenges and opportunities posed by the current plastics system demand fundamental change in which research and innovation (R&I), enabled and reinforced by policymaking, play a crucial role While plastics bring benefits as a functional material, the current system has significant unintended drawbacks, including economic loss of material value and environmental damage, such as marine litter It has become evident that the plastics economy needs to change from a system that produces waste by design to one that preserves the value and benefits of plastics, but eliminates these drawbacks 2 Research questions + What is a circular economy for plastic product? + What are challenges and opportunities in implementing circular economy for plastic product in developed countries? + What are challenges and opportunities in implementing circular economy for plastic product in Vietnam? The objective of the study The objective of this research is to provide the plastic packaging industry and its partners with insights and recommendations regarding public policy instruments that can be utilized to increase the circularity of plastic packaging Specifically, we investigate a wide array of policy tools and their effectiveness towards improving recycling rates and reducing plastic pollution, with a complimentary goal of developing end markets for recycled plastic Our analysis further identifies the economic, regulatory, infrastructural and political factors that shape the advantages and disadvantages of different policy options in various geographic contexts Ultimately, we seek to inform and expand ongoing discussions by policy, industry and NGO stakeholders regarding global policy solutions that address plastic pollution and close the loop on plastics at large in order to create a new plastic economy The methodology of the study PEST, as an analysis framework of macro-environmental factors, is also referred to as, STEP (Clulow, 2005), SEPT (Narayanan and Fahey, 1994: 199-202), or STEEP (Voros, 2001) The constituents of PEST can be considered as macroenvironmental factors and its usefulness lies in the assumption that the success of a particular organisation or management solution cannot be understood without having the information relevant to the specific business environment (Buchanan and Gibb, 1998) Business environment could be defined as all relevant physical and social factors outside an organization that are considered into decision-making process (Duncan, 1972) According to Ward and Rivani (2005) PEST analysis assumes that specific external and indirect circumstances that characterize the business environment are able to influence organisational capacity to produce value Hence, PEST analysis provides a “satellite view” to assess the external environment According to another survey, conducted by Hai and Mai in 2012, with 315 participants, there is a new trend of consuming eco-products in three big cities (Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh, and Da Nang) The trend shows that only consumers with a high level of education are more concerned about environmental issues and have sufficient knowledge of eco-products and green purchasing The others have limited understanding of eco-products As a result, consumers with different levels of education differ in their purchase of green products or eco-products The research also shows there are several more important factors that consumers consider when making an eco-product purchase These include descriptions on products, and information from television and the internet Graduates and postgraduates seem to consider all factors when making a purchase These prove that the market potential for innovative, sustainable, and high value added products, such as the ones with circular economy characteristics, is indeed very large and possible in Viet Nam There is, therefore, much room for Vietnamese companies to apply the circular economy concept to their business model as an innovation advantage (or what can be referred to as first-mover 71 advantage) to promote their products and grasp the large potential market shares in Viet Nam, against foreign competitors 2.2.2.1.4 Technological Development Trends: What is the Progress of Technology Innovation Towards Circular Economy? Although Viet Nam’s policy framework seems to bring pull factors to encourage firms to apply circular economy in their business model, particularly to new advanced and clean technology in production processes, and the market is gradually following sustainable consumption trends, not many firms invest in innovating (researching and developing new technology) or adapting (receiving technology transfer from other organisations) new clean and advanced technologies According to the 2009-2013, Technology Competitiveness Survey of around 7,000 companies about research and adaptation on technology, most companies not engage in any technology research and development (R&D) or adaptation activities (depicted in Figure 7) Only 7% of firms pursue either R&D or adaptation, while 3% of firms operate both R&D and adaptation to innovate their production chain 72 We noticed a declining trend in adaptation and R&D activities, with adaptation declining sharply from 16% in 2009 to 3% in 2013 R&D activities have returned to 5% after peaking at 8% in 2010 Overall, 83% of firms not have an adaptation or R&D strategy Complementary with the goals of increasing the productivity of the Vietnamese manufacturing sector, the findings presented so far suggest that industrial policies have not offered strong enough support for firms to invest in adaptation of technology as it appears to be more costly in the short run With productivity gains attributed to advanced technologies, it is possible that greater policy support of adaptation would lead to increased productivity, hence the competitiveness amongst manufacturing enterprises In terms of Industry 4.0, despite Viet Nam having at least three hightechnology industrial parks, none of the companies operating there is of Vietnamese ownership All the industrial parks have been built so far to attract foreign hightechnology companies as well as FDI for high-technology development These industrial zones were established with the vision that Vietnamese enterprises can take advantage of the horizontal and vertical technology transfer as well as improve the capacity of Vietnamese engineers Therefore, it is very hard to conclude that the development of Industry 4.0 in Viet Nam is ready to be the foundation for circular economy development 2.2.2.2 Barriers and Challenges for Vietnamese Enterprises to Overcome Although perceptions on circular economy and related concepts are quite popular amongst Vietnamese firms and some successful initiatives prove the profitability of the circular economy concept in Viet Nam, numerous barriers can still hamper its implementation today These barriers are listed and analysed below 2.2.2.2.1 Business Environmental Culture Viet Nam’s economic growth was mainly based on quantitative rather than qualitative development, using high fuel and energy consumption as well as labourintensive models in making products, thereby hurting the environment The natural resources in Viet Nam are extracted using poor and outdated technology, posing damages and extreme pollution to the ecosystem around the mining areas The consumption of natural resources, both in industries and society, are irrational and 73 uncontrolled, which threatens not only the living conditions of the Vietnamese people but also the sustainability of the environment Sustainable and environmentally friendly industries are largely underdeveloped until now Consumption demand in Viet Nam quadrupled in the past decade due to incredibly strong economic development and population boom (the population of Viet Nam is approximately 91 million, 70% of which is at working age) Consequently, the demand for more energy spiked and there is more wasteful and ineffective use of energy, proven by the fact that fuel consumption per product in Viet Nam is 1.5 to 1.7 times higher than in Thailand and Malaysia Escalating energy prices also contribute to production costs, and products and services have become costly, which in turn undermine business efficiency, competitiveness, and profit margins (Dat and Tuong, 2013) 2.2.2.2.2 Lack of Effective Support and Legislation from Government Although the economic structure of Viet Nam has shifted towards industrialisation and modernisation, energy-intensive and natural resourcesintensive industries are still popular Most of these are state-owned companies that are too big to change and rely on outdated and ineffective technologies 196 Industry 4.0: Empowering ASEAN for the Circular Economy As the Vietnamese economy is accelerating, it is difficult to either cut down fuel consumption or use alternative fuels, such as wind power This process will reduce growth in the short term and affect employment, income, and welfare (Dat and Tuong, 2013) Moreover, the application of sustainable consumption and production ideas and the implementation of green policies are not concrete and sufficient to generate positive and disruptive results in a large scale The weak and unclear policy framework, consistent with the complicated government system, results in weak enforcement and ineffective operations The reasons for these are the lack of cooperation between different government offices in implementing related actions, the infrastructures and firms are not ready for the changes, the government does not have good enough incentives in both policies and finances to encourage more firms to participate, corruption, and global economy changes Growth model transformation also remains slow and coordination amongst agencies and 74 departments in transition is ineffective The goals of economic development and the goals of protecting the environment are conflicting All these are major challenges hindering green and sustainable growth in Viet Nam These potential ideas for a better sustainable development are not interesting to enterprises and not many enterprises are willing to innovate their current business model by applying the given concepts 2.2.2.2.3 Lack of Finance The cost of green (or no-waste) innovation has been extensively considered in literatures as one of the major barriers to the adoption of sustainability practices by SMEs (Vasilenko and Arbačiauskas, 2012; Lawrence et al., 2006; Trianni and Cango, 2012) The upfront costs of any type of investment and the anticipated payback period are particularly important for SMEs, which are generally more sensitive to additional financial costs resulting from green business activities compared to large enterprises (Oakdene Hollins, 2011; Rademaekers, Asaad, and Berg, 2011) Financial resource is also one of the fundamental barriers to the application of circular economy (and other types of green growth) in Viet Nam About 90% of enterprises in Viet Nam are SMEs, of which technology investment only accounts for 1%–3% of total revenue annually Therefore, the government should have clear policies to support business investment in clean technology, especially tax policy, funding incentive, or interest rate support The World Bank has said that the financial mechanism should be more clearly 197 defined in the Viet Nam Green Growth Strategy, especially incentives for the private sector, because there should be more involvement of this sector in this strategy (UNIDO, 2012) 2.2.2.2.4 Constraints on Firms’ Economic Performance Technological progress raises the potential for economic growth by increasing the availability of a wider number of new products and production processes for which the role of private sector investment in innovation and new technologies cannot be overemphasised While firms may be aware of the benefits of innovation, they may lack the capacity and resources to put in place technological improvements such as updating equipment and machinery The General Statistics Organization of Viet Nam conducted a technological competitiveness survey of 75 7,000 enterprises in Viet Nam from 2010 to2014 Firms were asked to assess constraints to the economic performance they face on a 10-point scale and the overview of the scores is shown in Figure Figure Constraints on Firms’ Economic Performance Source: General Statistics Ofce of Viet Nam, 2015 Figure shows an overview of the constraints faced by firms in improving their economic performance, which are the reasons that discourage them from investing in innovation or applying new technologies First to note is that financial constraints dominate at any time of the survey, with the average score of six for all years The second significant constraint of the company is the skills level of labour, followed by limited access to equipment However, firms not seem gravely constrained by labour availability, or deficiencies in transport and communication infrastructures Figure reveals that the most important constraints faced by Vietnamese firms remain unsolved for years, regardless of how many supporting policies have been issued 76 2.3 Conclusions The results of the PEST analysis and the survey on the factors proving the potential of applying circular economy in Viet Nam show that Viet Nam is ready for circular economy Although there is only a small number of firms that are aware of the concept of circular economy, a large proportion of firms already know about the concepts relating to circular economy such as CP, sustainable production and production, resource efficiency, and the like The implementation of existing plans and actions towards developing circular economy is still inefficient and slow However, many case studies have shown that by innovating the business model at the firm level, Vietnamese firms can gain high economic value and competitiveness to develop the business and gain more revenue To gain the advantages of circular economy in Viet Nam and learn experiences from pioneering companies, Vietnamese firms should consider the whole value chain to find opportunities for innovating their business models Building capacity and increasing productivity, especially the creative ability of employees and stakeholders along the value chain, are also necessary for companies to successfully apply circular economy for long term Lastly, there must be a strong commitment to the long-term sustainable strategies and plans to ensure the development of circular economy business models and convince investors to help scale up the good ideas To ensure green growth in Viet Nam, the government should be more decisive in accelerating economic restructuring, focusing on intra-industry structural change in favour of lower-carbon sectors, especially resource efficiency and renewable energy industries 199 Local government bodies should also raise awareness and enhance coordination amongst ministries, taking motivational policies towards sustainable growth goals Moreover, attracting foreign investment is not only about attracting foreign capital but also about attracting the technology and their management skills so that Vietnamese firms can use the spillover and learning effects from international enterprises in developing their business model 77 CHAPTER 3: RECOMMENDATIONS TO BOOST CIRCULAR ECONOMY FOR PLASTIC PRODUCTS IN VIETNAM 3.1 Recommendations 3.1.1 New material - Develop and implement regulatory incentives such as extended producer responsibility systems and shared responsibilities across the value chain to steer (plastic) product design towards reuse and cost-effective recycling This could include a shift towards reusable packaging, use of single materials or multi-material products which can be easily disassembled or (organically) recycled The minimum general requirements on EPR as defined in the revised Waste Framework Directive (Article 8a) already go in this direction In addition, develop a framework to ensure a joint value-chain responsibility regarding the environmental impact of materials used and to share R&I risk between all participating actors - Provide and enable funding and financial incentives for infrastructure and (long-term) R&I that maximises plastics value retention Large investments are needed for infrastructure to enable cost-effective reverse logistics, collection, sorting and recycling of materials, as well as to develop systemically useful innovations beyond early-stage R&I Policymakers can provide direct funding as well as set up and facilitate investment mechanisms that pool public and private investments towards a circular economy for plastics In addition, set up a plastics oversight board for strategic planning and long-term investments, and support businesses with guidance and financial incentives to incorporate into their R&I more systems thinking and business models based on circular economy principles - Develop a platform for creating information transparency and for facilitating sharing and trading of R&I, taking into account the sensitivity of certain information On the one hand, such a platform could help implement a muchneeded product information system using digital technologies, so that transparency can be achieved without compromising proprietary information On the other hand, it 78 would facilitate science and technology exchange, accelerate the development of systemic solutions and enable shared risk-taking - Set up a coordination board for strategic long-term investments, combining technical, commercial and behavioural insights Based on latest R&I insights, such a board could set the strategic direction for investments, and work with matching private funds to accelerate the transition to a circular economy for plastics The board should consist of policymakers, topic experts and investors - Provide information about bio-based materials for citizens and business by developing standards, labels and a holistic impact assessment framework Such information should include data on the availability of biomass at regional, national and EU level, an understanding of biomass flows, consumption habits and environmental aspects of the entire production chain Standards and labels can demonstrate technical specifications, the bio-based content, and measures for afteruse handling Such a framework should be used to compare plastics made from different types of fossil and renewable feedstock, including criteria for quantitative and qualitative impact assessment across the life cycle It can inform investors on benefits and risks associated with the value chains - Set up a strategic coordination mechanism to develop EU-wide planning for production and after-use handling infrastructure and to track existing and expected inventories to drive scale-up of renewable plastics and chemicals An EU-wide strategy for scaling biorefineries should stimulate collaboration or consolidation to create cost-efficient chemicals and plastics producing units In addition, this should provide direction for investments in public infrastructure to enable collection, sorting and (organic) recycling of plastics after their use, regardless of their feedstock In order to understand the potential and feasibility of developing biobased platform chemicals and plastics at scale, the current and expected inventories need to be known This coordinating mechanism should also support collaboration mechanisms such as industrial symbiosis that valorises production side streams 3.1.2 Business models, product and service design - Facilitate gathering and sharing of reliable information and data to foster open innovation by knowledge exchange between innovators, industry and the 79 public to ensure activation such as circular design training or circular public procurement By making abstract emerging business model patterns more widely available, with different use cases to support them, they can be copied and applied more easily by different organisations and sectors, e.g in product design and procurement departments Knowledge exchange between industry stakeholders should support data-driven open innovation, including a structured framework for data transparency to protect IP, competitiveness and citizens’ privacy in line with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) This requires developing guidelines and rules for third parties who gather the data, and providing oversight at national and EU level to encourage transparency and information exchange to ensure and maximise public interest - Set up, connect and participate as an active stakeholder or shareholder in investment instruments to enable investors and lenders to provide funds for circular economy business models This involves creating incentives to fund business with unconventional balance sheets or models, e.g through discounted credits, as well as mobilising research into how to develop KPIs and assessment models relevant for circular business models A dedicated start-up accelerator at EU level, in line with a holistic circular economy system should also be considered Governments should take a more active role in R&I projects at regional, national and European level This could be both in the research and impact on policy innovation, as well as in launching relevant (from a bigger societal point of view) innovation challenges with a clear vision and making the project outcomes offer guidance for policy innovation, rather than defining the constraints too much beforehand This active role could also be translated into taking more risks in supporting projects for the circular economy through, for example, investing in equity instead of grants - Develop regulatory measures and incentives such as EPR systems, ecodesign and minimum product requirements to steer product design towards elimination, use of renewable or recycled feedstock, reuse and cost-effective recycling (Packaging and Packaging Waste, Ecodesign, and Waste Framework Directive) The intended product design would include the use of mono-material or cost-effective separation of composites/multi-materials, and business models based on reuse and repair 80 Ecodesign should go beyond energy and resource efficiency by including other aspects of the life cycle, including chemical safety and social value Requirements should include minimum recycled content for different product types to strengthen the recycled materials market, while avoiding negative impact on human and environmental health or skewed incentives - Incorporate a holistic, circular approach and thorough testing and prototyping of business models as requirements in R&I projects, allowing enough freedom for shifting scope, focus and content (Horizon Europe) A broader approach should incorporate the impact on human and environmental health of the entire lifecycle of the (plastic) products For many R&I projects, the focus lies mainly on technical viability, whereas new business models require copious testing, prototyping and gathering of feedback Most projects stick to the initially agreed scope for good reasons, especially in later stages once the hypothesis or concept has been proven However, in early stages, this can stifle innovation that could occur when confronted with new insights through the research done (i.e unknown unknowns) Giving more flexibility in shifting focus and acting upon new insights and knowledge could help in speeding up innovation and the relevance of the projects, and in the end making these projects more outcomes-oriented and thus fully aligning the project-outcome with its intention - Develop product policies, standards and a holistic assessment methodology to assess and support the design of circular products, services and business models Product policies and standards should simplify the products landscape, balancing economic, environmental and social impacts by taking an outcomes-oriented approach A universal evaluation methodology should bridge LCA shortcomings by including more systemic elements, providing guidance and orientation on how to design and what objectives to achieve (e.g leveraging ecodesign, standardisation and financial incentives) - Incorporate systems thinking, circular economy and environmental impacts into the education curriculum at all levels to provide a solid knowledge base for future generations of designers and innovators Such a cross-cutting theme can complement the existing topical verticals in most curricula, 81 while enabling the education system to better prepare students for the world’s increasing complexity and ambiguity 3.2.The Limitation of the Study One limitation we faced in the course of our research was the difficulty of comparing waste policies and their impacts across geographic regions Metrics as simple as a national recycling rate were often not available or inconsistent across countries due to different data collection methods or time frames This was a particularly persistent issue in researching policies implemented in developing countries Reliability and scarcity of quantitative data on waste management and recycling is especially problematic in the informal waste sector, wherein actors engage in waste management activities without formalized structures and legitimate recognition from governmental authorities Under these conditions, there is little motivation or capacity to conduct the kind of in-depth studies needed to produce reliable data Where data sources as available, recyclables are often treated as a single category, without disaggregation into distinct material flows This presents difficulties in assessing the extent to which policies operating with informal sector actors increase plastic recycling rates specifically, as it is difficult to discern how much of the total recycling rates are composed of higher value materials like metals Consequently, this lack of data limits the accuracy of estimating the impacts of policy initiatives aimed at decreasing pollution and increasing plastic recycling, as well as making comparisons across geographic regions In addition to these data gaps, evaluating different policy instruments in a comparative analysis was often challenged by the complexity and diversity of individual policies Policies implemented under Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) schemes were particularly difficult to form generalized conclusions about, because of the variation in policy design In some cases, policies also overlapped with one another, as in the case of product take-back requirements, advance disposal fees and deposit-refund systems, which made it difficult to pinpoint the efficacy of individual policy instruments on their own Moreover, isolating the impact of public policies from other factors like changes in consumption trends and 82 other macroeconomic forces presented a significant obstacle, which adds a layer of uncertainty to our analysis Finally, the analytical capacity of this research was limited by the broadness of our scope, which explored waste policy development and implementation across the entire world Given this massive scope, we fully recognize that we are forced to make numerous assumptions and generalizations in the course of our analysis Much of our research sources are imbued with a developed, Western country perspective, both because of the personal backgrounds of the members of our research team and because the majority of peer-reviewed academic literature concerning environmental policy and waste management that we were able to access originates from these areas Recognizing this potential for bias, we made an intentional effort to research waste management challenges, policies and other solutions also in place in South America, Africa, and Asia However, we acknowledge that blind spots remain As a result, we expect that our findings and recommendations will not hold true everywhere, and contradictory evidence likely exists Our objective with this report is not to provide an exhaustive analysis of the effectiveness of every policy that has been implemented worldwide to address plastic waste Rather, our goal is to provide a general overview of what different types of policy tools exist that can be used to address the issue of plastic pollution, to compare their respective advantages and disadvantages, and to examine what additional factors contribute to the success or failure of sustainable end-of-life management Through this high-level approach, we seek to contribute deeper understanding and nuance to the conversations currently taking place around the world amongst policy 83 REFERENCES EMF Towards the Circular Economy: Economic and Business Rationale for an Accelerated Transition; Ellen MacArthur Foundation: Cowes, UK, 2013 EMF Towards the Circular Economy: Accelerating the Scale-Up across Global Supply Chains; Ellen MacArthur Foundation: Cowes, UK, 2014 Hazen, B.T.; Mollenkopf, D.A.; Wang, Y Remanufacturing for the circular economy: An examination of consumer switching behavior Bus Strategy Environ 2017, 26, 451–464 Lacy, P The Circular Economy Great Idea, but Can It Work? 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