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This collection features circular practices across several industries in Taiwan: Agriculture & Food, Textiles and Fashion, Buildings, Furniture and Appliances, Vehicles, Packaging and Containers, Electronics and Chemicals, etc. 

Circular Taiwan Network (CTN) is a leadership initiative in Taiwan that brings together governments, businesses, universities, and NGOs to facilitate the transition to a circular economy. CTN aims to enhance understanding and implementation of the circular economy across Taiwan. We catalyze collaborations in the hope that more circular policies and sustainable business solutions may be created and that the circular economy may flourish in Taiwan. CTN has published two books, ‘Circular Economy’ and ‘Circular Taiwan’, along with several specialized reports, to promote awareness and practices of circular economy in Taiwan.

To learn more about Circular Taiwan Network visit [https://circular-taiwan.org/en/](https://circular-taiwan.org/en/)

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Circular Taiwan Network

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Business case

Producing and gathering crop and animal products from land and water through farming, hunting, and fishing

Agriculture

Transforming waste products into materials and lower value products within other industries

Open loop downcycling

**Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns**

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The world is seriously off track in its effort to halve per-capita food waste and losses by 2030.The COVID-19 pandemic has had significant impacts on consumption and production patterns, with disruptions to global supply chains and changes in consumer behaviour. 

Responsible consumption and production must be an integral part of the recovery from the pandemic. 
But the global economy also needs to speed up the decoupling of economic growth from resource use by maximizing the socio-economic benefits of resources while minimizing their negative impacts. 

Reporting on corporate sustainability has tripled since the beginning of the SDG period, but the private sector will need to significantly improve reporting on activities that contribute to the SDGs. 

This primarily entails environmentally sound management of "toxic chemicals" A substantial use of chemicals is essential to meet the social and economic goals of the world community, and these can be used with a high degree of safety when best practices are followed.  Gross chemical contamination, with grave damage to human health, genetic structures reproductive outcomes, and the environment, has been continuing within some of the world's most important industrial areas, and restoration will require major investment as well as the development of new techniques.
Effective control of the generation, storage, treatment, recycling and reuse, transport, recovery and disposal of hazardous wastes is another similar challenge. 
In addition,  solid wastes include all domestic refuse and non-hazardous wastes such as commercial and institutional wastes, street sweepings construction debris, and, in some countries, human wastes. As hazardous waste is frequently intermixed with other waste, this poses particular management challenges.
Finally, this target ensures that radioactive waste is safely managed, transported, stored and disposed of, with a view to protecting human health and the environment. 

To deliver SDG12, it is crucial to implement policies that support the shift to sustainable practices and decouple economic growth from resource use.

Sources: [https://sdgs.un.org/goals/goal12](https://sdgs.un.org/goals/goal12)
[https://sdgs.un.org/topics/chemicals-and-waste](https://sdgs.un.org/topics/chemicals-and-waste)

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12. Responsible consumption and production

Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns

Industries

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The principles of a circular economy concern designing out waste, regenerating ecosystems and keeping items in use. Decoupling the economy from material flows—improving the rate of resource productivity faster than the economic growth rate—is also a consistent guide. By evolving with the growing number of applications of circular economy principles, and consolidating these strategies across thematic areas, Circle Economy’s Key Elements Framework (KE) renders the elements of the circular economy salient and serves as a basis to derive contextual strategies and interventions. 


The Framework consists of:
- Core Elements: Activities directly handling product or material flows; and uniquely,
- Enabling Elements: those that remove obstacles for core actors.


Key elements of the circular economy

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Circle Economy's framework of strategies and activities that define the circular economy

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**These 17 Goals recognize that ending poverty and other deprivations must go hand-in-hand with strategies that improve health and education, reduce inequality, and spur economic growth – all while tackling climate change and working to preserve our oceans and forests.**

The SDGs build on decades of work by countries and the UN, and especially on the Millennium Declaration adopted in September 2000 at UN Headquarters in New York which let to the elaboration of eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) to reduce extreme poverty by 2015.

In 2015, the Paris Agreement was signed. A major blueprint came out of this: The Sustainable Development Goals: 17 overarching goals—and 169 targets—that governments are aiming to meet by 2030. Significant progress has been made in terms of poverty, health and inequality, but there's still a way to go. This is where the circular economy comes in: by circulating resources multiple times, the circular economy tackles issues of scarcity and allows all to access what they need—without overburdening the earth. If it's implemented in a holistic way—affording attention to social considerations and the fair distribution of resources— it also offers a pathway for achieving the SDGs; and the link between the two is ever-growing. To read more about the link between the SDGs and the circular economy, click [here](https://www.circle-economy.com/blogs/how-the-circular-economy-can-help-us-reach-the-sustainable-development-goals).

It is the Division for Sustainable Development Goals (DSDG) in the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA) which provides substantive support and capacity-building for the SDGs and their related thematic issues. TheDSDG plays a key role in the evaluation of UN systemwide implementation of the 2030 Agenda and in advocacy and outreach activities relating to the SDGs. In order to make the 2030 Agenda a reality, broad ownership of the SDGs must translate into a strong commitment by all stakeholders to implement the global goals. DSDG aims to help facilitate this engagement.
Alongside this, the annual High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development serves as the central UN platform for the follow-up and review of the SDGs.
In addition, the UN Secretary-General presents an annual SDG Progress report, which is developed in cooperation with the UN System, and based on the global indicator framework and data produced by national statistical systems and information collected at the regional level.

To read more information: [https://sdgs.un.org/goals](https://sdgs.un.org/goals)

Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

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Based on the work of [Bocken et al. (2016)](https://www.researchgate.net/publication/309699661_Product_design_and_business_model_strategies_for_a_circular_economy), the Four Flows Framework serves as a simple framework for managing resource flows in a circular economy by using less (Narrow), using for longer (Slow), using again (Cycle), and using clean, regenerative materials and energy (Regenerate).

These different principles of circular economy can be applied to our socioeconomic metabolism: we can design stocks like buildings, infrastructure, machinery, and vehicles to be rich resource mines for the future, and design manufactured goods and consumables to be cycled and made regenerative. Furthermore, the focus must also centre on getting more value out of fewer materials. Achieving the aims of a circular economy—minimising material use, regenerating the Earth, and preventing material losses—can be done through these four key strategies mentioned above.

Source: Circle Economy. (2023). *[The circularity gap report 2023](https://www.circularity-gap.world/2023)* (p.22). Amsterdam: Circle Economy. 

Four Flows Framework

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 Shin Hu Cooperation Farm uses the leftovers of trimming vegetable leaves to breed fish. The nutrient−rich pond water having fish excrement is absorbed and cleared by flowing plant roots, the aquaponics is recycled due to pond water filtered by the plants is recycled into the fish farm for use.Shin Hu Cooperation Farm is a lettuce supplier to catering brands and supermarkets. There is a significant amount of waste lettuce leaves generated after cutting. Generally, after the fish ponds are harvested, the nutrient-rich waste water is drained out and new water is injected, which is a waste of water resources and even causes the problem of pumping out a large amount of groundwater.Vegetable leftover feed fishes and pond water irrigate vegetable fieldThrough Shin Hu Cooperation Farm and the Baojhong Township Office’s cooperation to improve the facilities and water circulation systems of an abandoned fishpond by building an aquaponic greenhouse on the embankment.At the fishpond, the grass carp and silver carp fish (grass carp is herbivorous, and silver carp can help filter excrement) were feed with the residues of trimmed lettuce; subsequently, the pond water was pumped into the greenhouse to grow lettuce on the vertical hydroponic system. The cooler pond water may overcome the inhibition of lettuce growth due to high temperature, and the hydroponic system electric power for cooling nutrient solution were reduced.Water recirculation system combining fishpond and greenhousesIn the system, plants absorb the nutrients from the enrich-water and purify water too, enabling the water to circulate back to the fishponds. Doing so helps optimize the use of nutrients and may reduce eutrophication and pumping groundwater which are serious problem in Yunlin district.BenefitsThe farm has utilized leftover vegetable leaves to breed fish and nutrient-rich fish pond waste water to grow vegetables to reduce feed and fertilizer use.The circular use of fish pond waste water reduces the costs of pond filtration and the need for groundwater.There are many abandoned fish ponds in Taiwan. Through aquaponics, new local employment opportunities can be created.


Taiwan

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Shin Hu Cooperation Farm

Shin Hu Cooperation Farm uses the leftovers of trimming vegetable leaves to breed fish. The nutrient−rich pond water having fish excrement is absorbed and cleared by flowing plant roots, the aquaponics is recycled due to pond water filtered by the plants is recycled into the fish farm for use.

Developing an Improved Aquaponics System

Blueseeds has helped farmers adopt natural farming methods through agricultural education, adoption programs, and sharing platforms to create diverse values for the economy, environment, and society.

Promoting Actions to Support Small Farmers in Natural Farming

Soy pulp has a very high nutritional value and fiber content; however, there are still challenges to be resolved for its recycling. To address these issues, the Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI) has promoted the gradual establishment of an ecosystem with the Taoyuan City Tofu Business Association, aiming to create a diversified application market and open up recycling business opportunities.

Creating an Soy Pulp Centered Circular Ecosystem

King's Ground Biotech (KGbio) has used its core technology to transform perishable soy pulp into high-value, low-carbon functional raw materials for feed and health products.

Pioneering Innovative Collaboration Model for High-Value Utilization of Soy Pulp


Essenture has adopted the technology of the ITRI Central Region Campus to ferment soy pulp and transform it into cheese flavoring and plant-based meat raw materials, increasing the added value of agricultural by-products.

Transforming Soy Pulp into Emerging Food Ingredients

YONG LIN has cooperated with businesses in the cat litter industry to develop tofu cat litter production processes, formulations, equipment, and brand packaging made from local raw materials to find innovative solutions for Taiwanese soy pulp.

Establishing the First Local Supply Chain for Tofu-based Cat Litter

Through the use of plant fiber recycled material technology, renouvo recycles agricultural waste to create new materials, thus reducing waste and replacing plastics. After consumers use these materials, they can be composted and returned to the earth.

Creating Low-Carbon Materials from Agricultural Waste Recycling

YONGDA FOOD and MO MO SUN have collaborated to combine agricultural by-products and biodegradable materials in order to replace traditional agricultural planting and packaging materials used in everyday life, thus reducing waste and increasing the value of agriculture.

Transforming Agricultural Byproducts into Biodegradable Goods for Agricultural and Livelihood Use

ITRI assists in transforming used lemons into products in food, cosmetics, medicine, animal feed, and other fields.

Implementing High-Value Utilization for Lemon Residue

Tainan’s Guantian District turned water chestnut shells into black gold through local-private cooperation.

Exploring Diverse Recycling Avenues for Discarded Water Chestnut Shells

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Shin Hu Cooperation Farm uses the leftovers of trimming vegetable leaves to breed fish. The nutrient−rich&nbsp;pond water having fish excrement is absorbed and cleared by flowing plant roots, the aquaponics is recycled&nbsp;due to pond water filtered by the plants is recycled into the fish farm for use.