The Adoption of the Circular Economy by Local Governments: A Survey of Belgian Municipalities

Although many local governments are working to reduce their local greenhouse gas emissions, consumption-related emissions are largely overlooked. Circular economy offers a way to address this issue by profoundly changing consumption and production patterns. It is not only supranational, national, and regional governments that are adopting circular economy policies. We are seeing local governments beginning to adopt it as well, in order to tackle the environmental and social challenges they face in their territories. In this report, we provide an overview of the level of circular economy adoption by Belgian municipalities, their priorities, approaches, and the key obstacles they encounter. While the transition is underway, there is still work to be done by all stakeholders to support a sustainable circular transition.