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Waste Not

The latest in the growing number of efforts directed at reducing, repurposing and ultimately eliminating waste in all its forms.

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Starbucks Becomes First National Coffee Retailer to Accept Reusable, Personal Cups at Every Visit

Starbucks Becomes First National Coffee Retailer to Accept Reusable, Personal Cups at Every Visit

Cross-Posted from Behavior Change. Starting January 3, 2024, customers will be able to use their own clean, personal cup for every visit at all company-operated stores and participating licensed stores in the US and Canada.

Flashfood Offers a Solution to Food Waste That Doesn’t Leave the Grocery Store

The platform connects shoppers with near-expiration food coming directly from grocery shelves at a significant discount.

‘Tis the Season of ‘Giving Back:’ The Environmental Impact of Holiday Returns

Addressing the fate of returned items — and the larger issue of 'wrap, return, repeat' consumer culture — requires adoption of smart technologies to offset losses and improve retail’s environmental impact during the holiday season and beyond.

Understanding Digestate: The Bounty from Anaerobic Digestion

Leveraging the potential of anaerobic digestion and utilizing digestate as a renewable soil amendment offers significant opportunities for sustainable and regenerative agriculture.

WWF Report Reveals Progress on Some of the World’s Biggest Brands' Plastic Footprints

While ReSource: Plastic members are demonstrating that plastic reporting is possible, voluntary corporate action is not sufficient to address the scale and urgency of the plastic waste crisis.

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The Game within a Game: Eastman, UTenn, UMich Compete for a Common Good

Cross-Posted from Behavior Change. Together, Eastman and the two teams helped turn the spirit of competition into a unique approach to diverting waste, keeping recycling top of mind and driving behavior change with football fans.

From Farm to Renewable Energy: The Win-Win Solution Bringing Us Closer to a Circular Economy

As the world strives to achieve its sustainability goals, such holistic approaches not only benefit the environment but also enhance the resilience and prosperity of rural communities while taking us one step closer to a more circular future.

COP28: Food-Systems Transformation Finally Becoming Part of the Climate Conversation

At COP28, the US Food Waste Pact, ReFED’s ‘Roadmap for Philanthropy’ and $57M from the Bezos Earth Fund are among new initiatives targeting global food-system transformation.

Navigating the Holiday Waste Conundrum: The Pragmatic Role of AI in Retail Sustainability

The use of AI in retail planning is now a strategic imperative in the fight against waste of all kinds — including the rampant waste created during the holiday season.

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Coachtopia Turns Waste Into ‘Impeccable Taste’ in New Holiday Campaign

Cross-Posted from Marketing and Comms. The circular brand’s “Wasty Holiday” campaign highlights the fact that up to 43% more waste is created during the holidays than at any other time of the year.

NextGen Consortium Outlines Path Toward Circular Economy for Paper Cups in US

Cross-Posted from The Next Economy. Insights include solutions for paper mills, materials-recovery facilities, brands, consumers and communities to increase recovery of paper cups and reduce waste to landfill.

Molecular Recycling Could Be Crucial to Realizing a Circular Economy

Cross-Posted from The Next Economy. We caught up with Eastman’s Plastics Division President, Scott Ballard, who explained the potential of molecular recycling as the company prepares to show the world what’s possible.

How the US’s Most Abundant Crop Is Changing the Way Plastic Is Produced

Cross-Posted from From Purpose to Action: Building a Sustainable Future Together. In a perfect example of the circular economy in action, corn stover — stalks and leaves left over from harvest — becomes a valuable cash crop for which farmers can get paid.

Venerable Japanese Company Goes Circular with Versatile, Upcycled Textile

Cross-Posted from Chemistry, Materials & Packaging. Meet NUNOUS — a brand-new, radically versatile material made from fabric waste — developed by fabric-dyeing giant Seishoku Co., Ltd.

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New Frontiers in Sustainable Healthcare

Healthcare facilities are extremely complex physical environments. As such, sustainability initiatives will require more planning, research and pilots to ensure organizations are safely implementing initiatives without impacting the provision of patient care.

How Circularity, AI Are Mending Cracks in Our Fractured Food System

Cross-Posted from Product, Service & Design Innovation. Naturally, food and its many issues has been a major topic this week at [SB’23 San Diego](https://events.sustainablebrands.com/conferences/sustainablebrands). Here, two panels of innovators share their approaches to filling in systemic gaps in our food system.

Companies Designing out Waste Will Run Circles Around Those with Linear Business Models

This week at [**SB’23 San Diego**](https://events.sustainablebrands.com/conferences/sustainablebrands), two illuminating panels featured experts from a variety of aspects of the emerging circular economy, who shared key insights and lessons learned in the pursuit of circularity.

Making Something Out of Nothing: Time for a Rethink About Waste

Excess is inevitable; and we should re-evaluate our understanding of what businesses do with it accordingly. Instead of thinking of excesses as the end of a story, recognize the potential of wastes as the start of something new.

Princeton, Microsoft Co-Develop Wireless Solution to Combat Produce Waste

High-frequency wireless tech will help suppliers sort fruit based on fine-grained ripeness measurements — enabling distributors and retailers to save good fruit and veg from being thrown out with the bad, and move ripe fruit to the front of the line.

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