Calls and Forthcoming Events

Innofrugal UK 2020 - 17 May 2020

Innofrugal UK 2020 will be taking place at the Cambridge Judge Business School. The conference (now in its 3rd year) brings together professionals and academics from across different sectors to discuss topics such as Frugal Innovation for Enterprises, how the Circular Economy and Frugal Innovation can complement and enable one another, and Circular approaches to plastic waste. It also showcases entrepreneurs from the Cambridge Judge network giving real world examples of their projects/ideas/companies.

Contact: Ellie Wolmark (e.wolmark@jbs.cam.ac.uk)

Getting Drastic with Plastic: New Approaches to Eliminating Plastic Waste - 16 April 2020 - POSTPONED

Radical changes are planned to tackle plastic waste. But what does this mean for Cambridge? ‘Getting Drastic with Plastic’ is a one-day event designed to exchange the newest scientific findings on plastic and its alternatives and collaborate to develop a sustainable environment, healthy economy and thriving community.

This whole-day event at the Cambridge Guildhall will be a stimulating space for hearing the latest research related to plastic and waste involving the active participation of the wider public on how to tackle plastic pollution. It is organised by CirPlas at the University of Cambridge and RECAP who represent local councils and waste networks.

The Forum will include public lectures, scientific demonstrations, small discussion groups, interactive games and an art installation. The themes of plastic alternatives, new ways of repurposing and recycling plastic waste, plastic flows, circular economy models, consumer/ citizen behaviour and attitudes, as well as the changing policy landscape, will be discussed.

The Forum summarises the outcomes of an interdisciplinary research project funded by UK Research and Innovation and is an opportunity to hear leading researchers from across the social, natural, and material sciences. This is an exciting change for stakeholders from local and national government, the business community, NGOs and civil society to exchange ideas and information about the fast-moving world of plastics and their alternatives.

Everyone is welcome! Participation is free!

Contact: Dr Brigitte Steger (bs382@cam.ac.uk)

Past Events: 

The 'P' Word: Rethinking our Wasteful Plastic World - 19 March 2020 - CANCELLED

Plastic has become a malevolent symbol of our wasteful society. It’s also fundamental to almost every aspect of our lives. How do we shift our ‘take, make, throw-away’ plastic world towards ‘recycle, recover, re-use’? With Dr Sally Beken, Innovate UK, Bryony Rothwell, RECAP, and researchers Professor Erwin Reisner, Department of Chemistry, and Dr Patrick O’Hare, University of St Andrews.

Part of the Cambridge Science Festival.

Register here for tickets.

Venture School "People, Plastics and our Planet" - 2-6 March 2020

Are you passionate about the issues that surround plastics in our environment? Would you like to contribute to finding solutions to current key challenges? Do you already have an idea for innovation that can reduce/re-use/recycle plastic? Would you like to find ways to change people’s behaviour around plastic?

People, Plastics and our Planet offers the unique opportunity for early career researchers and entrepreneurial individuals from the business community to come together to develop and test ideas around solving the challenges posed by plastics in our environment.

If you have any questions please email aurora@bas.ac.uk. 

2nd Forum on Relative Impact of Materials: Connecting Business, Policy and Research to Deliver Solutions - 5 February 2020

The Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership (CISL) invite you to the second CirPlas Forum. This event aims to explore and showcase work being done in the University on the impact of plastics and the potential alternative materials and solutions. It will connect businesses, policy makers and scientists to discuss the challenge and share their perspectives, proposed approaches, and potential solutions.

Please use this link to register your interest by Monday 27 January.

Contact: Beverley Cornaby (Beverley.Cornaby@cisl.cam.ac.uk)

The Circular Economy: More than a Buzzword? - 5 December 2019

Many of us want to contribute towards a greener society: we want to recycle more, use less plastic and toss less food into our bins. This push towards sustainability is increasingly linked to the concept of circular economy, a vision of a world in which we efficiently use, reuse and regenerate materials instead of throwing them away. But what exactly does circular economy really mean?

Join Prof. Khaled Soufani of the Circular Economy Centre at Cambridge Judge Business School as he delves into the concept of circular economy, what it means for you, and what the university is doing to turn it into reality. The lecture will be followed by an exhibition featuring interactive demos and information on research being conducted at Cambridge University to combat plastic waste and encourage circularity and sustainability.

https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-circular-economy-more-than-a-buzzword-tickets-79228306999. Contact: Taylor Uekert (tmu22@cam.ac.uk).

The Plastics Challenge: a Business Opportunity  - 2-3 December 2019

Hear from leading experts about the global plastics challenge and discover the business opportunities that arise from developing more sustainable pathways. This Lab is designed for mid- to senior-level professionals working in strategy, sustainability, supply chain and procurement, innovation, R&D, sustainable design, business development, change management and stakeholder engagement who are looking to improve business practices by redesigning their plastics usage.

Apply to attend: https://cambridge.eu.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_9GgNXjwAHdBKGRT

Workshop on Towards Sustainable Drinks Packaging: Exploring the Relative Impact of Materials - 20 November 2019

The event will build on what is currently known of the impacts, how we address the gaps and what more is required to support long-term strategic decision-making towards achieving the vision set out in our report, Towards Sustainable Packaging. It is open to stakeholders from across the value chain, especially those who are directly involved in, or who are able to influence, the packaging material decision-making process.

As places are limited, please use this link to register your interest by Monday 11 November. Contact: Beverley Cornaby (Beverley.Cornaby@cisl.cam.ac.uk).

Sourcing Data for UK Plastics Flow - 30 October 2019

This workshop will bring together holders of plastics data to create a UK map of plastic material flows, and to ensure the best data available is used in a new UK dynamic plastics model. The workshop will also be used to explore options for improving the tracking of plastic flows in post-consumer waste and recycling processes.

If you would like more information please contact Dr Jonathan Cullen (jmc99@eng.cam.ac.uk) or Dr Andre Serrenho (ag806@cam.ac.uk).