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FAO participates alongside environment ministries, development banks and other UN entities

Bioeconomy was high on the agenda at the 11th Regional 3R and Circular Economy Forum in Asia and the Pacific, which took place in Cambodia on 8–10 February. The forum brought together high-level participants from Asia and the Pacific and beyond to discuss the theme of “Integrating Circular Economy in Major Development Sectors towards Achieving Zero Waste Societies and the SDGs”.

Circular Economy, 3Rs and Bioeconomy

Circular economy and 3R (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle) principles are seen by many Asia–Pacific and global stakeholders as important drivers towards more sustainable consumption and production patterns (SDG 12) that could help unlock major human and planetary benefits. They are also deeply embedded in FAO’s bioeconomy work.

FAO is the first United Nations entity to make bioeconomy – an economic model built on biological rather than fossil-based resources – a strategic priority, recognizing its vast untapped potential to transform agrifood systems. Responsible consumption and production and the elimination of waste are cornerstones of the FAO programme on bioeconomy for sustainable food and agriculture that will run until 2031.

This builds on FAO bioeconomy work over a number of years, with the Organization supporting the development of a suite of knowledge products for policymakers covering principles and criteria for a sustainable bioeconomy, monitoring the sustainability of the bioeconomy at a country or macro-regional level, and good practices and policies on mainstreaming sustainability and circularity into the bioeconomy.

Most recently, in late 2022, FAO released two new publications outlining how bioeconomy could contribute to climate action and biodiversity conservation and restoration efforts.

3R Forum Plenary Session One – Climate Change and the Paris Agreement

Marta Gomez San Juan, FAO senior bioeconomy expert, addressed delegates at the 3R forum’s first plenary session on the topic of “Creating Synergies in Achieving SDGs and Paris Agreement on Climate Change through Circular Economy”. Ms Gomez San Juan highlighted the heightened focus on bioeconomy at COP 27 compared to previous climate change conferences. She then explained how existing bioeconomy policies and strategies at national and regional levels can help drive climate action; FAO’s role in championing the mainstreaming of circularity and sustainability within bioeconomy strategies; and how FAO is supporting countries in the Asia–Pacific region to leverage the bioeconomy to achieve climate goals.

“A sustainable and circular bioeconomy valorizes waste and can deliver benefits across multiple development goals, in particular tackling climate change and chemical pollution,” said Ms San Juan. However, she noted that “the sustainable bioeconomy in Asia–Pacific countries differs from the set up in other countries… with sustainability trade-offs, environmental factors and competition with other uses creating a need for thorough monitoring to address sustainability in socio-economic and environmental aspects”.

In 2022, FAO conducted a mapping study of the bioeconomy in South East Asia and of the sustainability goals and support mechanisms that already exist in a number of counties including Japan, Malaysia and Thailand. The study also took account of the Bangkok Goals on Bio-Circular-Green Economy recently endorsed by Asia–Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) countries. Mechanisms identified included investment platforms, co-financing to increase feasibility of national bioeconomy initiatives, and collaborative mechanisms to absorb risk.

Organizers and further information

This year’s 3R forum was organized by the Ministry of Environment, Kingdom of Cambodia; the Ministry of Environment, Japan; and the United Nations Centre for Regional Development (UNCRD) of Division for Sustainable Development Goals (DSDG) of the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA). Partners and supporting organizations involved in the forum included the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UN ESCAP), Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA), UNEP, UNIDO, UNWTO, UN-HABITAT, and Asian Development Bank.

Ms San Juan’s intervention followed a keynote speech by Yukari Takamura from the University of Tokyo, setting the scene for the discussions around the draft new 3R and Circular Economy Declaration (2024–2034) – successor of the Hanoi 3R Declaration (2013-2023) – that is expected to be adopted in the 2024 3R conference in Viet Nam. One of the goals in the early draft explicitly covers bioeconomy, and FAO will continue to support countries during the draft negotiations.

The link to the 3R forum and presentations can be found here.

Photo: Courtesy of UNDP

Web links

FAO sustainable and circular bioeconomy

11th Regional 3R and Circular Economy Forum in Asia and the Pacific

15/02/2023