Opening ceremony

31 Aug 2026

Opening ceremony

15 Sep 2026 at 09:30–10:30 (UTC+5:30)

Concention Hall

Session type: Plenary

Focus: Education, Employment, Governance, Materials, Waste, Africa, Antarctica, Asia, Australia / Australasia / Oceania, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean, North America

Related UN Sustainable Development Goals

The opening session will bring together distinguished national and international leaders, policymakers and key stakeholders to set the stage for a global dialogue. After a ceremonial opening, we will showcase circular economy initiatives and publications, highlighting India’s priorities, global cooperation and opportunities for accelerating circularity. The session will set the tone for the discussions, knowledge exchange and collaborative action throughout the forum.

Organiser(s): Central Pollution Control Board of India (CPCB), Sitra the Finnish Innovation Fund, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change of India (MoEFCC)

Meet the experts

From pilot to policy: Co-designing the start-up–ULB pathway for circular cities

26 Aug 2026

From pilot to policy: Co-designing the start-up–ULB pathway for circular cities

17 Sep 2026 at 10:30–12:30 (UTC+5:30)

G-03, IDR Building, Indian Institute of Science Bengaluru, Bengaluru, India

Session type: In person elsewhere and online

Focus: Business, Finance, Governance, System change, Waste, Asia

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Related Sustainable Development Goals

Organiser(s): Environmental Management and Policy Research Institute, Government of Karnataka and Bengaluru Science and Technology Cluster (an initiative of the Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India), Indian Institute of Science Bengaluru

Circular startups have solutions; cities have the waste and the mandate, yet partnerships stay fragile and champion-dependent. Work alongside Urban Local Bodies’ (ULB) leaders, founders and financiers to design a repeatable pathway from pilot to scale, grounded in live Bengaluru examples.

From fibre to finance: Unlocking circular textile clusters

26 Aug 2026

From fibre to finance: Unlocking circular textile clusters

18 Sep 2026 at 10:30–12:30 (UTC+5:30)

Sagarmatha room, Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW) ISID Campus, 4, Vasant Kunj Institutional Area New Delhi – 110070, India, New Delhi, India

Session type: In person only (elsewhere)

Focus: Finance, Governance, Industry, System change, Waste, Asia

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Related Sustainable Development Goals

Organiser(s): Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW) with Aspen Network of Development Entrepreneurs (ANDE)

India’s pre-consumer textile waste presents significant potential for circular manufacturing, but gaps in finance, technology, markets and policy constrain widespread adoption. This session brings together key stakeholders to explore practical pathways for financing and scaling textile recovery and recycling.

Workwear as a circular service

11 Aug 2026

Workwear as a circular service

18 Sep 2026 at 11:00–13:00 (UTC+5:30)

None, Gandhinagar, India

Session type: Online only

Focus: Business, Industry, Materials, System change, Waste, Asia

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Related Sustainable Development Goals

Organiser(s): Lindström Group, Lindström India

Discover how workwear rental and maintenance can keep garments in use longer. Lindström experts will share practical lessons on durability, repair, reuse and resource-efficient laundry, helping organisations reduce waste and build long-term business value.

Inclusive EPR for circular livelihoods: Lessons from Africa

11 Aug 2026

Inclusive EPR for circular livelihoods: Lessons from Africa

18 Sep 2026 at 18:30–20:00 (UTC+2:00)

online, online, South Africa

Session type: Online only

Focus: Employment, Governance, People, System change, Waste, Africa, Asia

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Related Sustainable Development Goals

Organiser(s): African Circular Economy Network

Who ultimately benefits when EPR systems are introduced? Drawing on African evidence-based experience in plastics and e-waste, this session explores how EPR can boost reuse, refurbishment and recycling of these obligated waste streams while protecting and improving informal workers’ livelihoods.

Financeable circular waste pilots

11 Aug 2026

Financeable circular waste pilots

17 Sep 2026 at 15:00–16:30 (UTC+5:30)

Mahatma Mandir, Gandhinagar, India

Session type: In person only in Gandhinagar

Focus: Business, Finance, Governance, Materials, Waste, Asia, Europe

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Related Sustainable Development Goals

Organiser(s): Netherlands Enterprise Agency | RVO.nl, Dutch embassy and other missions – India | The Netherlands and India

The session connects stakeholders around solutions, innovations, markets, finance and policy. Participants use lessons from the Netherlands–India programme on building partnerships and scaling circular waste initiatives that can inform and inspire similar efforts globally.

Driving circular economy through digital governance

11 Aug 2026

Driving circular economy through digital governance

17 Sep 2026 at 11:30–13:00 (UTC+5:30)

NID Gandhinagar Campus: https://www.nid.edu/about/campuses/gandhinagar-campus, Gandhinagar, India

Session type: In person only in Gandhinagar

Focus: Business, Data and AI, Governance, People, Waste, Asia

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Related Sustainable Development Goals

Organiser(s): GIZ India

Explore how digital governance, community action and innovation are advancing the circular economy in India. Discover practical solutions for waste management, resource recovery, traceability and citizen engagement, with approaches that can be scaled across the Global South.

Circular solutions and business models in ICT and electronics industries

03 Aug 2026

Circular solutions and business models in ICT and electronics industries

16 Sep 2026 at 14:30–15:30 (UTC+5:30)

Seminar Hall 2

Session type: Parallel

Track: Business

Focus: Critical raw materials, Data and AI, Materials, Waste, Africa, Antarctica, Asia, Australia / Australasia / Oceania, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean, North America

Related UN Sustainable Development Goals

This session examines strategies for extending the working life of ICT and electronics equipment through reuse, repair, refurbishment and remanufacturing business models.

It explores how recovering critical minerals from e-waste can build resilient secondary markets and reduce dependence on virgin material extraction.

Global technology firms, Indian innovators and industry associations will discuss practical solutions and partnerships needed to scale circular ICT value chains.

Organiser(s): Material Recycling Association of India (MRAI), Ellen MacArthur Foundation, Centre for Materials for Electronics Technology (CMET), Recycling and Environment Industry Association of India (REIA)

Meet the experts

Inclusive circular economy and growth

03 Aug 2026

Inclusive circular economy and growth

16 Sep 2026 at 11:30–12:30 (UTC+5:30)

Seminar Hall 3

Session type: Parallel

Track: People

Focus: Employment, People, Resilience, Waste, Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean

Related UN Sustainable Development Goals

This session explores how inclusive circular economy policies, business models and partnerships can empower waste pickers and other informal workers as key agents of resource recovery, decent work, and equitable economic growth while advancing a just transition to circularity.

Informal workers are central to material recovery and circular value chains across emerging economies. The session will demonstrate how to strengthen their integration into the circular economy, drawing on India’s experience alongside perspectives from Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean as well as examine pathways to improve livelihoods, social protection and resource efficiency through a just transition.

Organiser(s): United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Alliance of Indian Wastepickers (AIW)

Meet the expert

Closing the loop: advancing circularity in plastic waste management

03 Aug 2026

Closing the loop: advancing circularity in plastic waste management

15 Sep 2026 at 15:00–16:00 (UTC+5:30)

Seminar Hall 4

Session type: Parallel

Track: Governance

Focus: Design, Industry, Materials, Waste, Africa, Antarctica, Asia, Australia / Australasia / Oceania, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean, North America

Related UN Sustainable Development Goals

Plastic waste remains one of the most pressing environmental challenges of our time, yet it also presents an unprecedented opportunity for economic and industrial innovation.

This session explores strategies, technologies and policy frameworks designed to transition from a linear model to a fully circular plastics economy, while sharing practical solutions for advancing circularity in plastic packaging across the value chain, from product design to traceability, advanced sorting and high-quality recycling.

Transforming plastic waste management requires combining innovative technology, robust policy and cross-sector collaboration to drive resource efficiency and scale the adoption of recycled materials.

Organiser(s): Resource Efficiency and Circular Economy Industry Coalition (RECEIC), Ellen MacArthur Foundation, Confederation of Indian Industry (CII)