AUGUST 20249 ENVIRONMENTAL BUSINESS REVIEWto focus on education and communication to ensure consumers understand their positive changing power. When they decide to refuse to use unnecessary packaging or paper goods, when they take their reusable cups or their reusable bags, and when they think twice about buying something they do not need, they are significantly reducing their impact and forcing brands to keep working for more sustainable products and services. However, if we want to reach the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Paris Agreement targets, good intentions from companies and consumers are not good enough and necessitate regulation at the local and national levels to move forward and catalyze efforts. For example, the Extended Producer Responsibility regulation has been enforced in many countries worldwide to impose liability on producers over the lifecycle of their products. Beginning with the EU, now countries in Latin America like Chile or Colombia have EPR laws making companies move forward into individual, collective, and industry efforts to reduce environmental impact through circular economy strategies. For Colombia, the goal is to reach 2030 with 30 percent of total packaging being recovered. Also, these two countries have laws regarding single plastic use, urging brands to move into new alternatives in terms of materials and design to achieve targets. Last, but not least, stakeholder engagement seems to be a pivotal part of this process. First, it is very important to talk about waste pickers and how they play a fundamental role in this process. Between 19-24 million people across the globe work as waste pickers, representing 0.5-1 percent of the global workforce (Fair Circularity Initiative & Systemiq, 2024). They contribute to building the material's circularity and create value for resource recovery models. However, they live under very vulnerable conditions and face challenging working conditions. Also, they are often invisible to consumers and policymakers. All dimensions were explained before requiring waste pickers' engagement as central actors in building a circular economy system, where just transition is fundamental to ensure their voices are heard. Companies play a crucial role in raising consumer awareness about their importance and they must develop programs to assure fair wages and safe working conditions for waste pickers. Likewise, Governments always need to include in environmental laws not just their perspective but dispositions favoring human development. While the challenge is huge, I am confident that we are finally understanding how collective action is the only way to tackle the current climate emergency, where the circular economy plays a central role. Rethinking packaging in consumer packaged goods or the retail industry is necessary to avoid waste in landfills
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