Circular Economy as a Climate Solution: Youth Voices from Agri-Food Systems and Beyond

For the first time, circular economy (CE) featured on the official agenda of COP30 in Belém, Brazil, marking a milestone in recognizing CE as a vital climate solution. This reflects a growing global consensus that shifting from a linear “take–make–dispose” model to a regenerative, circular approach is essential for achieving both climate and sustainable development goals. As a cross-sectoral framework, CE connects multiple domains—energy, transport, industry, forestry, oceans, biodiversity, agriculture and food systems, cities, and infrastructure, offering an integrated pathway for transformative change. By rethinking how resources are produced, consumed, and regenerated, CE enables systemic climate action across all levels of society.

Youth are at the forefront of this transformation. For example, young are advancing regenerative farming, innovators are developing waste-to-value enterprises, promoting sustainable packaging, and designing circular business models that reshape production and consumption patterns. Yet their perspectives remain underrepresented in formal climate dialogues.

YPARD, along with several key partners want to bring youth voices to the forefront. This session will  provide a youth-led and intergenerational dialogue space to explore how circular economy can serve as a climate solution, starting from agri-food systems and extending beyond them.
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Partners:

YOUNGO (UNFCCC Children and Youth Consistency)

Youth Empowerment in Climate Action Platform (YECAP)

Universal Versatile Society

Global Flagship Initiative for Food Security

World Food Forum (China Chapter)

GBA Climate Week

Global Shaper Community | World Economic Forum

Impact Hub

Global ESG Leadership Association (GELA)

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Key Objectives:

• Position circular economy as a climate solution aligned with the COP30 agenda, highlighting its role in driving systemic, cross-sectoral transformation across energy, urban systems, industry, and agri-food sectors.
• Showcase youth-led and intergenerational innovations that operationalize CE principles—from regenerative farming and waste-to-value enterprises to sustainable packaging and circular business models.
• Foster dialogue and collaboration among young professionals, policymakers, researchers, and private sector actors to identify opportunities and challenges for advancing CE-based climate action.
• Bridge global frameworks with local actions by exploring how CE can translate high-level commitments into practical, community-level solutions within and beyond agri-food systems.

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Speakers:

• FAO OCB (TBC)
• Terry Chen, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
• Zhong Li, World Food Forum (China), Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences
• Zulhafiy, The Retirement Fund (Incorporated), KWAP Malaysia
• Neliubina Elizaveta, Tsinghua University, SCOLAR Beijing

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About Changemakers for Agri-food Action

This webinar is part of an ongoing capacity building series called the Changemakers for Agri-food Action. The Changemakers for Agri-food Action is an online webinar series covering topics related to policy and advocacy. The series is based on the format of the YPARD Global Cafes, which are virtual space of experience sharing and knowledge exchange among young practitioners in the agriculture and food systems sector.

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