ONE PLANET NETWORK FORUM

For A Sustainable Planet
and a just world

12-13 SEPT 2024


MUSEU DO AMANHÃ / ‘MUSEUM OF TOMORROW’,
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL

REDUCING INEQUALITIES AND ACHIEVING JUST TRANSITIONS FOR ALL THROUGH SUSTAINABLE CONSUMPTION AND PRODUCTION INCLUDING THROUGH CIRCULAR ECONOMY.

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PROGRAMME - SESSION 6

 

Harnessing digital tools to empower consumers and SMEs for sustainable consumption and production

Organised by:

Description:

Reducing inequality and poverty, promoting sustainable consumption and production, and transitioning towards a truly circular economy require the participation of all, especially the most vulnerable: consumers and micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs). 

Digital technologies hold the potential to drive the shift towards circular economy approaches, while also increasing transparency, traceability, innovation, efficiency and sustainability. In November 2023, the One Planet Network launched the report entitled “Rethinking, Extending, Reusing – harnessing digital technologies for the circular economy,” which outlines pathways for leveraging digital technologies to accelerate this transition and provides key insights on opportunities, challenges and policy recommendations for supporting this shift. 

Despite the transformative potential for businesses and consumers, digital solutions must be designed and implemented with inclusiveness at their core. This session will explore how emerging technologies provide new skills and opportunities to empower consumers and MSMEs. Digital technologies can be instrumental for tailoring information and education campaigns to consumers and power the enforcement of consumer protection laws. They can help to gather and share data about product design, material content or substances of concern and help increase reusability, reparability or recyclability. For example, the Digital Product Passports (DPPs) play a crucial role in enhancing circular economy practices, democratizing information access, and ensuring that all stakeholders, regardless of their size or geographic location, have the necessary data to make informed decisions that support sustainable practices, offering opportunities for resource efficiency and new business models. 

The session will address the opportunities that the digital economy offers to both consumers and businesses in shifting towards sustainable consumption and production, and making the circular economy a reality for all.

Speakers

Keynote Speaker

 

maluf

Mr Adalberto Maluf

National Secretary of Urban Environment and Environmental Quality

Ministry of Environment and Climate Change, Brazil 

Moderator

 

camila

Ms Camila Cosse Braslavsky

Sustainable Consumption Specialist

Consumers International

Panelists:

 

inga

Ms Inga Wagner

Head of the Unit for European and International Aspects in Resource Efficiency, Circular Economy and Raw Materials Policy

German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conversation, Nuclear Safety and Consumer Protection (BMUV)

arnau

Mr Arnau Izaguerri

Legal Officer, Competition and Consumer Policies

UN Trade and Development

 

Andres

Mr Andres Alcayaga

 Senior Researcher, Research Unit on Digital Transformation

Wuppertal Institute

beatrize

Ms Beatriz Luz

Founder/CEO

Exchange4Change Brazil

Fabienne

Ms Fabienne Pierre

Programme Management Officer

UNEP

Agenda:

Time  

Content 

Speakers  

16:30 – 16:35 

Opening remarks and introductions 

 

Moderator 

Camila Cosse Braslavsky, Consumers International 

 

 

16:35 – 16:43 

Keynote 

How can consumer protection and digital tools address social inequality and foster a just transition? 

Mr Adalberto Maluf, National Secretary of Urban Environment and Environmental Quality, Ministry of Environment, Brazil 

16:43 – 16:46  

Panel introduction 

Moderator 

 

16:46 – 17:22 

Panel discussion on ongoing initiatives and projects on Digital Product Passports, Consumer Information and SMEs in the Global South 

 

Topics: 

  • Development perspective of digitalization: bridging the digital divide within and among countries. 
  • Enforcement of consumer laws in the digital economy: challenges and opportunities. 
  • Empowerment tools for consumers in digital and green transitions. 
  • Digital Product Passports as a prime example of the potential of digital tools for empowering consumers and SMEs. 

  • Cross-border and international cooperation: multiplying impact and building trust in markets. 

Ms Inga Wagner, Head of the Unit for European and International Aspects in Resource Efficiency, Circular Economy and Raw Materials Policy, BMUV 
 
Mr Arnau Izaguerri, Legal Officer, Competition and Consumer Policies, UN Trade and Development  

Mr Andres Alcayaga, Senior Researcher, Research Unit on Digital Transformation, Wuppertal Institute  

Ms Beatriz Luz, CEO/Founder, Exchange4Change Brazil  

17:22 – 17:42 

Q&A 

 

17:42 – 17:50 

Final remarks and reflections from speakers 

 

17:50 – 18:00 

Closing remarks  

Ms Fabienne Pierre, Programme Management Officer, UNEP 

Take Part:

Attend:

Museu de Arte do Rio (MAR), Room 2.2, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Online:

Join the live session stream online, and watch the youtube upload after the event

Supporting Information:

Coming Soon!

Contact:

For further queries, please contact the session liaison:

Camila Reinhardt-Picchioni, One Planet Network Secretariat

camila.reinhardt-picchioni@un.org

  

 

 

CONTACT INFORMATION

 
oneplanet@un.org