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Page 33
7
th
International Conference on
Recycling and Waste Management
October 03-04, 2019 | Melbourne, Australia
Journal of Environmental Waste Management and Recycling | Volume: 02
Systems Transformation: Transitioning towards low carbon, resource efficient, and
circular economy for global sustainability
Anthony Halog
University of Queensland, Australia
In the coming decades the world that we know today will be
drastically transformed. Population and economic growth,
particularly in developing countries, are radically changing
the demand for food and natural resources. Due to the
transformations caused by these megatrends, especially
economic growth which is rapidly expanding the middle class
and changing consumption patterns worldwide, it is expected
that this will result to an increase of approximately 40 percent
in the demand for food, water, energy and other resources in
the next decades. To fulfil this demand in a sustainable and
efficient manner while avoiding food and water scarcity as
well as environmental catastrophes in the near future, some
industries, particularly the ones involved in food and energy
production, have to drastically change its current production
systems towards circular and green economy.
In Australia, the agri- food industry has played a very
important role in the scenario described above. It is one
of the major food exporters in the world, supplying fast
growing international markets in Asia and the Middle East.
Though the Australian food supply chains are economically
and technologically developed, it has been facing enduring
challenges about its international competitiveness and
environmental burdens caused by its production processes.
An integrated framework for sustainability assessment is
needed to precisely identify inefficiencies and environmental
impacts created during food production processes.
This research proposes a combination of industrial ecology
and systems science based methods and tools intending to
develop a novel and useful methodological framework for
life cycle sustainability analysis of the agri-food industry. The
presentation highlights circular economy paradigm aiming
to implement sustainable industrial processes to transform
the current industrial model of agri-food supply chains. The
results are expected to support government policy makers,
business decision makers and other stakeholders involved
in agri-food-energy production system in pursuit of green
and circular economy. The framework will assist future
Life Cycle and Integrated Sustainability Analysis and eco-
redesign of food and other industrial systems.
e:
a.halog@uq.edu.au