Circular Innovation Council Collaborates With Canada's Biggest...

[WEBINAR] Making the circular economy the standard

Standards can have an essential role in transitioning to a circular economy. However, there is a role your organization or government can play in the process. On the heels of COP28, in this webinar Circular Innovation Council brings together a panel of experts from CSA Group to discuss the intersection of standards with the built environment, plastics recycling and reuse, agriculture, food loss and waste, and more. Learn more about what’s to come in the world of standardization as it relates to the Circular Economy in Canada and how you can be involved.

Webinar title: Making the circular economy the standard: How standards can further circularity in the built environment, plastics, agriculture and agri-food.

Date: Tuesday, January 30th, 2024

Time: 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM (ET)

Platform: Zoom

Cost: None

Pre-Read Document: In preparation for the webinar, develop a better understanding of the subject matter by reading the pre-read material here (link goes to circulareconomymonth.ca).

You’re invited to join the discussion about cutting-edge work across industries, from buildings to reuse and recycling to food systems, featuring expert panelists from CSA Group:

Michael Leering is the Director of Environment & Business Excellence Standards for the Canadian Standards Association (operating as CSA Group). His main responsibilities include oversight of three primary programs: Environment and Climate Change, Natural Resources and CSA Group Registries. He oversees all national standards efforts in these areas including circular economy, forestry, mining, flood resilience and water management, life cycle assessment and ESG. Michael has been working in the climate change and environmental field for over 15 years and focused his expertise in greenhouse gas management, ESG and circular economy and has recently joined the Board of Directors of the Circular Innovation Council. Michael holds a Bachelor of Environmental Engineering from the University of Guelph and is a licensed environmental engineer in Ontario.

Ivica Karas is a Strategic Initiatives Manager for Construction and Infrastructure Standards within CSA Group’s Standards Division. He has worked with CSA Group since 2018, mostly on climate resiliency and sustainable construction standards. Ivica has over 15 years of project management, policy and strategy development experience, which he gained while working for the CSA Group, European Commission and the European Cement Association. Ivica is passionate about developing collaborative solutions with diverse interest groups in challenging topics. He has successfully facilitated development of standards, research projects and regulations at international levels in diverse and sensitive subject areas, including on the built environment and agriculture. In his role, Ivica regularly engages with governmental, industrial, academic and civil society stakeholders.

Ana-Maria is the Director of Strategic and Cross-Sector Initiatives at CSA Group. In her role, Ana-Maria leads the development of two new standards sectors, in the areas of Transit and Passenger Rail, and Agriculture and Agrifood. In the agriculture sector, she oversees work around food loss and waste, regenerative agriculture, as well as data and automation. To drive and inform new standards development work, Ana-Maria builds collaborative relationships with a broad range of public and private organizations, including academia, government and industry, and coordinates high-impact standards-related research activities. Prior to her current role, Ana-Maria supported the establishment of new standards initiatives within climate change adaptation and resilience, natural and nature-based solutions, low carbon construction, and genomics. Ana-Maria has been with CSA Group for 10 years. She holds a PhD in Chemical Engineering from the University of Edinburgh, and a Bachelor of Applied Science and Engineering from the University of Toronto.

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