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Sustainable economy · Sustainable business

How circular is your company? The new UNI standard on the circular economy is now in force

Is it possible to measure and assess the circularity performance of an organisation? The answer is yes. The new standard has been in force since 30 November

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Is it possible to measure and assess the circularity performance of an organisation? The answer is yes. The new UNI standard, UNI/TS 11820, has been in force since 30 November. It is a technical specification that establishes the ‘Method for measuring the circularity of an organisation’, defining a precise set of indicators.

For years, experts in the field have been working to identify a standard national and international technical regulation on the circular economy. UNI/TS 11820 now specifies the definitions, principles and indicators to be used to assess the circularity of an organisation or a group of organisations.

Giuseppe Rossi, President of UNI (the Italian National Standards Body, a private non-profit association that carries out regulatory activities in Italy in the industrial, commercial and service sectors) gives us a brief explanation of the standard: ‘UNI/TS 1180 has 4 fundamental characteristics: it is entirely cross-cutting and can therefore be applied uniformly, with the flexibility provided for, by any organisation regardless of its activity and size;

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its universality can start a process of rationalising the alternative and competing methods that currently exist, in favour of clarity and transparency; as has already happened in other fields (for example gender equality), its role in supporting legislation could in future take concrete form in mechanisms linked to fiscal policy, funding, and incentives or disincentives for behaviour. Finally, it pursues the aims of Sustainable Development Goal 12 of the UN 2030 Agenda.’

The analysis to be carried out under UNI involves 71 indicators: organisations that make circular products must complete at least 33, and those engaged in services at least 27.

The circular economy indicators defined by UNI are quantitative, qualitative and mixed, and are divided into 6 categories:

-material resources and components

-energy and water resources

-waste and emissions

-logistics

-product and service

-human resources, assets, policy and sustainability

Organisations or groups that wish to measure their circularity must complete the indicators, which use a measurement scale from 1 to 100. An algorithm will then calculate the circularity score.

The new standard will also contain a glossary produced by UNI with definitions of 99 terms, needed to complete the indicators correctly.
The first is precisely that of the circular economy: ‘An economic system that, through a systemic and holistic approach, aims to keep the flow of resources circular, preserving, regenerating or increasing their value, while at the same time contributing to sustainable development.’

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