Circular City Week

Cities play a crucial role in the circular transition. In the first week of May, the Circular City Week is taking place in New York. Circular City Week is bringing inspiration for how we can all participate in the circular transition and spur action, which fits great with our circular mission in DDC. Throughout the week, over 100 activities will emphasize how circular practices such as reuse, recycling, and upcycling are transforming urban industries and the city as a whole.

Unfortunately, I will not be able to go to New York myself, but luckily, not the entire program consists of in-person events. You can join several of the debates online. Check out the program here.

I look forward to checking in for the session Inclusive Circular Cities: A Remedy for the World on May 6 – a deep dive into the essence of circularity. It will be posing the question, how can the circular economy create real value for marginalized communities? An agenda close to my heart. Overall, it will focus on how companies, institutions, and nonprofits can unlock good at scale and be a critical platform for helping humanity live within the planetary boundaries.

RESPOND

RESPOND is a new ambitious initiative funded by the philanthropic association Realdania.
‘RESPOND – rammerne for den nye hverdag’ focuses on how COVID-19 has influenced our behavior in relation to the physical environment of our lives. The initiative will gather knowledge and solutions from both the pandemic and the coming years. The goal is to inspire and initiate completely new solutions for a more resiliently built environment with a better quality of life for all.

At DDC, we are very excited to be part of this collaboration and look forward to participating in the first public event here in BLOX. On May 10, Realdania is hosting the symposium: What can the built environment learn from the pandemic? At the event, several speakers will present new knowledge on how we can rethink our everyday environment based on the experiences of the COVID-19 pandemic.

You can read more about the event and sign up here.

REFLOW: Close the loop – The Circular Value Chain Game

This month, we are wrapping up the REFLOW project that I have been working on for the last three years with great colleagues and collaborators.

With the EU project REFLOW, we have sought to co-create circular and regenerative resource flows in six pilot cities across Europe. At DDC, we have worked with the city of Vejle to reduce, reuse and recycle more plastic across the public and private sectors.

One of our fruitful collaborations has been with retailer REMA 1000. Together, we have explored how to increase the reuse and recycling of plastic packaging to create circular loops.
The process resulted in The Circular Value Chain Game: Close the Loop – a tool for facilitating product flows and value chain rethinking. If you are a business – or a consultant helping a business – this game can help you dramatically improve the value chain by closing the loop and making waste into a resource.

The game is free for everyone to use. You can read more about the game and download it here. And read more about our work with Rema 1000 here.

Exhibition: Women in Architecture at DAC

Our neighbors at the Danish Architecture Center are working hard to put up their new exhibition, Women in Architecture. Women might not have gotten as much attention as their male colleagues in architecture historically, but I look very much forward to getting to know even more about the architectural achievements and breakthroughs of female architects and how they have powerfully shaped society and the world we live in today. Furthermore, to hear from some of the cool women that shape and develop the field of architecture now. The exhibition opens on May 13, and I can’t wait to see it.

Copenhagen as World Capital of Architecture 2023

I know 2023 might seem far away, but it will be a significant year for Danish architecture and urban development. Copenhagen has been chosen as the World Capital of Architecture 2023 by UNESCO.

A lot of planning is going on, and next year is going to be packed with interesting events. The first version of the program is already online, so you can start your planning already.
We look forward to welcoming people from near and far and hosting many exciting events with all our colleagues here in BLOX.

2023 will be a busy and exciting year!

Go explore!

And remember, the best way to understand and explore a city is by being in it and talking to the people out there. So get up from your desk and go experience the city. Spring is here, and the sun is out, so enjoy some of all the beautiful squares we have in Copenhagen – and the rest of Denmark. I’ll see you out there!