One: This is the number of planet Earth humanity has at its disposal for meeting the needs of the present. Would all humans live according to the standards of Switzerland, we would need more than three planets Earth, which carries the risk that future generations will not be able to meet their
needs: This is, in essence the issue of the finite resources and was already identified by the so-called Club of Rome, 50 years ago.

Although progress has been made in the last decades, the necessity for a paradigm shift from a linear economy – based on the mantra take, make, use, waste – to a circular economy is becoming the cornerstone of the next industrial revolution to stop the loss of the planet’s biocapacity and
climate change. We need to find new ways of defining growth and success. We have the chance of learning from nature where the everlasting cycles and rhythm of growth and recovery are proven principles, finetuned over billions of years.

At the International Swiss Talent Forum 2023, we want to look at the concept of the Circular Economy through the lenses of various challenges to try and develop approaches to tackle the issue of a non-sustainable linear economy.