From Disruption to Solutions: Advancing the Circular Economy Together

This is our season to lean in, not out — leading with mission over ego, collaboration over competition & investment over excuses 

By Heidi Sanborn, Executive Director/CEO 

Last week, I had the opportunity to join the main stage at the National Recycling Coalition's National Recycling Congress. I spoke about the themes of change and how quickly it’s accelerating, how circular economy solutions deliver far more than environmental benefits, how collaboration is the only path forward, and how now is the time to reinvest in the U.S.—what is made in America can and should be remade in America. 

The path that got us here won’t be the path that gets us to the next iteration. Here’s how that looks and how the National Stewardship Action Council intends to convene the people, organizations, and solutions to move us forward. 

Our Industry is at an Inflection Point  

Just like banking, retail and healthcare before us, recycling and product stewardship are going through rapid, disruptive change. 

Mergers. Acquisitions. Shrinking funds. Shifting public trust. It can feel like the ground is moving beneath us. 

 But disruption doesn’t have to mean decline. Disruption can be the spark that accelerates a true circular economy. One that delivers not only environmental progress but also jobs, economic resilience and public health. 

1. Change Is Here and It’s Accelerating 

We all see it.  Companies are consolidating. Haulers. Recyclers. Redemption centers. Even government agencies.  

We are in a season of transition. The old models will not carry us forward.  Like other industries before us, we can either resist change and get left behind… or lean into it and help shape the future. 

2. Circular Economy Solutions Deliver More Than Environmental Benefits 

When we talk about extended producer responsibility, deposit return systems or truth in labeling, people often frame them as environmental issues first.  

But they are also powerful economic tools.  Why not lead with that? 

EPR/DRS policies unlock billions in benefits. They create and support local jobs. They improve worker safety. They protect public health. They reduce risks to our climate and national security.  

The circular economy is not just about protecting the planet. It is about building a stronger America. 

3. Collaboration Is Our Only Path Forward 

Right now, there’s more work, fewer funds and more competition. The temptation is to dig in and compete harder. 

But the real answer is to collaborate more, not less.  

At the National Stewardship Action Council, and our sister nonprofit, the Stewardship Action Foundation, we bring together public, private and nonprofit sectors in pre-competitive spaces. 

Our six national working groups are tackling some of the hardest issues: household hazardous waste and batteries, packaging, deposit return systems, textiles, illegal ink cartridges, boating wraps and marine flares.  

The problems are too big for anyone to solve alone nor for anyone person to be the expert. Collaboration is the only way forward. 

4. It’s Time to Reinvest in America’s Circular Economy 

Corporate America is not keeping its bargain. Too many companies are importing recycled content from outside the U.S. and not buying U.S. generated recycled content materials.  

That choice puts local jobs, domestic manufacturing, resilient supply chains and even national security at risk. 

Meanwhile, U.S. recycling and circular systems are already producing valuable feedstock, ready to go back into American products. The problem is not supply. It is demand. 

The public has done its part. We’ve embraced recycling campaigns. We’ve bought into the vision of a circular economy. 

Our communities have done their part. They’ve launched collection programs and engaged in robust education and outreach. And they’ve negotiated the right contracts to ensure its sorted and processed. 

Now it’s time to put those bottles, batteries, textiles and packages back into American jobs, American supply chains and American communities. 

The future of American abundance and the future of the circular economy are inseparable. To secure both, U.S. companies must reinvest in U.S. feedstock, innovation and infrastructure. This is not just an environmental promise.  

It is an economic and business strategy. 

5. Made In America. Remade In America. 

Recycling and circular systems are working. They are reducing virgin extraction. They are creating valuable feedstock. They are supporting U.S. manufacturing.  

But we can go further.

The circular economy is about values. Local jobs. Economic fairness. Climate resilience. Worker safety. National security.  

This is about keeping commitments to each other and to future generations.  We have the chance to demand that companies reinvest in U.S. materials, U.S. jobs and U.S. communities.  

Together, we can ensure the circular economy is not just made in America but Remade in America. 

Closing Call to Action 

This is our season to lean in, not out.  

The future of the circular economy and the jobs and public health it supports depend on the choices we make now.  Let’s lead with mission over ego. Collaboration over competition. Investment over excuses. 

Together, we can turn challenges into opportunity and build a circular economy that truly serves America and all Americans.