Employment-related Indicators for a Circular Economy

To help advance the circular economy indicator field (measuring transition to & impact of a Circular Economy), the Circular Economy Indicators Coalition (CEIC), a collaboration between the Platform for Accelerating Circular Economy (PACE) and Circle Economy, launched in mid-2022 a project track around employment related indicators.

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The aim of the effort was to first landscape and consolidate existing employment related indicators for the circular economy to provide oversight and transparency, followed by assembling key stakeholders to identify gaps in current indicator coverage and set forth an action agenda.

The central question revolved around how circular economy indicators linking to employment can help serve to inform and guide a just and equitable circular economy transition. For this purpose, first a series of interviews as well as background research were conducted to refine and prioritize user needs. In parallel, an online library of relevant indicators was compiled, followed by a series of roundtables bringing together experts in the circular economy and employment sectors to exchange on key needs, challenges, gaps, and potential solutions.

Within this framework, the project focused on exploring the measurement of four key dimensions of employment in the circular economy, being:

• The actual number of (CE) jobs being generated or lost, incl. self-employed/entrepreneurs;
• The circular skills (trainings) available in the economy;
• The quality of CE jobs; and
• The inclusion and equity angle of CE job creation.

As part of my involvement as the lead technical expert on indicators on behalf of WRI PACE, I was involved in the interviews, ran and facilitated the roundtables. Provided here is the concluding summary document from my hand (July 2023), with key insights in the state of play of linking circular indicators to the various dimensions of employment.