LAWR

12 Local Authority Waste & Recycling August 2015 RWM With CiWM 2015 pRevieW What was the rationale behind launching the RWM Ambassadors programme? RWM is more than just an exhibition – it has year-round relevance, and so the Ambassadors programme was a way to bring together an expert community Leading lights: meet the RWM Ambassadors The RWM Ambassadors programme launched in 2014 to act as a positive force for change in the sector. What has it achieved one year on? LAWR caught up with lead ambassador, CIWM chief executive Steve Lee, to find out The Ambassadors programme provides an incredibly useful learning experience for everyone involved. It's an extremely useful networking exercise, giving us all the opportunity to understand different perspectives and priorities. I think one challenge with the programme is that many of the people around the table know each other very well and have debated some of the topics deeply over the years. I suppose it will always be like that, so for a newcomer to the sector, it's interesting to see how those relationships work compared to the Ambassadors who are entirely new to the waste arena. We know there are long-standing issues that we may never agree on, so instead we are focusing on issues that we can tackle together. For example, we're interested in how we can support local authorities and help residents to recycle more – it's about getting that end-to-end conversation. The Retail Ambassador Sarah Wakefield, environmental project manager, The Co-operative Group with broad interests to feed back into the event. It's about broadening the sectoral gene pool of ideas. RWM has to be relevant to all sec- tors – the waste industry by itself can't deliver a circular economy. So the programme is a deliberate attempt to get that balance. Of course, it is still weighted towards the core sector of resource managers, but by forging rela- tionships with retailers, manufacturers and designers we are broadening the scope of potential impact. The programme was deliberately set up to recruit ambassadors across the corporate sustainability spectrum, not just within the waste industry. What has this level of broader thinking delivered in terms of input? It has brought a bigger gene pool of ideas, breaking down barriers, building relationships and starting those discussions that may at first seem intangible, but that ultimately spawn conversations – between local authorities and manufacturers, retailers and other parts of the supply chain. It has enabled us to have new discussions and introduce broader perspectives. The others, like Unilever for example, came along with a solid understanding of the issues already – we haven't had to teach them. The Co-operative is now working better with local authorities because Co-Op's Ambassador Sarah Wakefield has been given the opportunity to do that. We're making things happen by sharing ideas. What has the programme delivered so far in terms of acting as a positive force for change in the waste sector? It is helping us broaden and shift the focus. The waste and resource management sector is going through a very important transition where collaboration is key. It's no accident that RWM takes place alongside the other events at the NEC such as renewable energy. By focusing on resources we can look at the challenges from the customers' perspective, in the round. It is helping us broaden the sectoral focus to the entire supply chain. The ambassadors help make sure the event is relevant to broader interests. A key output during the programme's first year was a circular economy report. Tell me more about that. The circular economy report was developed specifically for the 2014 event. In many ways it was a predictable topic for us to focus on. It was meant as a provocation piece – it's an honest report that identifies the issues from a broad Steve Lee: 'The waste industry by itself can't deliver a circular economy'

• Cover