Lifecycle of a Circular Economy Strategy Action
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Action Idea Formulation
The Implementation Plan for the National Recycling Strategy is designed to be iterative so that actions can respond to needs and challenges surrounding recycling. We welcome the recycling community to propose and lead new actions that advance recycling in the United States. The Implementation Plan Online Platform currently reflects the actions listed in the National Recycling Strategy. You are welcome to submit entirely new ideas and these will be reflected on the platform once they have been reviewed by EPA’s Circular Economy Team. Please submit ideas via this webform.
Elements of an Action
When proposing an idea and delivering an action for potential inclusion in the Implementation Plan, please consider each of these key descriptive action elements:
- Action title. Brief descriptive title of the action.
- National Recycling Strategy objective. The objective to which the action most closely aligns.
- Brief description of the action. A summary of what will be done.
- Background. Brief context for the action.
- Opportunities to be gained. The impact, results, and/or outcomes desired.
- Action leader(s). The organization and person with the critical role of facilitating/convening/organizing to ensure implementation of the action and routine reporting of progress.
- Supporter(s). The name of the organization(s) collaborating with the action leader(s) to complete this action.
- Implementation milestones. The explicit steps to be taken to initiate, convene, and support the action, including milestone lead(s), supporter(s), and target completion dates.
Provide Input on Proposed Actions
After EPA review, proposed actions can be found in the Online Platform (indicated by the "proposed" status). Provide feedback on proposed actions by emailing EPARecycles@epa.gov with information such as:
- Potential action team collaborators to support scoping and implementation of the proposed action.
- Perspective and commentary to inform action development.
- Specific implementation milestones.
Action Implementation
Action implementation is kicked off with action team collaborators (action leads and partners). The action team regularly communicates progress in completing and adding milestones. Progress and action outputs are iteratively updated on the Online Platform.
Completing an Action
When the action team collaborators have communicated completion of their identified milestones, the EPA Circular Economy Team works with action leaders to determine if future milestones are warranted or if the effort can be identified as complete. An effort can be considered complete when the action team determines that the stated objectives have been met. This does not necessarily mean that work on that action will cease as many actions were developed to support long-term activity. Once an effort is considered complete, the EPA Circular Economy Team will work with action leaders to write a short summary highlighting accomplishments, impact, and potential future activities. This summary is used to document progress, share information, and identify topics for future actions.