Collaborating to solve complex challenges is hard. But scaling new systems effectively and sustainably is even harder when done alone. As we transition from our embedded linear systems into new, interdependent circular ones, we still have much to learn and test so that new approaches can become operational in a diverse set of contexts. Through our NextGen and Beyond the Bag consortia, Closed Loop Partners catalyzes collaborations with innovators and system operators across the packaging value chain to test opportunities and identify pain points within a new reuse economy. We bring together some of the world’s largest companies to harness their expertise and reach to unlock system-wide scale for a waste-free future.
More than four years ago, when Closed Loop Partners joined with Starbucks, McDonald’s and other brand leaders to launch the NextGen Consortium, we set out to reinvent the cup—and to accelerate systemic change across the industry. We have learned a tremendous amount along the way, from brands, from customers, and from innovators who are helping to imagine a future where waste is a thing of the past. In early 2020, the NextGen Consortium launched a set of reuse ecosystem pilots in the San Francisco Bay Area in partnership with the design firm IDEO. Our report Bringing Reusable Packaging Systems to Life highlighted key insights from these in-market tests, and these learnings are the building blocks for the next phase of testing and innovation the NextGen Consortium is embarking upon in the coming year.
[READ: The Comeback of Reuse, and the Path Forward]
As we look forward to all the work ahead, we are pleased to welcome PepsiCo as a Sector Lead Partner, alongside Founding Partners Starbucks and McDonald’s, inaugural Sector Lead Partner The Coca-Cola Co., Supporting Partners Yum! Brands, Wendy’s and JDE Peets, and Environmental Advisory Partner WWF. PepsiCo adds valuable experience to our deep bench of innovators and system operators.
Continuing collaboration helps unlock greater system-wide scale so that we can go further — together. We’re proud to continue advancing initiatives where competitors are meaningfully engaged in co-creating a more sustainable future for packaging.