To sustain growth and support new WEEE Producer Responsibility Organisations emerging across the globe, the WEEE Forum has launched a “twinning” initiative. New members, many of which are being established ahead of the implementation of legislation in their countries, will have the opportunity to twin with a more experienced organisation. This will help the new scheme tap into the knowledge and experience of its current members, to help shape collection infrastructure, and also influence how e-waste legislation is developed.

The new “twinning” initiative was developed by the WEEE Forum in direct response to the publication of the European Parliament’s Circular Economy Action Plan, which urges producers to take responsibility for products sold into markets outside the EU and to develop consistent approaches worldwide.

REPIC, the industry leading provider of not-for-profit producer compliance solutions in the UK, with 14 years’ experience of operating under producer responsibility legislation, is one of the first schemes to take part in this initiative. REPIC has “twinned” with Colombia based, Red Verde.

Commenting on this, Louise Grantham, Chief Executive at REPIC, adds: “Twinning with Red Verde provides a unique opportunity for both organisations to share their best practice and experience, and thereby further develop the responsible global collection and recycling of e-waste. We look forward to our collaboration with Red Verde and to assist in the development of their producer responsibility regime.”

Carolina Forero González, Red Verde, Colombia, commented: “We are delighted to join the WEEE Forum. Current Members have a lot of experience, in many cases more than 20 years, and as a new member we can access the knowledge base of hundreds of WEEE Specialists for free. The twinning concept is a fantastic initiative for both parties to learn rapidly from each other. We look forward to bonding with REPIC, our Twin, the 3^rd largest PRO in Europe.”

With worldwide e-waste levels continuing to rise by around 3% per annum – and expected to reach in excess of 74 million tonnes (Mt) in 2030 according to UN research – attracting these organisations reflects the desire of the WEEE Forum to spread best practice, engage with actors in all parts of the world, and the commitment of the growing global movement in ensuring that e-waste is collected and treated responsibly and in a manner that is not detrimental to people’s health and the environment.

On welcoming the new members and launching this initiative, Pascal Leroy, Director General of the WEEE Forum said, “E-waste is increasingly being recognised as a priority waste stream across the world. Innovative organisations are being established that aim to put into practice Extended Producer Responsibility principles and lead the way in formalising e-waste collection, treatment and reporting in their countries. The WEEE Forum offers these organisations access to its network and knowledge base, and in return gains from these emerging PROs’ new approaches and attitudes towards e-waste. We are pleased to be able to welcome new members in Colombia and South Africa on top of recent additions in Nigeria, India, Australia, and Canada, as well as new members in Lithuania and Spain that add to our strong European base.”

Phil Morton, Global Ambassador of the WEEE Forum said, “Our efforts to reach out to stakeholders in the e-waste sector across the world is to ensure e-waste sits high on the global environmental agenda. PROs in countries that are developing producer responsibility regulations can benefit hugely from joining the WEEE Forum and tapping into our experienced network. This work also supports the WEEE Forum’s stated aim of being the world #1 go-to competence centre for WEEE.”

The new members of the WEEE Forum are EcoCómputo and Red Verde from Colombia; ERA, South Africa; EEPA, Lithuania; and Ecolec, Spain. The WEEE Forum now has 43 members, at least one on every continent, and more than it has ever had before. It is looking forward to welcoming more PROs in the near future.