Take part in UNIDO’s LKDF Forum — Green Skills for a Sustainable Future

To say it has been a busy week for green policy announcements in the UK would be an understatement. Here, edie recaps the key changes from the Net-Zero Strategy, Heat and Buildings Strategy, Environment Bill and HM Treasury. Thousands of pages of green policy updates have been published this week. Back in June, the Government was accused by its own climate advisors of having “no coherent plans” to lay the foundations for its commitment to net-zero by 2050. A string of important policy packages promised ahead of COP26 in November remained outstanding, while “climate contradictions” including the Cumbria deep coal mine and Cambo oilfield were making headlines. Fast-forward to this week, and several metaphorical buses have come along at once. In the space of 72 hours, the Government published 21 net-zero-related documents, including consultations, policy packages and roadmaps, totalling thousands of pages.

The IT & electronics industry is the world’s largest and fastest-growing industry. Being increasingly inclined towards technology has resulted in the generation of large quantities of electronic waste (e-waste), and there is a crucial need for an effective management solution for handling this kind of waste. Every day, new and better electronic devices are launched and released, thus leaving the old devices outdated, outmoded, and obsolete. In search of getting the most updated versions of devices, individuals dispose of the old equipment with no hesitation. If the problem of ocean plastic pollution finally grabbed the world’s attention in 2018, the ebb and flow of public opinion could and should turn to the heightening issue of electronic waste — which is becoming a global crisis.