The Productivity Commission has released a new report, Australia’s circular economy: unlocking the opportunities. In this inquiry, the commission examined Australia’s opportunities in the circular economy to improve materials productivity and efficiency in ways that benefit the economy and the environment.
Its report identifies priority circular economy opportunities and advises on how best to measure progress and address barriers. It also incorporated some suggestions by Monash University experts.
Available to comment:
Associate Professor Martin Geissdoerfer, Associate Professor, Sustainable Transitions Lab, Monash Business School
Contact: +61 3 9903 4840 or media@monash.edu
Read more of Associate Professor Geissdoerfer’s commentary on Monash Lens
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Circular economy transitions
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Business model innovation
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Sustainability strategies
Comments attributable to Associate Professor Geissdoerfer:
“The Productivity Commission is right: the circular economy is a productivity agenda – and it belongs in the boardroom. If Australia wants to lift productivity, build resilience, and stay competitive, we need to make scaling circularity easier, not harder. I welcome the Commission’s focus on practical reform: regulatory harmonisation, clearer rules, and better measurement. Without predictable and coherent settings across jurisdictions, businesses can’t invest with confidence.
“The report reinforces Monash recommendations: Australia needs ‘translation’ mechanisms and transition brokers –- to turn national ambitions into concrete projects that actually get built. A challenge-based grant program is exactly the kind of catalytic investment Australia needs. It helps move circular innovation out of pilots and into mainstream supply chains –- especially for emerging streams like solar PV, EV batteries, and e-waste.
“A taskforce is a sensible starting point – but it needs a mandate to cut duplication and harmonise settings across jurisdictions, including the standards and specifications that determine what’s allowed in the market.
“Measurement matters. An outcomes framework and better metrics will shift circular economy policy from good intentions to real accountability – showing what works, what doesn’t, and where to target effort for the biggest economic return.”
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