Warwick Circular Economy Cluster Initiative

The analysis considered both waste/resource diversion opportunities from the Twin Creeks landfill (e.g., potential future opportunities due to upcoming landfill bans and policy implications), as well as high-level opportunities identified through the analysis of key industry sectors and companies in the Southwestern Ontario region that may be able to turn current waste streams into resource opportunities. Secondary research for the study, in support of the Strategic Plan, included:

• Undertaking a broad sweep of relevant websites, reports, and articles;
• Collecting and analyzing relevant industry, policy and regulatory drivers and trends;
• Aggregating relevant business/economic and workforce data;
• Profiling examples of circular economy and cluster development activities; and
• Assessing existing strengths, capabilities, and weaknesses of the regional circular economy supply chain.

We also lead consultation through 17 key informant interviews and a virtual focus group webinar with local and provincial experts and stakeholders from government, business, and non-government organizations to gather insights on the regional opportunities and challenges. From this research, we developed a strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (i.e., SWOT) analysis and an Opportunities Evaluation Matrix was developed to help prioritize and score the opportunities across key criteria.