Global circular economy protocol aims to standardise business transition

By Ray Nulty, President, Stratagem Partners,

The World Business Council for Sustainable Development has issued a new framework that promises to transform how companies measure and implement circular economy initiatives, potentially redefining sustainability metrics for investors and regulators.

The Global Circularity Protocol for Business (GCP), launched on November 11 at COP30 in Belém, Brazil, establishes standardised methods for measuring and reporting business circularity across sectors and supply chains. The initiative comes as businesses face mounting pressure to demonstrate tangible progress on resource efficiency amid tightening global regulations and escalating materials costs.

Developed in collaboration with the One Planet Network, hosted by the UN Environment Programme, the protocol represents a significant milestone in sustainability governance. Over 150 experts from more than 80 organisations contributed to its development, including businesses, academia, and policy institutions.

The protocol’s timing is significant, arriving as circular economy regulations continue to evolve globally. While specific implementation timelines vary by region and sector, analysts expect the GCP to inform forthcoming policy developments in the EU, North America and Asia.

The framework addresses a significant gap in ESG reporting. While climate metrics have become relatively standardised through greenhouse gas accounting frameworks, circular economy measurements have remained inconsistent and difficult to compare across companies and sectors.

Major corporations including IKEA, Google, and Apple participated in the protocol’s development, signalling broad industry support. The GCP is expected to enable significant material savings, with projections suggesting potential cumulative savings of 100-120 billion tonnes of materials by 2050, alongside 67-76 gigatons of CO₂ equivalent emissions avoided during the same period.

For businesses, implementation will require investment in enhanced measurement systems and supply chain visibility tools. Though specific costs will vary widely by company size and sector. According to Gabriel D’Arcy, partner at Centigo / Stratagem partners “We have seen growing client interest in circular economy capabilities as the business case becomes increasingly compelling”. He added, “The GCP aims to be for the circular economy what the GHG Protocol has been for climate - the global standard for measuring, managing, and communicating progress.”

Resource-intensive industries face both challenges and opportunities. Manufacturing, consumer goods, and technology sectors will likely see the most immediate impact as they adapt operations to circular principles. Companies specialising in materials recovery, remanufacturing, and product-as-service models stand to benefit from increased market attention to circularity metrics.

Industry analysts note the protocol’s potential to transform business models beyond sustainability departments. As material costs continue rising and resource security becomes increasingly tenuous, circular economy principles are moving from the periphery to the centre of business strategy.

The GCP provides a common language for this transition, potentially accelerating the shift from sustainability ambition to measurable action. With investors, customers and regulators increasingly demanding transparency on resource use, the protocol may prove as transformative for resource efficiency as carbon foot-printing has been for emissions reduction, creating a universal metric that drives both disclosure and performance improvement across global business.

As we move into 2026, the protocol is expected to gain further traction, with early adopters positioning themselves to capture value from improved resource efficiency and enhanced stakeholder confidence.