A Catalogue of Circular Solutions

October 29, 2025

In the context of increasing pressures on the environment due to linear consumption patterns, the circular economy model presents a viable solution to transition towards a more sustainable trajectory. This is particularly true for countries like Cambodia, grappling with limited sources of raw materials, resource inefficiency, throw-away culture, and a growing volume of waste overwhelming the collection system with limited recycling capacity. In addition, the country will soon be subject to more stringent trade conditions from its main export partners as it graduates from the Least Developed Country status in the coming years.

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has been supporting the country on the pathway towards achieving the vision of the Circular Strategy on Environment for 2023-2028 for a ‘clean, green, and sustainable’ Cambodia which recognized that the effective management of land, water, minerals, and forests must advance economic development as well as respond to emerging climate-related challenges. Using an integrated approach of the Circular Economy Portfolio structured along three pivots: 1) Enabling governance, 2) Circular business models, and 3) Conscious consumers and citizens, UNDP collected a set of good examples of circular solutions across various sectors collected over the years which are highlighted below.

V-BIOCHAR For Climate-Smart Farming

In Pursat, farmers are discovering new value in what was once waste. Supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic through the Czech-UNDP Challenge Fund, the V-BIOCHAR Project helps rural communities turn crop residues into tools for resilience, productivity, and growth. It is implemented by the Adventist Development and Relief Agency’s (ADRA) with scientific expertise from the Czech University of Life Sciences in Prague (CZU) and combines two natural soil enhancers - vermicompost and biochar - to restore fertility, retain water, and reduce dependency on imported chemical fertilizers.

“The goal of the project is to enhance soil health, increase crop yields, and open new business opportunities for youth and women farmers”

says Assoc. prof. Dr. Hynek Roubík from BioResources & Technology (BRT) Division, Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, CZU.

Cambodia imports more than 1.4 million tons of fertilizers each year, while rice husks, corn cobs, and coconut shells often go unused or burned. Through pyrolysis- heating organic matter without oxygen- these residues can be transformed into biochar, a carbon-rich material that improves soil structure and nutrient retention.

When combined with vermicompost, the result is a sustainable alternative that boosts productivity and cuts farming costs, all while reducing carbon emissions.

Nineteen local leaders- including six women- have completed advanced training and now mentor more than 40 producer groups. Twelve young entrepreneurs also received business development support, with several already drafting plans for local biochar ventures.

Eight demonstration kilns across two districts now serve as living labs, comparing different designs and inspiring peer learning among farmers. To spark early interest in sustainability, V-BIOCHAR also works with Samroung Secondary, Tonle Oum Secondary, and Kandieng High School. More than 70 students joined compost and biochar challenges, learning firsthand how agricultural waste can become a valuable resource.

NPAP: A Key to Circularity for Plastics

Plastic consumption in Cambodia is growing rapidly, becoming an increasingly integral part of daily life. The versatility, affordability and suitability of plastic for enhancing essential services such as food safety have led to a significant shift away from locally available natural materials, making it the preferred option across many sectors. This trend has been fuelled by Cambodia’s strong economic growth – the country has averaged 7% GDP growth over the past two decades – which has raised living standards and further embedded plastic into daily routines. As plastic use continues to spread, it is essential to both maximize its benefits and mitigate the environmental and health risks associated with its waste currently overwhelming the existing collection system with a very low recycling rate.

Transforming Cambodia’s plastic system requires bold, coordinated action across the value chain. Upstream solutions can drive change by eliminating avoidableplastics, expanding re-use and adopting alternative materials. Downstream interventions can strengthen waste collection, improve rec-ycling and prevent plastic leakage. Ensuring inclusive and equitable solutions will allow low-income communities and informal waste workers – many of them women – to benefit from new opportunities, better conditions and a more resilient circular economy.

To drive this progress, the Ministry of Environment (MoE) partnered with the World Economic Forum’s Global Plastic Action Partnership (GPAP). With technical support from the UNDP, the National Plastic Action Partnership serves as an evidence-based platform dedicated to developing a national action roadmap to reduce plastic pollution, mitigate its economic and social impacts, and accelerate Cambodia’s transition to a circular plastics economy. It establishes a crucial baseline across key plastic types – this was previously missing – and outlines five strategic policy recommendations to increase the circularity of plastics from 2 to 52% and significantly reduce plastic pollution by 2040. The roadmap is expected to officially launch in late 2025 and serve as guiding thread to support Cambodia’s ambition, but also to contribute to the objectives of the Global Plastic Treaty.

From Awareness to Action: The Role of Consumers

While the weight of responsible consumption does not solely fall on the individual, customers have the power to make conscious choices and impact the direction businesses will take in adopting circular measures. This journey starts with knowledge about the environmental damage and health risks associated with linear consumption models. Since 2020, UNDP has been raising awareness about these issues but also supporting alternatives and promoting the 4Rs as an actionable and easy-to-remember CE framework.

Particularly under the Combatting Marine Plastic Litter in Cambodia, supported by the Government of Japan, UNDP and MoE led a large awareness-raising effort, reaching more than 10M people across the country and going beyond the reduction of single-use plastic products to addressing the need for circularity in other areas, such as food or e-waste. In addition, it supported business innovation and visibility of viable nature-based alternatives, such as rice straws and banana fibres for packaging and tested plastic-modified asphalt for road construction. In coastal areas where marine plastic pollution is particularly serious, UNDP supported communities in treating 3,000 tonnes of plastic waste through upcycling into plastic boards, and to burn residual, non-recyclable plastics in cement kilns, using waste-to-energy approach in line with the key principles of circular economy.

This is a complementary effort to the ministry’s ongoing public campaigns on the reduction of plastic pollution, starting with the plastic bag charge for supermarkets in 2019 and expanded through the nationwide “Today, I don’t use Plastic Bag” pledging campaign, but also to the wider objectives of the Circular Strategy as well as the Sustainable Development Goals. Circularity is not merely a waste management approach, but a transformative pathway toward resource efficiency, industrial innovation, and livelihood improvement. Priority sectors should include recycling, agriculture, and manufacturing, where circular models can both reduce environmental pressures and unlock new business opportunities.