Abstract:  

Covid is giving us many lessons among which one must be to realize that this is the time to act for sustainable future. The smart world around us has made it inevitable to have an alarming situation regarding the uncontrolled growth of waste products such as plastic and electronic wastes. Both are immense threats to the health of human, wildlife and environment, that eventually affect the societal and economic structures as evident from recent Covid-crisis. The proper management of these wastes and innovating ideas for new sustainable technologies are the need of the hour. Circular economy act with green technology (green economy) is the way to tackle this challenge. Current perspective presents the overview of the scenario regarding these burgeoning issues and demonstrates some measures that are taken or being considered to depend on to come out of them.

Background Introduction:

2020, world is taken aback by a pandemic caused by Corona virus or COVID-19. It is turning into an unprecedented crisis in public health, life and economy. More than a year, from child to adult, the complete civilization has lost their natural enthusiasm and has been forced to control their freedom. The whole world is affected, impacting all social areas and sectors, reaching from, health to economy. Most alarming part is that the virus not only killed the human life but ruined the economic structure of civilization. In 2020–2021, the global gross domestic product (GDP) declined by a huge percentage because of pandemic outbreak, which is expected to be about 76.7 billion US dollars. According to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) only in tourism sector, global GDP will be expected to loss around 4 trillion US dollars for the years 2020 and 2021. This pandemic outbreak is warning us, to be more careful about the civilization and prepare for the future. A civilization can only exist with their future foresight including the strategic planning and understanding of necessary steps that may lead to a better world. We can live better now, but we must think best for tomorrow. We are still not that smart what we assume to be!

Article Highlights:

• Zero Waste Challenge: A guide for individuals to modify their lifestyles and practices, aiming to minimize negative environmental impacts.
• Key Waste Streams: The most challenging sectors in waste management are plastics, electronics, and medical waste.
• Green Economy Adoption: Emphasizes the importance of reducing, reusing, and recycling manufacturing products as the main criteria for adopting a green economy.
• Lessons from COVID-19: The pandemic has highlighted the urgent need for sustainable practices, as the uncontrolled growth of plastic and electronic waste poses significant threats to human health, wildlife, and the environment.
• Circular Economy and Green Technology: Advocates for a circular economy coupled with green technology as essential strategies to address waste management challenges.
• Innovative Sustainable Solutions: Emphasizes the necessity for proper waste management and innovative sustainable technologies to mitigate environmental, societal, and economic impacts.

Summary and Outlook:

Green technology and circular economy are manufacturing concepts that minimize the waste and pollution and can be achieved through sustainable design. It integrates both the economic benefits and ecological impact that covers the complete life cycle of the consumables from resource collections, design, production, assembly, transportation, recycling, and disposal. On the extreme side, illegal dumping is another threat over increasing waste problem. It is an unauthorized waste disposal method, where products after expiry are dumped or shipped to certain places without license to accept wastes. Mostly, developing countries or low-income countries have been targeted for these illegal dumping. Illegal dumping creates serious problem, as because, in these sites, the waste products mainly from e-waste products are recycled without taking any safety measurements. No proper recycling protocols are maintained as well. Therefore, it needs an extreme care to efficiently recycle, and handle the disassembly or assembly of the used consumables so that it does not have any hazardous impact on end-users or environment. Also, health of the workers, who are involved in this recycling process of waste products, need to be checked up regularly. Waste stream and management is now a prime concern for us to save and sustain our world. No promise, no rethink, no discussion- it is the time to act for sustainability.

Article Details:

Green economy and waste management: An inevitable plan for materials science

Suman Nandy, Elvira Fortunato, Rodrigo Martins

Article Link: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pnsc.2022.01.001

Author introduction

Author Brief Introduction

Suman Nandy is a renowned researcher and Principal Investigator specializing in Materials Science and Nanotechnology in FCT NOVA from 2011. He currently leads research on "Green and Sustainable Wearable Energy Systems," promoting sustainable materials for wearable electronics, low-cost energy-efficient manufacturing, eco-design, green marketing, and circular economy principles. He has authored numerous high-impact scientific papers and presented his work at national and international conferences. His expertise includes polymer materials and composites for energy applications, self-powered wearable electronics, recycling bio-waste-derived carbon for energy, and developing devices for sustainable green technology and the Zero e-Waste Challenge.

Elvira Fortunato is a full professor at NOVA FCT and served as a Vice-Rector. She was the former minister of Science, Technology and Higher Education of Portugal.   Since 1998, she has co-led the CENIMAT research team with Rodrigo Martins, achieving significant breakthroughs such as the discovery of the paper transistor. Her achievements include two prestigious European Research Council advanced grants, making her the highest-awarded researcher in Portugal. Fortunato has been awarded highly prestigious prizes such as in 2024, the Medal of Scientific Merit given by the Portuguese National Science and Technology Foundation and elected the Trusted Personality of the year in the field of Scientific Research by Reader Digest for the fourth year running and the most Influential Women in Portugal for the 9th consecutive year; in 2023 the Career and Recognition Award given by the Portuguese Materials Society; in   2022, she was part of the group of 27 inspiring European Women, elected by the French Presidency of the European Union. In the same year she was selected as one of the 20 European inventors by Think Young in a research and publicity project developed by the European Commission in partnership with Ericsson. In 2020, she won the Pessoa prize, the most prestigious prize in Portugal and the Horizon Impact prize by the European Commission with the project INVISIBLE. Besides that, she got the Czochralski Medal, the Blaise Pascal Medal, and numerous other national and international honors. She is also a Doctor Honoris Causa from the University of Galați and a Grand Officer of the Order of Prince Henry the Navigator. Since 2016, she has served on the European Commission's Scientific Advisory Board and she is a member of the Portuguese Engineering Academy, the European Science Academy, the Lisbon Science Academy, and the Europaea Academy.

Rodrigo Martins is the running director of i3N and of CENIMAT; running president of the European Academy of Sciences; member of the Portuguese Academy of Engineering; member of Europae Academy; former president of International Union of Materials Research Societies, IUMRS; Co-chair of the Energy Materials industry Research Initiative, EMIRI. Director and founder of CEMOP/UNINOVA, with more than 1000 papers in thin film technology, electronic and optoelectronic materials (h factor of 98 with more than 39000 citation).

In Europe, close to EC, one of the elaborators of the Paper Electronics, Responsible Electronics and Advanced Materials for Industrial Leadership programmes. Mentor of Advanced Materials Academy launched by the EC in 2024 and of the Materials Manifesto 2030.

In China: QiuShi Chair Visiting Professor at Zhejiang University; Honorary Professor of Heife Institutes of Physical Sciences of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS); Honorary Professor of the Technical University of Wuhan; Honorary Professor at Fuzhou University. Coordinator of the Sino-Europe Display Materials Joint Laboratory, launched in Hefei 4th July 2024.

He is Editor in Chief of the Journal Materials Discover, from Nature-Springer. Member of the: international advisory board of Advanced Electronics Materials and of the Journal of Physics D; Editor board of the Responsive Materials Journal.

He holds 58 conceived patents (12 are trademark register) and have 7 pending patents related to advanced functional materials and devices. He coordinated the first project of active oxides (Multiflexioxides), considered by the EU as one of the 10 outstanding projects within FP6. Moreover, got several scientific awards, as: 2013 Innovation prize of Almada Council; 2016 Awarded with the Gold Medal of merit and distinction by the Almada Municipality; Named as one of 3 finalist of the European patent Office Research Award 2016 with the work on paper transistor; 2017 INMC prize with the project secret paper. He was decorated with the gold medal of merit and distinction by the Almada Municipality for his R&D achievements, in 2016. In 2021 he got the Career and Recognition Award given by the Portuguese Society of Materials and the Research Nova-Altice Scientific Merit Award, in his first edition. In 2023 selected as PIFI Distinguished Scientist of CAS, the highest honor for overseas talents. Besides that, he got more than 18 international and national prizes and distinctions for his work.