Sean Jones, Director of Circular Technology at Ellen MacArthur Foundation, discusses operationalising critical mineral recovery
ELLEN MACARTHUR FOUNDATION
Sean Jones, Director of Circular Technology at Ellen MacArthur Foundation, discusses operationalising critical mineral recovery
Circular strategies for highvalue assets are moving from broad corporate commitments to practical implementation. As digital and energy infrastructures grow, demand for critical minerals such as copper, lithium, nickel and cobalt is creating significant supply constraints and increasing Scope 3 emissions.
Industrial supply chains must now advance beyond pilot projects and embed material recirculation into core operations.
Sean Jones, Director of Circular Technology at the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, leads the organisation’ s strategy on critical minerals and the digital economy. With a background in chemical engineering and more than 20 years of experience in consumer goods, chemicals and digital sectors, Sean is dedicated to making circularity a driver of operational resilience.
“ When you learn chemistry and chemical engineering, everything is circular by nature – you don’ t call it that,” Sean says.“ In the chemical industry, you can’ t have waste at all. You try to take anything that would be waste and reuse it. But when you get into manufactured goods, the entire supply chains and industries then have potential to be circular.”
4 ellenmacarthurfoundation. org