Building Momentum: RCA’s Next Chapter in Circularity
January 2025 – Letter from RCA Executive Director Jennifer Koole
As of January 15, 2025, I am celebrating my first full year as Executive Director of the Recycling Council of Alberta. During my speech at our Annual General Meeting, I noted that babies grow wider before they grow taller. This past year has been about building a strong foundation—growing wider first.
We dedicated our efforts to establishing RCA Vision 2030, setting a clear course for the next five years. We strengthened relationships within our Board, expanded our media presence, engaged deeply with both new and long-standing members, and introduced new initiatives like roundtable webinars and discussions on social enterprise. At the same time, we remained committed to our core strengths, such as our unparalleled RCA Conference.
Now that the one-year page has turned on the calendar, it’s time to stand on that firm, wide foundation and concentrate our efforts on actions that will grow our baby taller as we reach for the goal of a waste-free world and advance the circular economy in Alberta.
Strategizing for a Circular Future
In January, the RCA Board convened for a Business Meeting and Strategic Session at Red Deer Polytechnic to refine our priorities. The day included:
- Tour: A look at Red Deer Polytechnic’s leading Green Campus Initiatives.
- Board Meeting: A focused discussion on RCA’s upcoming initiatives.
- KPI & Priority Setting Workshop: Facilitated by Lucie Hamel of Vantage Facilitators, mapping out actionable goals for the year ahead.
Upcoming RCA Events
Supporting our goal of increasing circular economy literacy, on February 5, 2025, I will be delivering a keynote at the CITT Calgary Logistics Briefing in Calgary discussing:
- The fundamentals of the circular economy
- Is the circular economy the new ‘sustainability’?
- How RCA is advancing circularity in Alberta
- Ways the logistics and supply chain industry can benefit by adopting circularity into their business planning
On March 10, 2025, RCA is hosting the inaugural RCA Explore Circularity Day (#ECD2025) at the NAIT Productivity and Innovation Centre in Edmonton. We will explore whether waste-to-energy has a place in a circular economy. The agenda is now live for this full-day event featuring expert speakers, a lively debate, and opportunities for you to share your thoughts, opinions, and ideas. This is an event you won’t want to miss!
If you or your organization want to get involved, sponsorship and exhibitor opportunities are available!
#ECD2025 takes place the day before the Alberta Plastic Recycling Association’s Alberta Circular Plastics Day, at the same location—offering an excellent opportunity for travel, learning, and networking.
Looking Ahead
With a strong foundation in place, this year is about action—scaling our efforts to make meaningful progress in circularity. Thank you for your continued commitment and innovation. I look forward to seeing what we accomplish together in 2025!
Warm regards,
Jennifer Koole
Executive Director, Recycling Council of Alberta
