During the ACR+ annual General Assembly, which took place on 28 May 2018 in Porto, Iain Gulland, CEO of Zero Waste Scotland, was appointed President of the newly elected Board of Directors of the network for a two-year mandate. He will be assisted in his mission by two Vice-Presidents, Fernando Leite, CEO of LIPOR, and Josep Maria Tost i Borràs, Director of the Catalan Waste Agency. The three men are teaming-up to support ACR+’s work on circular economy and to increase capacities of local authorities regarding resource efficiency.
Porto, Portugal – The Association of Cities and Regions for sustainable Resource management (ACR+) held its annual General Assembly on 28 May 2018 in Porto. This event was a great opportunity for members to meet and discuss the upcoming activities and orientations of the network. A key moment of the General Assembly was the renewal of ACR+ Board of Directors. The cities of Paris, Genoa, Odense, Porto Metropolitan area (LIPOR), North London (NLWA), as well as the Eastern-Midlands Region (EMRWO), Brussels region, Catalonia (ARC), Zero Waste Scotland and WasteServ Malta were elected as members of ACR+ Board of Directors for a period of two years.
The first decision of this newly elected Board of Directors was to nominate Iain Gulland, representing Zero Waste Scotland, at its head. Iain is Chief Executive of Zero Waste Scotland and previously led its predecessor programme, WRAP Scotland. He has more than 25 years’ experience in sustainable resource management, including initiating recycling systems in the public and third sectors. Zero Waste Scotland leads on the delivery of the Scottish Government’s Circular Economy strategy and other low carbon policy priorities, and is at the forefront of efforts to create a resource efficient, circular economy.
Two Vice-Presidents were also elected: Fernando Leite, CEO of LIPOR, and Josep Maria Tost i Borràs, Director of the Catalan Waste Agency and former ACR+ President. Together with the ACR+ Secretariat, the mission of the trio will be to accompany ACR+ members in their transitions to circular economy, guaranteeing that the needs of the different types of members are addressed. Indeed, the network gathers members with different realities: from North to South, from densely populated to more rural areas, from front runners to cities starting their transition.
Commenting on his nomination, Iain Gulland, ACR+ new President, said: “I am honoured and delighted to become the next President of ACR+. The important role of cities and regions in facilitating the transition to the circular economy is now evident around the globe, not least being core to our strategy in Scotland. ACR+ offers a dynamic platform for the sharing of strategic expertise and I look forward to supporting the ACR+ family to grow and become the ‘place-to-go’ for both practical support and collaborative action in Europe and beyond.”