Between March 2024 and February 2026, the UNICA project carried out research activities in four countries in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC): Costa Rica, Colombia, Peru, and Chile. These activities included fieldwork, stakeholder engagement, and academic collaboration with regional institutions. The work aimed to collect empirical insights on circular economy developments in the region, identify key sectors and actors involved in the transition, and support the development of analytical approaches to assess the socioeconomic and environmental implications of circularity at the regional scale.
Fieldwork activities focused on engaging with relevant stakeholders from academia, government, and industry to better understand current narratives, policy developments, and practical initiatives related to the circular economy. These interactions also supported the identification of priority sectors and emerging strategies that could influence future circular economy pathways in the region.
The project also involved academic collaboration and research exchange with several higher education institutions in the region, including INCAE Business School (Costa Rica), Universidad de los Andes (Colombia), Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú (Peru), and Universidad Diego Portales (Chile). These collaborations contributed to the development of the project’s analytical framework and supported knowledge generation on circular economy transitions in the LAC region.
As a result of these activities, the UNICA project has produced four scientific publications and one conference proceeding. These outputs contribute to advancing knowledge on the socioeconomic and environmental implications of circular economy transitions and provide insights that can support future research and policy discussions on circularity in Latin America and the Caribbean, and lessons for the EU implementation.