Santa Fe, the capital of the Argentine province of the same name, is a riverine city with a rich cultural legacy and strong academic institutions. Home to nearly half a million residents, Santa Fe sits at the intersection of urban development and environmental vulnerability, facing growing challenges related to plastic waste, climate change, and informal waste management practices.
Defined by its proximity to the Paraná and Salado rivers, Santa Fe’s geography shapes both its risk exposure and its opportunity to lead on circular innovation. As the city expands, waste generation and mismanagement increasingly threaten water quality, public health, and urban resilience.
Through the Urban Ocean program, Santa Fe is pioneering a transition to a more circular, inclusive waste system by advancing low-tech plastics recovery, scaling Eco Punto drop-off sites, and empowering community and university partnerships that turn waste into opportunity.
Project Statement
Pioneering Circular Plastics Recovery in Santa Fe addresses the city’s plastic waste challenge by scaling inclusive, low-tech solutions with community, university, and private-sector collaboration. The project aims to build a more circular and resilient waste system, reducing plastic leakage and creating new value chains from recovered materials.
The Project Statement outlines the city’s vision to transition from linear to circular practices, emphasizing local innovation, community participation, and long-term sustainability.
Circularity Assessment Protocol (CAP) Report
Between December 2022 and May 2023, a team from the Circularity Informatics Lab at the University of Georgia conducted fieldwork in Santa Fe, supported by Universidad Nacional del Litoral (FICH-UNL) and the city’s local government through the Urban Ocean program.
The CAP, developed by the Circularity Informatics Lab, is a standardized method of collecting community-level data on plastic usage to inform decision-makers and support the design of circular waste solutions.
City Waste Management Profile
Santa Fe’s profile highlights both the urgency and potential of improving its waste system. Key challenges include high plastic generation and reliance on landfilling. However, opportunities lie in the city’s strong academic partnerships, active community organizations, and expanding Eco Punto network that encourages waste separation and recovery.
The City Waste Management Profile evaluates the city’s waste management system, identifying risks and resilience gaps, while highlighting localized, scalable solutions that align with circular economy goals.
Urban Ocean is a capacity-building and accelerator program to end ocean plastic pollution and build more resilient communities in cities. Urban Ocean champions circular economy principles, builds awareness of ocean plastic, assesses waste management systems and supports cities to develop projects that address the interrelated challenges of ocean plastics and resilience. Since 2020, the program has been implemented in cities across Asia and Latin America. The program is jointly implemented by Resilient Cities Network, Ocean Conservancy and The Circulate Initiative.