The move toward circular cities—aiming for sustainable growth while reducing environmental impact—has become a global priority. In Europe, many cities participate in the “European Circular Cities Declaration” framework and work together on this transition. At ASCC 2025, Yokohama will call on international organizations and stakeholders to support and promote circular cities in Asia through a joint open letter with Asian city leaders. Representatives from the city of Amsterdam, the Asian Development Bank, and the World Bank will deliver welcome remarks on circular initiatives by Asian city leaders.

ADB is mainstreaming circular economy by supporting efficient resource management and zero-waste solutions in developing countries. In cities, ADB is promoting circularity through zero-waste cities (e.g. solid waste management, recycling) and sponge cities (e.g. rainwater recovery and reuse), resource recovery, reverse logistics, and nature-based solutions. ADB also launched the City-to-City Partnership (C2CP) program using existing networks to facilitate sharing of expertise and resources between mentor and mentee cities to enhance capacity for urban management (e.g. housing, tourism, solid waste management, municipal finance) in mentee cities. This ADB-ADBI session aims to bring together local government officials, policymakers, experts, and innovators, to exchange insights into circular practices in city management and urban development. Through session discussions, we hope that city planners and urban experts learn from each other’s knowledge and experiences and use this knowledge to develop suitable solutions to urban challenges in local contexts.

The World Bank Tokyo Development Learning Center (TDLC) has been sharing Japan’s urban policy and management expertise through World Bank projects in developing countries. At this conference, the session will focus on strategies to reduce urban waste in developing countries across Asia.

In rapidly urbanizing regions of Asia, reducing the volume of urban waste has become a critical challenge. Advancing source separation is an urgent priority that will significantly contribute to the promotion of a circular economy.

In this session, the World Bank will present the latest trends in waste management in Asia, followed by discussions with city leaders from Indonesia, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, and Philippines, who will share knowledge and innovative solutions for circular urban waste management from their respective countries.

CITYNET is a non-profit international organization dedicated to addressing urban challenges in the Asia-Pacific region, with a network spanning 159 cities and organizations. CITYNET operates three clusters (subcommittees) on the SDGs, Disaster, and Climate change, promoting cross-sectoral knowledge and experience sharing in each field.

In this session, representatives from member cities and relevant international organizations serving as leads and co-leads of the CITYNET SDGs and Disaster Clusters will present insights on climate change mitigation and enhancing urban resilience. The session will also discuss the relationship between efforts to advance climate resilience and promote circular cities. Through these discussions, the session aims to further strengthen initiatives on climate action, resource circulation, disaster risk reduction, and other SDG-related efforts across the Asia-Pacific region.

Students from Yokohama City University and National Kaohsiung University will present proposals based on fieldwork and workshops conducted in Taiwan, focusing on four themes: environmental policy, smart cities, waterfront regeneration, and the preservation of port heritage.

For each student presentation, urban officials from Asian cities will participate as reactors, providing insights and advice from the perspective of practitioners and relating the discussion to their own city’s environmental policies and initiatives.

This session offers an opportunity to learn from the experiences of Yokohama and Kaohsiung—both cities with a shared history as port cities—and to explore how these insights and lessons can be applied to other cities across Asia.

While offshore wind power projects are being suspended or withdrawn globally, the Japanese government released the "Offshore Wind Industry Vision(Phase 2)" in August. This vision sets a goal to establish large-scale floating offshore wind power projects by fiscal year 2029. Rather than viewing thechallenging environment as a setback, Japan sees it as an opportunity to attract foreign investment and technology, aiming to grow the floatingoffshore wind power industry into a pillar of the national economy.As wind-related industries continue to cluster in regions such as Hokkaido and Kyushu, this session will also explore connections with industries in theTokyo Bay waterfront area, which is adjacent to Japan’s largest electricity demand zone. Leading companies and experts at the forefront of the field willdiscuss recent developments and future visions.

This session will introduce examples of cooperation promoted by JICA toward the transition to a circular society, as well as approaches for collaboration with the private sector. Representatives will also present local challenges faced by cities across Asia and initiatives undertaken by companies in Yokohama to address these challenges. Through these presentations, the session aims to explore the potential of public-private partnerships in advancing a circular society in Asia.

With the rapid proliferation of AI, global power consumption by data centers is expected to double by 2030. In Japan, alongside efforts to expand the use of renewable energy, advancements in semiconductor technologies—which hold the key to improving power efficiency—are being actively promoted to address this growing energy demand.In recent years, universities and private companies have been conducting cutting-edge research and development on technologies that contribute to high-performance and low-power semiconductors, such as chiplets, as well as on next-generation data centers utilizing photonic–electronic convergence technologies.This session will feature the latest R&D trends in semiconductor (logic and memory) technologies and showcase leading initiatives for decarbonization in manufacturing processes, presented from Yokohama—a hub for Japan’s semiconductor industry that supports the future of AI and energy.

This session will share the needs of Asian cities in addressing urban challenges, such as rapid urbanization, population concentration in urban areas, and the impacts of climate change. It will also present solutions and innovative ideas from Japanese companies that respond to these challenges. (Additional details may be provided depending on the participating companies and cities.)

In October 2024, the City of Yokohama signed a partnership agreement with seven local resource circulation companies to establish the Yokohama Resource Circulation Promotion Platform.

This session will explore new possibilities for public–private and cross-industry collaboration toward a circular economy, showcasing advanced initiatives by arterial industries involved in product manufacturing, distribution and consumption sectors, and venous industries engaged in recycling and resource recovery under this new platform framework.

This session will share the needs of Asian cities in addressing urban challenges, including rapid urbanization, population concentration in city centers, and the impacts of climate change. It will also present solutions and innovative ideas from Japanese companies to respond to these challenges. (Additional details may be provided depending on the participating companies and cities.)

Approximately 70% of global greenhouse gas emissions originate from cities. In Yokohama, this session will showcase initiatives undertaken by companies supporting the city’s urban infrastructure to achieve decarbonization, while also sharing advanced technologies and insights that are being applied across Asia.

GREEN×EXPO 2027, which aims to explore the concept of a future green society in harmony with the environment and share it with the world.On November 4, marking 500 days before the opening of the Expo, the latest updates will be presented. Representatives from the GREEN×EXPO Association and participating companies will share their thoughts on hosting and participating in GREEN×EXPO, their efforts to promote a circular society at the venue, and ways of engaging with visitors.

This session focuses on cities with significant influence on the global environment and explores how environmental sustainability and circular economy initiatives can coexist with citizens’ well-being. Through discussions with speakers from diverse perspectives, the session will examine the challenges of balancing citizen well-being—based on Japan’s regional well-being indicators and UN surveys—with environmental sustainability. Using the City of Yokohama as a case study, participants will discuss strategies and approaches necessary to achieve a harmonious balance between human society and the health of the planet.

In response to the open letter presented at the opening session, representatives of international organizations and other stakeholders will hold an open discussion on establishing a framework and providing support for Asian cities.