SWITCH-Asia

WHEN:  6 June 2025     I    TIME:  14:30 - 16:00 (Bangkok Time)    I    Wach the recording HERE

Background:

The EU Global Gateway stands for sustainable and trusted connections that work for people and the planet. It helps to tackle the most pressing global challenges, from fighting climate change, to improving health systems, and boosting competitiveness and security of global supply chains.

The implementation of the EU Circular Economy Action Plan (CEAP) – a major building block of the European Green Deal– has put forward legislative initiatives to move to a truly circular economy.  CEAP includes a strong international dimension. These measures aim at catalysing new ways of doing business, different patterns of consumption, and better technologies for saving resources and recycling of secondary materials, products that are durable and repairable with citizens who care and consider their choices.

CEAP puts emphasis on priority value chains, many of which are important to the Asia-Pacific region, such as food, electronics, textiles, construction and buildings. These value chains often include Asia-Pacific businesses and, therefore, Europe’s Circular Economy Action Plan is highly relevant to guide EU Global Gateway strategy and its partnership in the Asia-Pacific region and to open up opportunities for collaboration between European and Asia-Pacific businesses.

The regulations also introduce requirements, which will apply to most products manufactured and/or consumed in the EU, with important economic and technical implications for businesses that rely on the EU as a key import/export market – impacting value chains globally as all products placed on the EU market will be affected.

The Global Gateway presents an opportunity to build EU-Asia partnerships that will shape value chains globally for a more Circular and Competitive Europe. The circular economy approach promotes the use of secondary raw materials, minimises environmental impacts associated with extraction and may increase the need for reliable partnerships that are foundation for active exchanges.

Webinar Session:

The EU SWITCH-Asia Policy Support Component and the European Environmental Bureau, are convening the webinar, The EU’s Global Gateway: The Importance of EU-Asia Partnerships for a Circular and Competitive Europe to:

• Discuss the main EU Circular Economy policies that have an external dimension applicable to the Asia-Pacific region
• Understand how Europe can build successful partnerships in Asia for a Circular transition
• Discuss the challenges and opportunities for businesses in navigating this transition and how the Global Gateway can offer new horizons to its partners

Moderator:

Eva BILLE, Head of Circular Economy, European Environment Bureau

Eva is in charge of the EEB activities around circular economy policy. She studied economics and graduated with a Master’s Degree specialising in resources, development and growth from Tilburg University. She has previously spent 10+ years as an EU policy consultant, working with major companies and trade associations in the Brussels bubble. She has also worked for the UN in Lebanon and spent 4 years working in China. 

Speakers:

Martijn QUINN, Deputy Head of Unit, DG Environment

Jean-Jacques BOUFLET, Vice-Chairman, Eurocham Vietnam

Mr. Bouflet is a seasoned trade policy and legal expert with over 37 years of experience at the European Commission, where he held senior positions across government, foreign service, and law in Brussels, Asia, and France. He played a key role in negotiations for the EU’s agreement with the World Trade Organization, supported the accession of Sweden, Finland, and Austria to the EU, and represented the EU in numerous WTO dispute settlement panels. As Deputy Representative of the European Commission in France, he promoted EU-France relations and coordinated Commission activities. In Asia, he served as Head of Trade Affairs in Thailand and later as Deputy Ambassador of the EU in Vietnam, where he was a lead negotiator for the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement. Since 2017, Mr. Bouflet has served as EuroCham’s Vice-Chairman in charge of advocacy and sits on the board of the French Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Vietnam (CCIFV), continuing to champion trade and investment between Team Europe and Vietnam. His deep expertise and long-standing commitment to EU trade policy make him a key figure in the European business community in Vietnam.

Valentina BEOMONTE ZOBEL, International Relations Officer for Southeast Asia and ASEAN, DG Environment  

Valentina Beomonte Zobel is an International Relations Policy Officer at the European Commission’s Directorate General for Environment, where she leads engagement with Southeast Asia and ASEAN on key Green Deal priorities, including circular economy, forestry, biodiversity, plastics, and fight against wildlife trafficking. Her current work focuses on fostering strategic EU-Asia cooperation on sustainability and environmental governance. With prior experience at the Commission’s DG Trade and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), she has co-authored research papers on environmental crime and specialised in the link between trade policy and environmental sustainability. Valentina holds a Master’s degree in European Affairs from Sciences Po Paris (FR) with a specialisation in EU-East Asia relations, and a double Bachelor’s degree in German and Japanese Languages and Literature/Asian Studies with the University of Bologna (IT) and the Kansai Gaidai University (JP). She is fluent in six languages (Italian, English, French, German, Spanish, and Japanese).

Diane ARCHER, Senior Research Fellow at Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI)

Diane Archer is a Senior Research Fellow with SEI.  Diane joined SEI Asia in September 2018 as Urban Research Fellow, working on the City Health and Wellbeing Initiative. She also works on urban climate resilience and other initiatives seeking to achieve more equitable and sustainable cities.  Diane brings expertise on urban poverty and urban community-led development, with an emphasis on achieving inclusive urban governance in cities of Asia and Africa. She has also previously worked on responses to urban humanitarian crises as well as adaptation to climate change in cities. Before joining SEI, Diane worked at the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) in London and the Asian Coalition for Housing Rights (ACHR) in Thailand. She holds a PhD from the University of Cambridge on social capital in participatory slum upgrading in Bangkok, an MPhil in Planning, Growth and Regeneration, and an MA in Land Economy.

Tanzir CHOWDHURY, Managing Consultant Economist, Eunomia Research & Consulting

Tanzir joined Eunomia while undertaking a PhD in Economics at the University of Warwick, with a research focus on dynamic general equilibrium modelling in financial asset markets. He also holds a Postgraduate Diploma in Advanced Economics from University College London and an MA in Economics from Delhi School of Economics, India. He has many years of experience in economics research, teaching and consultancy at leading academic organisations around the world. Tanzir works on many of Eunomia’s projects for the European Commission. His work also involves statistical and econometric modelling, evaluating the wider costs and benefits of environmental policies and analysing various market-based instruments used in environmental policies, as well as critical analysis of the markets using advanced economic modelling techniques. He has vast experience across various areas of economics, including environmental and resource economics, focusing on research design, sampling techniques, advanced econometric and time-series analysis, private and social cost-benefit analysis and economic policy design and evaluation.

Ujjwal Deep DAHAL, Chief Executive Officer, Drukholding and Investment Limited

Ujjwal Deep Dahal is the Chief Executive Officer of Druk Holding and Investments Ltd. (DHI), where he leads DHI’s 10X Journey, integrating technology, innovation, and sustainability into the company’s investment strategy. With a background in engineering, business management, and a Fulbright Humphrey Fellowship at MIT, he is driving Bhutan’s transformation towards a digital and innovation-led economy. Before joining DHI, Ujjwal served for over 17 years at Bhutan Power Corporation. His expertise spans corporate strategy, energy systems, change management, and emerging technologies. At DHI, he is central to shaping future-ready investment and innovation portfolios. Ujjwal holds an MSc from the University of New Brunswick (Canada), an MBA from the Quantic School of Business, and a BE from PSG College of Technology (India). He is also a certified PMP from PMI, USA. His multidisciplinary experience uniquely positions him to lead DHI’s forward-looking agenda.

Robert McGUINNESS, Environment Policy Attache, Permanent Representation of Ireland to the European Union

Robert McGuinness is Ireland’s Environment Attaché to the European Union, leading on circularity legislative files and preparing for Ireland’s Presidency of the EU Council in H2 2026, when the EU Circular Economy Act is expected to be introduced. Robert has over 10 years of experience in Ireland’s Department of Climate, Energy and the Environment (DCEE), which in 2022, delivered one of the first national Circular Economy Acts in Europe. Robert previously served in DCEE as the Director of the Offshore Wind Delivery Taskforce and has led the delivery of several large-scale renewable energy programmes.

Agenda