Following an appeal by renowned scientists and practitioners in the field of waste and environmental management in June 1990, the founding meeting of the German Association for Waste Management took place on November 22, 1990. The newly founded association was to attract members from both the Federal Republic of Germany and the (former) GDR and further develop cooperation between them.
One declared goal was the radical improvement of waste management in the GDR with "its components of prevention, reduction and recycling, collection, transportation and treatment of waste as a link between the economy and the environment." From the very beginning, the aim was not to be a purely technical association, but also to represent elements of critical science and other opinion leaders.
Today, we see ourselves as independent thought leaders for the future of the circular economy and, in this sense, are driving the development from waste management to raw materials management. Market,
product responsibility and recycling are our central themes.
With the experience of our board members and members, we create links between production, disposal, politics and science.