Tomorrow Matters Now

21/10/2026

📢 WasteCon 2026 is here! ♻️

We are thrilled to announce that Glen Leballo TOMA-Now will be taking the stage at WasteCon 2026—Africa’s premier conference and exhibition for waste and resource management, hosted by the IWMSA!

💡 Tackling the Crisis: Ring-Fencing Municipal Waste Services
Did you know that South Africa generates nearly 12.7 million tonnes of waste every year, yet 90% of it still goes straight to landfills?

Local municipalities face mounting pressure due to:
• Rapid urbanisation and population growth
• Ageing infrastructure
• Severe budget constraints and competing priorities (like water and electricity)

Because waste management revenues and expenditures are typically absorbed into broader municipal budgets without dedicated financial autonomy, services suffer from underfunding and weak accountability.

The Solution: Structural Reform
Glen's presentation will dive deep into ring-fencing—a strategic legal and financial model that separates the activities, assets, liabilities, revenues, and costs of waste services from general municipal operations.

Discover how ring-fencing can:
• Enhance financial transparency
• Improve operational accountability
• Boost investment readiness for sustainable infrastructure

Join the conversation as we explore how innovative governance can help build a cleaner, greener, and more sustainable future for South African communities! 🌱✨

16/10/2026

When producer responsibility meets closed-loop design: Are we just checking compliance boxes, or actually building a circular economy? 🌍

For years, our economy has functioned on a linear "take-make-waste" model— that treats the Earth's resources as infinite and our waste as someone else's problem. But as environmental pressures mount, we must ask ourselves: how long can this model keep up?

The Circular Economy (CE) challenges us to flip the script. It’s a shift toward a closed-loop system grounded in three key questions:
• Can we design out waste and pollution before a product is even made?
• How can we keep materials circulating in use for as long as possible?
• Are we actively regenerating the natural systems we depend on?

🔄 Bridging Policy and Practice with Expert EPR Support
A successful transition to CE requires real accountability. Regulatory frameworks like Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) are shifting the burden, giving producers clear incentives to build sustainability directly into their packaging and processes.

However, navigating the complexities of EPR compliance, meeting targets, and aligning with Producer Responsibility Organisations (PROs) can feel like a moving target for many businesses. EPR requires practical ex*****on and collaborative problem-solving. At TOMA-Now, we bring years of industry expertise across South Africa’s regulatory landscape, partnering with organizations on compliance strategy, stakeholder engagement and implementation planning, we help companies and PROs interpret EPR regulations and operationalize true circularity.

Take plastics, for instance. The non-biodegradable and often single-use materials have created a staggering waste crisis. But with expert guidance, businesses can redesign how they view them:
• Durability isn't just about longevity—it’s about slowing down disposal, keeping products in the consumer phase longer, and easing the end-of-life burden on government and PROs.
• Smart design is a choice—one that can either fuel the landfill crisis or contribute to a thriving market for secondary materials.

♻ Shifting Our Perspective
Perhaps the biggest hurdle isn't technological—it's perceptual. We’ve been seeing waste as the end of a product's story. But when we look at waste as a valuable resource waiting for its next chapter, we stop merely managing waste and start building a resilient secondary-resources economy. Waste is wealth.

👇 How is your organization navigating the shift toward circular packaging and EPR compliance?

07/10/2026

TOMA-Now at the table on South Africa’s evolving ESG reporting landscape.

Dr Jaisheila Rajput, Founder & CEO of TOMA-Now, will be joining an expert panel for the upcoming webinar: “From JSE to ISSB and Beyond: Navigating the Evolving ESG Reporting and Disclosure Landscape in South Africa.”

South Africa’s ESG disclosure landscape is moving beyond voluntary guidance, with JSE expectations, growing alignment with ISSB, increased investor scrutiny and emerging regulatory requirements shaping how organisations approach sustainability reporting. With developments including the move towards IFRS S1 and S2, greater focus on ESG data quality and assurance readiness, and increasing attention to climate-related reporting and compliance, organisations are facing growing expectations to strengthen their disclosure practices and prepare for what comes next.

The webinar will bring together ESG and sustainability practitioners to discuss these developments, practical implementation challenges and how organisations can prepare for the next phase of ESG reporting and disclosure.

📅 8 October 2026
🕛 12:00–13:00 SAST
💻 Live virtual panel discussion

Join Dr Jaisheila and fellow practitioners for the conversation.
Register here: https://lnkd.in/gataPqFf

hashtag hashtag hashtag hashtag hashtag hashtag hashtag hashtag

06/10/2026

What if your compliance obligation was your next growth strategy?

Most businesses still see Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) as one more compliance box to tick, and that is a missed opportunity. EPR makes producers, importers, and brand owners responsible for the waste their products create, either through their own scheme or by joining a Producer Responsibility Organisation (PRO). It has primary benefits for the environment and waste management, but the businesses that adopt a proactive approach to the regulation can generate commercial benefits over time.

What EPR can offer your business:
⚙️ Improve Operational Efficiency: Mapping your waste footprint shows where materials, money, and effort are being lost, from over-packaging to inefficient material choices. That visibility can support better decisions from procurement to operations.

📉 Lower Costs: EPR fees are often linked to the type and volume of packaging you place on the market, so smarter materials can reduce what you pay. Using less material, or choosing materials that are easier to recycle may reduce what you pay over time.

💡 Innovation and Competitive Edge: EPR drives creative product development through designing for reuse and recyclability. Businesses that start early can differentiate themselves rather than scramble to adapt later

🛡️ Resilience: Relying less on scarce raw materials and making greater use of recycled content can help protect your supply chain from future resource shocks.

♻️ Stronger ESG Performance: The targets you work towards under EPR can feed into your sustainability goals and ESG reporting, giving investors clear and measurable progress to point to.

🤝 Customer Trust and Loyalty: Customers increasingly expect sustainability to be built in, so visible action helps you win new customers and keep the ones you already have.

At TOMA-Now, we have supported organisations across the EPR space with regulatory advisory, compliance strategy, and data management. Our experiences show how a practical, well-planned approach can put businesses in a stronger position to benefit from what EPR has to offer.

The businesses that treat EPR as strategy rather than obligation will be the ones best placed to compete in the years ahead. So how is your business approaching EPR?

19/09/2026

13 years of making tomorrow matter now. 🌍

For 13 years, TOMA-Now has been turning sustainability ambition into action — working with businesses, communities and partners to create practical solutions for a more sustainable, resilient and circular future.

From our early beginnings to the work we are doing today across sectors and borders, one thing has remained constant: we believe tomorrow is shaped by what we do today.

13 years. 12 countries. 17 sectors. 67 projects. And countless moments of learning, collaboration and impact.

As we celebrate this milestone, we are grateful to everyone who has been part of the journey — our clients, partners, collaborators, team members and supporters.

Here’s to 13 years of Making Tomorrow Matter Now — and to everything still ahead. 🌱

11/09/2026

🔄 CBAM refresher: it’s not just about compliance anymore.
The EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism is now in its definitive regime.

For affected exporters, the real question is:
Can your business produce reliable, product-level carbon data when it matters?

CBAM readiness depends on more than knowing the rules. It requires:
📊 The right data
⚙️ The right systems
🧮 Robust calculation methodologies
🔎 Traceability and verification readiness

And there’s a bigger opportunity behind the compliance requirement.
When businesses can properly understand their carbon data, they can also identify inefficiencies, prioritise decarbonisation and make better operational decisions
From compliance → to calculation → to capability.
A useful CBAM refresher from TOMA-Now. 🌍

Read the full article here: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/cbam-from-compliance-calculation-data-systems-behind-readiness-ct5wf/?trackingId=LF3CLO7TTWIdpYtw09IGuA%3D%3D

🌍 CBAM is changing the way exporters need to think about carbon data.

As the EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism moves towards full implementation, businesses exporting to the EU will need more than high-level sustainability reporting. They will need robust systems capable of collecting, calculating, and verifying product-level emissions data.

In our latest article, we explore:
📌 The data required for CBAM compliance
📌 How businesses should approach data collection and management
📌 The basics of CBAM calculation methodologies
📌 Common challenges exporters are already facing
📌 Why carbon data is becoming a strategic business tool

This is no longer just about compliance — it is about building the operational capability needed to remain competitive in a low-carbon global economy. ♻️

🚨 Carbon data is becoming a trade requirement.

🔗 Read the full article here: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/cbam-from-compliance-calculation-data-systems-behind-readiness-ct5wf

28/08/2026

Is Your Business Affected by Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR)?

“But we don't manufacture the product.” It is one of the most common assumptions businesses make when they first encounter EPR. But here is the more important question: Does your business place a product covered by EPR on the South African market?

The answer may determine whether EPR applies to your organisation. Under South Africa's EPR framework, the concept of a producer extends beyond the company that physically manufactures a product. Depending on the product category and circumstances, it can include manufacturers, importers, brand owners and, in certain cases, retailers and other businesses involved in placing products on the market.

This is an important distinction. A company may not manufacture a product itself, but if it imports it, sells it under its own brand, or otherwise plays a role in placing a covered product on the South African market, it may have responsibilities under the EPR framework.

Where do businesses often get it wrong?

There is a tendency to view EPR as something that sits solely with manufacturers or something that can be dealt with once a compliance deadline approach. In practice, determining EPR responsibility requires a closer look at the organisation's products, supply chain, market activities and data.

Effective EPR management starts with knowing what you place on the market, what is within scope, what your obligations are, and who is responsible for managing them. Without clear ownership and reliable data, compliance can quickly become reactive

At TOMA-Now, our experience in the EPR space has shown us that effective compliance requires more than simply understanding the regulations. It requires organisations to translate those requirements into practical systems, responsibilities and strategies. Our work has included supporting Pepkor Holdings with its EPR compliance journey, including the development of a compliance roadmap and approaches to managing EPR-related data and obligations.

This experience reinforces an important lesson:
EPR compliance should not start when the deadline arrives. It should start with understanding your position.

📦 What are you placing on the market?
🏢 What is your role?
♻️ What products are within scope?
📊 What information do you have?
⚖️ And what responsibilities follow?

Answering these questions early allows businesses to move from reactive compliance to proactive EPR management while identifying opportunities to improve resource efficiency, packaging decisions and broader circular economy performance.

Follow TOMA-Now as we continue unpacking EPR and the practical steps businesses can take towards a more sustainable and resource-efficient future.

06/08/2026

♻️ The EPR Landscape in South Africa

What happens to a product once it reaches the end of its life?
For many years, it became someone else's problem. Today, through Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), producers are increasingly responsible for the environmental impact of their products, from design and production to collection, recycling and responsible end-of-life management.

As South Africa advances its circular economy agenda, EPR is playing a vital role in reducing waste, increasing recycling and encouraging more sustainable business practices.

EPR is guided by:
🌱 The National Environmental Management: Waste Act
♻️ The Extended Producer Responsibility Regulations (2020)
📋 Approved Producer Responsibility Organisation (PRO) schemes

Successful EPR relies on collaboration between government, producers, PROs and consumers to create a more resource-efficient future.

At TOMA-Now, we've worked alongside government, industry and Producer Responsibility Organisations to support EPR implementation through regulatory advisory, compliance strategies, policy development and stakeholder engagement.
Follow TOMA-Now and join us as we explore the future of EPR and the circular economy in South Africa.

-Now

14/07/2026

🌧️ The changing climate is no longer a future challenge - it's happening now.

This year's rainfall has shown why South Africa needs to prepare for both prolonged droughts and intense rainfall. 💧Building climate resilience means planning ahead, strengthening our infrastructure and protecting our communities before disasters happen.

📖Our latest article explores why resilience should be at the heart of how we develop cities, manage water and make investment decisions.

💬 Have a read and let us know your thoughts.
Link: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/too-much-water-little-preparedness-what-south-africas-rainfall-5dutf

❓What do you think South Africa should prioritise to become more climate resilient?

06/07/2026

Plastic pollution can feel overwhelming, but change starts with simple choices. That is why this July we celebrate Plastic Free July—a global movement encouraging people to refuse single-use plastics in their daily lives. Since 2011, it has grown from just 40 people to millions across 190 countries proving that small actions can create massive impact.

Globally, participants have helped reduce:

♻️1.2 billion kg of landfill waste.
♻️900 million kg of recyclable waste.
♻️300 000 tons of plastic consumption
Here in South Africa, informal waste reclaimers play a huge role in making recycling possible. Around 140 000 waste pickers recover up to 90% of plastic and paper that gets recycled. Their work keeps thousands of tonnes of waste out of landfills and saves municipalities millions every year. By simply separating your recyclables at home, you can support this system and make their work easier.

At TOMA-Now, we are re committed to strengthening South Africa’s response to plastic waste. Our recent work with the Alliance to End Plastic Waste focused on reviewing key waste policies and legislation to improve effectiveness, close gaps, and strengthen enforcement.

This Plastic Free July, every choice counts. Together, we can turn off the tap on plastic pollution.