About TRACE

TRACE is a mission-driven association working to leave a positive trace on people and the planet through a circular economy where materials, products, and value chains are designed to circulate, not deplete.

We unite industry, academia, policymakers, and civil society to co-create the knowledge, collaborations, and proof of concept circular systems that make circular solutions work in practice, starting with plastics and textiles.

Today, more than 160 partners collaborate through TRACE to turn research and innovation into real-world change. The partnership is the foundation of everything we do. Each partner contributes knowledge, capacity, and perspective that together make it possible to build systems no single actor could create alone. Through this collaboration, TRACE translates science and innovation into tangible progress for society.

As Builder, Harmonizer, and Pathfinder, TRACE develops scalable circular systems that show how entire value chains can transform from design and production to reuse and recovery.

Through these efforts, TRACE helps accelerate Denmark’s transition toward a regenerative circular society by 2050, an economy that restores more than it extracts and enables people to live well within planetary boundaries.

Director Anette Juhl and Chairperson Mikkel Stenbæk Hansen introduce TRACE’s mission and partnership approach

 

 

TRACE’s North Star Vision and mission

Our North Star is a regenerative circular society by 2050, where resources circulate in closed loops, waste is eliminated, and natural systems are restored.


This transformation supports Denmark’s targets of a 70 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 and net zero by 2050, and it requires deep collaboration, systemic innovation, and a fundamental redesign of production and consumption systems.

TRACE’s mission is to accelerate this transition by building scalable circular systems, connecting actors across value chains, and generating actionable knowledge that drives systemic change from pilots to policy and from insight to infrastructure.

Read more in our Impact Framework and Roadmaps.

See TRACE Impact Framework Version One See our Roadmap 2025 See our Roadmap 2022 See our Roadmap 2021

Partnerships

TRACE is a mission-driven green partnership that offers unique solutions for businesses, knowledge institutions and organizations that seeks new knowledge and collaborations across the value chain. 

See our List of Partners

Members of the board

Mikkel Stenbæk Hansen, (Chairperson of the Board) Director of Circular Economy, Novo Nordisk

Claus Hélix-Nielsen, Head of Department, Professor, DTU Sustain. President Danish Natural Sciences Academy

Dorte Rye Olsen, Head of Sustainability, Bestseller

Jens Mortensen, Chief Innovation Officer at Marius Pedersen A/S

Line Nygaard Jensen, KENTAUR Strategic Textile Development Specialist

Søren Hvidkjær, Dean of Research, Copenhagen Business School

Inger Pihl Byriel, Senior Director, LEGO Group

Anita Friis Sommer, COO for Novo Nordisk Foundation CO2 Research Center, Aarhus University

Susanne Sørensen, Dean of Science, Roskilde Univesity Center

Trine Erdal, Project Director, Research & Development, FORCE Technology

 

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Anette Juhl, Director TRACE

Advisory Group

Members as of March 2025

Jacqueline Cramer - Professor in Sustainable and Innovation, Utrecht University
Dr. Ashley Holding - Founder and CEO of Circuvate
Mikkel Stenbæk Hansen, (Chairperson of the Board) Director of Circular Economy, Novo Nordisk
Michael Carus - Founder and CEO of nova-institute
Christina Busk -  Director of Sustainability, Plastindustry
Marie Busck - Head of Sustainability – Danish Fashion and Textile
Marie Josephine Mustelin - Political Consultant – Danish Chamber of Commerce
Karin Klitgaard - VP – Confederation of Danish Industries
Connie Hedegaard - Former Danish Minister of Environment and member of EU parliament. Current chairperson of Concito and OECD’s Round Table for Sustainable Development

 

 

 

Statutes of Trace

The statutes of Trace, inclduding:

  • Purpose
  • Funding
  • Membership
  • General Assembly
  • Election of Board of Directors
  • Director and secretariat
  • Dissolution of the Association
  • Board of Directors – rotation plan

 

Statutes Of Trace, March 2025