Circular Economy Case Studies & Snapshots

The National Zero Waste Council Circular Economy Working Group, in collaboration with the British Columbia Ministry of Environment, commissioned circular economy case studies within a North American context to understand opportunities for scaling circular economy business models in Canada. To showcase a range of business models, they selected the business listed below which provide at least one example of the five circular economy business models identified in the 2014 Accenture report titled Circular Advantage. Product-as-a-service is a cornerstone business model for the circular economy; therefore, instead of providing an individual case study, several business snapshots were selected to showcase how product-as-a-service can be a successful business model across all sectors

Circular Economy Snapshot: Frogbox

FROGBOX is a Vancouver-based moving supply franchise company founded in 2008 with a mission "to minimize the stress of moving on our customers and the Earth". FROGBOX provides residential and commercial clients a convenient, affordable and eco-friendly alternative to cardboard moving boxes: stackable, industrial strength, water resistant plastic boxes that are delivered and picked up

Circular economy for climate neutrality: Setting the priorities for the EU. CEPS Policy Brief No 2019/04, 22 November 2019

The previous Commission policy on resources management was part of the priority for jobs and growth and economic competitiveness. The circular economy will be no less important for the new political priority of climate neutrality; it will become one of the indispensable elements for meeting the EU’s ambitions. EU climate policy and the circular economy are by and large complementary and mutually reinforcing. The circular economy is more than just another ‘product standards’ policy. In order for this to happen, • there is a need for a framework that is able to systematically address trade-offs, such as between the circular and the bioeconomy, but also between material efficiency and energy use, as well as • a mechanism to steer and monitor progress, touching upon the question of whether and if so, how to increase ambition and develop tools to monitor progress, for example via targets, and • the new Commission will need to develop and then scale up successful products and processes to create opportunities for new value chains while addressing risks, such as dependency on raw materials. Circular economy products for the foreseeable future will require both technology push and market pull policies. Both the circular economy and low-carbon economy will require new and often yet unknown business models. This will also require new methods of regulation. The principal challenge will be to create ‘lead markets’ for the circular economy in combination with lowcarbon products. Many ideas for this exist. They include, for example, ‘carbon contracts for difference’, carbon budgets for projects, consumption charges, taxes and tax exemptions, sustainable finance, product standards and public procurement. Ideas now need to be tested to see whether they could work in practice. Finally, the EU circular economy will need to be underpinned by a robust and transparent carbon accounting system. If effective, such as system can at the same time act as a catalyst for investment in the circular economy and low-carbon products and processes

Eco‐Holonic 4.0 Circular Business Model to Conceptualize Sustainable Value Chain Towards Digital Transition

The purpose of this paper is to conceptualize a circular business model based on an Eco-Holonic Architecture, through the integration of circular economy and holonic principles. A conceptual model is developed to manage the complexity of integrating circular economy principles, digital transformation, and tools and frameworks for sustainability into business models. The proposed architecture is multilevel and multiscale in order to achieve the instantiation of the sustainable value chain in any territory. The architecture promotes the incorporation of circular economy and holonic principles into new circular business models. This integrated perspective of business model can support the design and upgrade of the manufacturing companies in their respective industrial sectors. The conceptual model proposed is based on activity theory that considers the interactions between technical and social systems and allows the mitigation of the metabolic rift that exists between natural and social metabolism. This study contributes to the existing literature on circular economy, circular business models and activity theory by considering holonic paradigm concerns, which have not been explored yet. This research also offers a unique holonic architecture of circular business model by considering different levels, relationships, dynamism and contextualization (territory) aspects

A conceptual framework for circular design

Design has been recognised in the literature as a catalyst to move away from the traditional model of take-make-dispose to achieve a more restorative, regenerative and circular economy. As such, for a circular economy to thrive, products need to be designed for closed loops, as well as be adapted to generate revenues. This should not only be at the point of purchase, but also during use, and be supported by low-cost return chains and reprocessing structures, as well as effective policy and regulation. To date, most academic and grey literature on the circular economy has focused primarily on the development of new business models, with some of the latter studies addressing design strategies for a circular economy, specifically in the area of resource cycles and design for product life extension. However, these studies primarily consider a limited spectrum of the technical and biological cycles where materials are recovered and restored and nutrients (e.g., materials, energy, water) are regenerated. This provides little guidance or clarity for designers wishing to design for new circular business models in practice. As such, this paper aims to address this gap by systematically analysing previous literature on Design for Sustainability (DfX) (e.g., design for resource conservation, design for slowing resource loops and whole systems design) and links these approaches to the current literature on circular business models. A conceptual framework is developed for circular economy design strategies. From this conceptual framework, recommendations are made to enable designers to fully consider the holistic implications for design within a circular economy

Circular Economy Snapshot: BMW Drivenow

BMW's views of the future of car ownership influenced its decision to enter the car-sharing business. DriveNow estimates that an average car is used only about 4% of the time and with half the global population predicted to live in cities by 2050 and parking becoming ever more difficult, urban residents are increasingly looking for alternatives to ownership. Observing that in cities that have embraced car-sharing a single such vehicle has the potential to replace dozens of cars, the company determined it needed to be in the car-sharing sector. It also allows BMW to access customers it normally has trouble reaching, as the average age of the company's buyer is in their mid-40s but the average age of a car sharing user is 32. Younger generations are not as attached to car ownership and continue to make multi-modal choices in transportation.While in the past BMW Group was in the business of selling cars, by the year 2020 it has a vision to be the world's leading provider of premium vehicles and premium services for individual mobility – where cars are provided as a mobility service. The company is equally seeking to make mobility climate-friendly and easy on resources, and has been increasingly combining its car-sharing offers with electric drivetrain solutions which generate zero emissions.Their newest electric vehicle model (i3) incorporates recycled and eco-friendly materials and is being introduced to DriveNow customers

The circular economy: An interdisciplinary exploration of the concept and application in a global context

There have long been calls from industry for guidance in implementing strategies for sustainable development. The Circular Economy represents the most recent attempt to conceptualize the integration of economic activity and environmental wellbeing in a sustainable way. This set of ideas has been adopted by China as the basis of their economic development (included in both the 11th and the 12th ‘Five Year Plan’), escalating the concept in minds of western policymakers and NGOs. This paper traces the conceptualisations and origins of the Circular Economy, tracing its meanings, and exploring its antecedents in economics and ecology, and discusses how the Circular Economy has been operationalized in business and policy. The paper finds that while the Circular Economy places emphasis on the redesign of processes and cycling of materials, which may contribute to more sustainable business models, it also encapsulates tensions and limitations. These include an absence of the social dimension inherent in sustainable development that limits its ethical dimensions, and some unintended consequences. This leads us to propose a revised definition of the Circular Economy as “an economic model wherein planning, resourcing, procurement, production and reprocessing are designed and managed, as both process and output, to maximize ecosystem functioning and human well-being”

Circular Procurement: The First Step in a Series.

The Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure & Environment proudly hosted the first International Congress on Circular Procurement in Amsterdam on 20-22 April 2016. Attended by 120 experts from over 23 countries around the world, the Congress aims were to profile examples of Circular Procurement, to share experiences and to discuss how Procurement could be used as a powerful tool to deliver more circular economies.The Congress did not seek to define Circular Procurement but described it as the use of procurement as a mechanism to stimulate the circular economy by fulfilling the need for goods and services in a more circular, resource efficient way, by closing the loops of products, their components and the resources used as far as possible. Circular procurement therefore acts as a driver to help develop the circular economy by creating a demand for circular products. Collaboration, especially with the market, is an essential element in finding the best possible circular option available at the current time

The case for transforming the approach to waste, and growing a circular economy; a design perspective.

In recent years, there has been a growing discussion of resource efficiency, the ‘circular economy’ and the economic and environmental benefits of maximising the value of resources beyond the life of a product. This Environmental Audit Committee inquiry was initiated to examine the case for transforming the approach to waste, and growing a 'circular economy'. This is an evidence paper published online at http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201415/cmselect/cmenvaud/214/21411.htm A full transcript of the inquiry is available at http://data.parliament.uk/writtenevidence/committeeevidence.svc/evidencedocument/environmental-audit-committee/growing-a-circular-economy/oral/9635.html