- "A circular economy (also referred to as circularity or CE) is a model of production and consumption, which involves sharing, leasing, reusing, repairing, refurbishing and recycling existing materials and products for as long as possible."
Economic system that aims to minimize waste and maximize resource use by designing out waste and pollution, keeping products and materials in use, and regenerating natural systems.
Circular economy concept: It is an economic model that focuses on maximizing the value of resources, and keeping them in the economy for as long as possible through recycling, reuse, and regeneration.
Waste hierarchy: It is an organizational framework that guides the prioritization of resource management options. From highest to lowest priority, the hierarchy is Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Recover and Dispose.
Life cycle assessment (LCA): It is a method of measuring the environmental performance of a product or service by analyzing all stages of its life – from raw material extraction, to production, use, and disposal.
Material efficiency: It refers to the ability to use less material to produce the same or better quality of goods or services. It is achieved through design optimization, technology innovation and process improvement.
Biomimicry: It is an approach that seeks to imitate nature's solutions to design problems, resulting in more efficient and sustainable products and systems.
Industrial symbiosis: A collaborative process in which companies and other organizations work together to create resource efficiencies and share waste streams, thereby creating value and reducing their environmental impact.
Product-service systems: A holistic approach that integrates product and service design to maximize resource efficiency, extending product life, and enabling new business models.
Ecological footprint: A measure of the amount of land and resources required to support a given lifestyle or activity.
Sharing economy: A business model that enables access to goods and services rather than ownership, recognizing that many resources can be effectively shared.
Sustainable supply chain management: The integration of sustainability goals into all aspects of supplier relationships, ensuring ethical sourcing, reducing environmental impacts, and building stakeholder trust.
Regenerative economy: A type of circular economy where waste and pollution are eliminated by designing materials and processes that can be easily reused, remanufactured, or recycled.
Sharing economy: A type of circular economy where assets and resources are shared rather than owned, such as car-sharing services or community gardens.
Refurbishment economy: A type of circular economy where old products are repaired and reconditioned instead of being thrown away, often resulting in better quality and longer lasting products.
Bioeconomy: A type of circular economy based on biomass and renewable resources, such as agricultural waste, wood waste, and algae.
Collaborative economy: A type of circular economy where businesses, government, and individuals work together to create a closed loop system, resulting in reduced waste and increased resource efficiency.
Product-as-a-service economy: A type of circular economy where businesses sell products as a service rather than as a product, encouraging reuse and repair instead of disposal.
Cradle to cradle economy: A type of circular economy where products and materials are designed to have a closed loop life cycle, meaning they can be indefinitely recycled or reused.
Industrial symbiosis economy: A type of circular economy where waste resources from one industry are used as inputs for another industry, resulting in reduced waste and increased efficiency.
Zero-waste economy: A type of circular economy where waste is completely eliminated through efficient use of resources and processes, and all materials are either recycled or reused.
Circular supply chain economy: A type of circular economy where products are designed to be easily disassembled and reused, resulting in reduced waste and decreased material consumption.
- "CE aims to tackle global challenges such as climate change, biodiversity loss, waste, and pollution."
- "The three principles required for the transformation to a circular economy are: designing out waste and pollution, keeping products and materials in use, and regenerating natural systems."
- "The idea and concepts of circular economy (CE) have been studied extensively in academia, business, and government over the past ten years."
- "CE has been gaining popularity because it helps to minimize emissions and consumption of raw materials, open up new market prospects and, principally, increase the sustainability of consumption and improve resource efficiency."
- "At a government level, CE is viewed as means of combating global warming as well as a facilitator of long-term growth."
- "By the year 2050, 9.3 billion tonnes of CO2 equivalent (equal to all current emissions from transportation), can be reduced by implementing circular economy strategies in five sectors: cement, aluminum, steel, plastics, and food."
- "In a circular economy, business models play a crucial role in enabling the shift from linear to circular processes."
- "Various business models have been identified that support circularity, including product-as-a-service, sharing platforms, and product life extension models, among others."
- "By contrast, a circular economy aims to transition from a 'take-make-waste' approach to a more restorative and regenerative system."
- "It employs reuse, sharing, repair, refurbishment, remanufacturing and recycling to create a closed-loop system, reducing the use of resource inputs and the creation of waste, pollution and carbon emissions."
- "The circular economy aims to keep products, materials, equipment and infrastructure in use for longer, thus improving the productivity of these resources."
- "For example, industrial symbiosis is a strategy where waste from one industry becomes an input for another, creating a network of resource exchange and reducing waste, pollution, and resource consumption."
- "Similarly, circular cities aim to integrate circular principles into urban planning and development, fostering local resource loops and promoting sustainable lifestyles among their citizens."
- "Less than 10% of economic activity worldwide in 2022 and 2023 has been circular."