Week 5
Stahel, W. R. (2016). The circular economy. Nature News, 531 (7595), 435.
circular economy = turns goods that are at the end of their service life into
resources for others, closing loops in industrial ecosystems and minimising waste
—> replaces production with su ciency
- Group 1 = fostering reuse and extending service life through repair,
remanufacture, upgrades and retro ts
- Group 2 = turning old goods into as-new resources by recycling the materials
Systems Thinking
1. Linear Economy: ows like a river, turning natural resources into base materials
and products for sale through a series of value-adding steps, at point-of-sale
ownership and liability for risks and waste pass to user, “bigger-better-faster-
safer” syndrome
2. Circular Economy: comparable to a lake, reprocessing of goods and mortals
generates jobs and saves energy while reducing resource consumption and
waste
3. Performance Economy: goes a step further by selling goods (or molecules) as
services through rent, lease and share business models, manufacturer retains
ownership of the product and its embodies resources and thus carries the
responsibility for the costs of risks and waste
- waste management driven by minimising costs of collection and disposal - land ll
vs. recycling or incineration
- professional marketplaces needed for the exchange of used parts, such as
electric motors, bearings and microchips
- circular economy is part of a trend towards intelligent decentralization
Tipping Points:
- research and innovation across all levels (social, technological and commercial)
44
fl ffi fi fi
, - communication and information strategies are needed to raise the awareness of
manufacturers and the public about their responsibility for products throughout
their service life
- policies should focus on performance not hardware, stewardship should overrule
ownership and its right to destroy
- societal wealth and well-being should be measured stock instead of in ow, in
capital instead of in sales
45
fl
Stahel, W. R. (2016). The circular economy. Nature News, 531 (7595), 435.
circular economy = turns goods that are at the end of their service life into
resources for others, closing loops in industrial ecosystems and minimising waste
—> replaces production with su ciency
- Group 1 = fostering reuse and extending service life through repair,
remanufacture, upgrades and retro ts
- Group 2 = turning old goods into as-new resources by recycling the materials
Systems Thinking
1. Linear Economy: ows like a river, turning natural resources into base materials
and products for sale through a series of value-adding steps, at point-of-sale
ownership and liability for risks and waste pass to user, “bigger-better-faster-
safer” syndrome
2. Circular Economy: comparable to a lake, reprocessing of goods and mortals
generates jobs and saves energy while reducing resource consumption and
waste
3. Performance Economy: goes a step further by selling goods (or molecules) as
services through rent, lease and share business models, manufacturer retains
ownership of the product and its embodies resources and thus carries the
responsibility for the costs of risks and waste
- waste management driven by minimising costs of collection and disposal - land ll
vs. recycling or incineration
- professional marketplaces needed for the exchange of used parts, such as
electric motors, bearings and microchips
- circular economy is part of a trend towards intelligent decentralization
Tipping Points:
- research and innovation across all levels (social, technological and commercial)
44
fl ffi fi fi
, - communication and information strategies are needed to raise the awareness of
manufacturers and the public about their responsibility for products throughout
their service life
- policies should focus on performance not hardware, stewardship should overrule
ownership and its right to destroy
- societal wealth and well-being should be measured stock instead of in ow, in
capital instead of in sales
45
fl
