The circular economy is built around the idea of economic flow through services rather than ownership, as materials change forms and move continuously through the economy.
This idea seems to be gaining support in today's economy as a viable business model. But the idea is not new...
If you think about it: nature is the predominant circular economy- where plants, animals, elements change forms and have different purposes contributing to a healthy bio-system. Another example is one in developing economies where materials are scare and therefore used and used and used again to gain the most value out of something.
The idea of creating first world country circular economies is unique because there is a sense that resources are plentiful and therefore accessing new materials is easier and more efficient than reusing existing materials. So without the constraints of the need to reuse materials, the drive for the circular economy feels more academic or idealistic - instead of necessary. But it is necessary.
Luckily there are many who see the writing on the wall that we are living in a resource-constrained planet and are starting to plan companies, products and systems to respond to this. And while first world nations may not "feel" the constraints on resources just yet, at some point we will and we will have to reexamine how we use our resources.
So when we design our next economy and prioritize access over ownership - we will see some pretty big shake ups to the business models of today which depend on assumptions that this world is resource-abundant and growth is the most important and often only goal. In order for there to be a sustainable future, we need to decouple growth with material use and the circular economy will be a great asset to do that.
This idea seems to be gaining support in today's economy as a viable business model. But the idea is not new...
If you think about it: nature is the predominant circular economy- where plants, animals, elements change forms and have different purposes contributing to a healthy bio-system. Another example is one in developing economies where materials are scare and therefore used and used and used again to gain the most value out of something.
The idea of creating first world country circular economies is unique because there is a sense that resources are plentiful and therefore accessing new materials is easier and more efficient than reusing existing materials. So without the constraints of the need to reuse materials, the drive for the circular economy feels more academic or idealistic - instead of necessary. But it is necessary.
Luckily there are many who see the writing on the wall that we are living in a resource-constrained planet and are starting to plan companies, products and systems to respond to this. And while first world nations may not "feel" the constraints on resources just yet, at some point we will and we will have to reexamine how we use our resources.
So when we design our next economy and prioritize access over ownership - we will see some pretty big shake ups to the business models of today which depend on assumptions that this world is resource-abundant and growth is the most important and often only goal. In order for there to be a sustainable future, we need to decouple growth with material use and the circular economy will be a great asset to do that.
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