Abstract
The avalanche of environmental challenges, from local to global and back, has prompted responses at all levels from personal to inter-governmental. The results of these responses have fallen in the range between useful and counterproductive, with many examples on each side, but the scale of the overall challenge continues to escalate. Moving towards a zero-carbon global economy through absolute reductions in fossil fuel usage is a sure way of mitigating climate change, and a range of environmental, social and economic benefits would follow. The case for a Circular Economy (CE), however, is less clear. Whilst some CE initiatives may lead to the decoupling of economic growth from resource extraction, this does not necessarily equate to reducing the rate of extraction. Thus, the contribution of CE to the achievement of environmental objectives globally cannot be taken for granted. In terms of social impact, the best that can be said is that CE might be neutral. Technologies that promote the ‘sharing economy’ for instance, often suggested as a crucial CE strategy, create opportunities for individual wealth accumulation, but are also a route to the gig economy and the casualisation of labour. CE is arguably a business imperative, but definitive evidence to support the idea of a circular economy that meets social and environmental goals needs development.
Highlights
A uncurious person could be unaware of the modern scourges of the natural environment, and their increasing incursions into our lived experiences
Circular Economy (CE) is arguably a business imperative, but definitive evidence to support the idea of a circular economy that meets social and environmental goals needs development
The scale of individual challenges continues to increase as emissions targets are missed and the increasing concentration of greenhouse gases (GHG) in the atmosphere continues to accelerate [7]
Summary
A uncurious person could be unaware of the modern scourges of the natural environment, and their increasing incursions into our lived experiences. In response to the need for fundamental change in the way we produce and consume, or the need to be seen to be responding to these challenges, the concept of a circular economy (CE) has recently gained traction This offers an alternative to the more familiar linear ‘makeuse-dispose’ model of production and consumption. The article begins with a discussion of circular economy in the context of policy and sustainability (‘Policy Response’ section) before looking at the role technology might have in finding a way forward for CE and discusses the absence of social benefit in some visions (‘Technology to the Rescue?’ section) This leads on to a discussion of steering CE away from an ‘economy first’ (and everything else last) in the ‘Circular Economy—Economy First?’ section, and ending with a look into the future
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