A methodological framework for the implementation of circular economy thinking in higher education institutions: Towards sustainable campus management

Building a business case for implementation of a circular economy in higher education institutions

Data-driven supply chain management capabilities enhance supply chain performance by providing insights, analyses, and predictions. However, the mechanisms through which data-driven supply chain management capabilities enhance the sustainability of agro-processing firms' supply chains remain insufficiently explored. This study, grounded in organizational information processing theory, investigates the relationship between data-driven supply chain management capabilities and sustainable supply chain performance. Survey data from 249 Chinese agro-process firms were analyzed using structural equation modeling, confirming that data-driven supply chain management capabilities significantly boost supply chain performance and transparency. Supply chain transparency mediates the relationship between data-driven supply chain management capabilities and sustainable supply chain performance, while circular economy thinking further amplifies this effect. This study extends organizational information processing theory by demonstrating how data-driven supply chain management capabilities can enhance sustainability in agro-processing firms through improved transparency and the integration of circular economy thinking. For practitioners, the findings highlight how strategically leveraging data-driven supply chain management capabilities and transparency, supported by circular economy thinking, can drive sustainable performance, offering a clear pathway for enhancing sustainability in agricultural supply chains.

To enable corporations to bring about more responsible business practices, changes in the wider system within which businesses operate – including the mental models through which sustainability is understood in the management field – are necessary. Drawing on functioning principles in natural ecosystems – as embodied in circular economy thinking – this conceptual article proposes some constructs to inform the development of a sustainability management theory. We show that the potential for the circular economy to provide a sounder basis to sustainable management theory rests on its capacity to propose a socio‐eco‐systemic framework, which overcomes the separation between man and nature and is isomorphic to the conception proposed by the emerging complexity paradigm. Also, we show that, by imagining a new cognitive framework and evaluating the current linear model and the alternative circular model from a moral standpoint, the circular economy can be thought of as an exercise in moral imagination.

As global industrial waste demands rise alongside increasing water scarcity, it becomes imperative to adopt circular economy principles within industrial water management. Traditional linear models of resource use have become unsustainable, demanding systemic transitions toward circular, closed-loop approaches. This paper explores the intersection of circular economy education and industrial water uses by examining how circular economy education and practices can transform industrial water use and improve sustainability outcome. Through case studies and best practices, this research illustrates successful implementations of circular water economy principles, demonstrates the implementation of closed-loop water systems, cascading reuse and zero liquid discharge technologies can reduce freshwater intake in industrial applications and emphasises the role of public-private partnerships in promoting water reuse projects. The paper also addresses the challenges and barriers to implementation, focusing on regulatory issues, resource limitations, and gaps in awareness. It concludes by proposing future directions for integrating circular economy principles into industrial water management and offers policy recommendations to foster circular water economy education. Hence, it contributes qualitative analysis to the growing body of knowledge on sustainable water management practices and provides valuable insights for policymakers and industry professionals seeking to advance circular economy approaches in industrial water use.

This work proposes a framework with which to analyse Higher Education Institution (HEI) students’ knowledge and understanding of circular economy (CE) concepts and the potential of the CE to promote sustainability, using a contest. The framework integrates CE principles and business models with sustainable indicators, and it was applied to the accepted projects by the contest jury. The contest was launched in 2021 by the CE Working Group of the Portuguese Sustainable Campus Network to encourage creativity and the development of CE projects at HEIs. HEIs can play an essential role in promoting environmental education and creating partners with new visions for society and the economy concerning sustainability, developing knowledge, values, attitudes, and behaviours regarding the CE. The projects were mostly based on the recovery of secondary raw materials/by-products, the CE business model, and the CE principle of value optimisation. In addition, a strong relationship with environmental indicators was observed, but social and economic indicators of the CE were only marginally considered by the students. Therefore, students considered the CE as mostly mainly being related to product recovery/optimisation; thus, the CE concepts and principles and their relationship to sustainability implementation require reinforcement and transversal approaches to increase this knowledge and its dissemination.

Purpose The integration of circular economy (CE) into higher education programmes is a crucial step to facilitate a smooth transition towards circularity. Although existing studies highlight the lack of CE awareness as a primary barrier to achieving circularity, there is still limited research investigating the enhancement of CE understanding after completing CE-related training or courses. To address this gap, this study aims to examine how CE education transforms students’ mindsets to support the strategic application of CE principles and strategies in personal and professional activities. Design/methodology/approach An online survey was designed and distributed to students attending CE courses at five universities located in five countries. Ethics approval for this research project was obtained from University 3 as the lead of the research project. Out of a total of 138 students enrolled in these courses, 109 responses were collected. Findings The research findings demonstrate that CE education enhances students’ awareness of CE definitions, principles and strategies through developing their own descriptions of CE concepts and interpretation into personal and professional activities, showcasing practical circular applications. Practical implications This paper presents implications for programme coordinators, subject coordinators and lecturers/facilitators at universities/higher educational institutions to consider when designing a course or training workshop related to CE within a particular programme or discipline. Originality/value This study identifies invaluable insights of CE education to enhance students understanding and practical applications of circularity in their personal and professional activities. The research findings can be used for crafting and delivering CE courses in different universities. This study can be regarded as guidance to develop a CE curriculum for higher education nurturing a deep understanding of CE concepts while aligning with the industry demands for CE professionals.

PurposeThis study aims to highlight the impacts of a rapidly growing automobile industry on the environment and how implementation of Circular Economy (CE) principles and strategies can help us in improving its sustainability without compromising on our existing economic models.Design/methodology/approachIncrease in spending capacity, improvements in technology and decrease in the prices have catapulted automobile demand over the last few decades. Harmful emissions and waste generation during the entire life cycle of these complex machines need to be addressed in an urgent manner globally. Implementation of CE principles and strategies which are based on promoting a pivotal balance between environment, economy and the society can lead to minimize economic and environmental impact leading to better results for all the stakeholders.FindingsCarbon footprint or environmental emissions during different stages of an automobile life cycle can be minimized using CE principles and strategies without compromising on the existing economic models. Government legislation and keen participation of Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) and automobile manufacturers can drive the automobile industry toward sustainability despite growing consumption.Originality/valueThe literature review has been done with a fresh perspective to combine environmental sustainability with CE. This is a literature review of prior work done in this domain to explore the possibility of further intervention in this domain.

Various models of Circular Economy (CE) principles have been developed in various sectors. This paper tries to give an overview of the main existing models found in literature. It explains the origins and evaluates the purpose by classifying the underlying definitions. It then compares the different models, explains the limitations and concludes with resulting principles for real estate applications. It takes a closer look at existing circular economy principles and which circular economy principles can be applied for space and infrastructure. The research approach is based on an extensive literature review of existing CE models and underlying principles in the built environment. A stepwise analysis is applied to each model. A collection of CE models is presented that helps to complete our understanding of the opportunities and limitations of CE strategies. This study analyses the existing CE models in a comprehensive manner. By comparing the different origins is manages to explain the opportunities and limitations of the different models. Providing the knowledge results in a better understanding of current CE strategies is a valuable addition to our current understanding of CE business models in real estate management.

The circular economy (CE) is a promising paradigm for reducing the environmental impact and preserving value within modern production systems, including civil infrastructure. However, there is a mismatch between common assumptions in CE thinking, largely developed for smaller‐scale consumer products, and infrastructure systems characterized by their permanency and complexity. This paper discusses the applicability of CE for infrastructure provisioning and operation while examining how CE is being used in urban infrastructure policies. Our analysis of six large American and European cities reveals that current CE policy for construction focuses on closing material loops, even in cases where it may have limited effectiveness. Notably, London and Amsterdam lead efforts to narrow resource loops through life extension strategies. Yet, for urban infrastructure value to be meaningfully preserved, more attention should be given to the specific contexts of growth and existing infrastructure stock, and higher‐order circularity strategies such as retrofitting and use intensification.

This study investigates the impact of circular economy (CE) strategies on organizational resilience (OR) within the metal industry, focusing on a case study of a forging department in a large manufacturing company. The idea of the paper is to link the macroeconomic topic of circular economy (CE) with microeconomic and practical activities in the organization, exploring how CE principles can improve resource efficiency, sustainability, and organizational resilience. A systematic literature review and case study methodology were used to assess the relationship between CE and OR. The findings reveal that companies with higher circularity demonstrate better resilience, both in normal operations and during crises. Specifically, in the case study, the closure of the forging department, following a detailed analysis using the Inputs–Mediators–Outputs (IMO) model, emerged as the most sustainable option, yielding financial, environmental, and operational benefits. This decision aligned with the company’s long-term goals of energy efficiency and carbon neutrality. The research highlights the significance of integrating CE strategies with business processes to not only achieve sustainability but also to build a more adaptable and resilient organization. Future research should explore broader applications of this framework across different industries to strengthen the links between circular economy practices and organizational resilience.

In the wake of contemporary societal grand challenges, the circular economy has emerged as a plausible vision towards a more responsible, resilient and prosperous future. Embraced by several national and supranational policies and espoused by incumbents and innovators in the business context, circular economy thinking has also made inroads in the academic literature. Scholars from across disciplinary fields have contributed to a lively and vibrant research community. However, while education is amongst the systemic conditions enabling the transition towards the circular economy and higher education plays a pivotal role as a global stakeholder, the burgeoning circular economy literature has remained almost silent on how to integrate circular economy into higher education, on its benefits and implications. Based on a course experience in higher education, this article proposes a pedagogical approach for introducing the next generation of business leaders to circular economy thinking and its relevance for flourishing within planetary boundaries. The benefits of this proposal are twofold. From an operational viewpoint, drawing on the i5 Principles for Responsible Management Education Playbook, an open access resource specifically designed for transforming business education and developing more responsible leaders, this article enriches the emerging literature at the intersection between education, the circular economy and the socio-ecological approach to management education and scholarship. From a conceptual viewpoint, it shows that this approach to circular economy teaching is in line with recent calls from higher education scholarship to promote an ecological and imaginative vision of higher education.

Circular economy thinking has become the subject of academic enquiry across several disciplines recently. Yet whilst its technical and business angles are more widely discussed, its philosophical underpinnings and socio-economic implications are insufficiently investigated. In this article, we aim to contribute to their understanding by uncovering the circular economy role in shaping a new vision, highlighting the social and economic dimensions of future imaginaries and the mechanisms that can enable them to bring about change in the social context. We believe that defining the vision that the circular economy is contributing to shape is key to explain its conceptual framework and activities. Drawing on the concept of fictional expectations, we uncover one of the plausible social dimensions inherent to the circular economy thinking thereby opening up a new perspective on the current debate in the circular economy literature wherein authors, by contrast, are emphasising the lack of an explicit social dimension. Fictional expectations are introduced to refer to those imaginaries of the future that can catalyse social action in the present and counteract societal addictions, in which modern society seems to be trapped. We show how a circular economy inspired vision can be instrumental to the emergence of a fictional expectation that can provide therapies to the current societal addiction of wasteful production and consumption systems. This philosophical background allows us to provide, in conclusion, a new conceptualisation of the circular economy as a cognitive framework instrumental to the emergence of a future imaginary.

Manufacturing companies struggle with overwhelming expectations, disruptions and trends sweeping over their business environment. The evident climate change, together with rising sustainable development goals, is forcing companies to discover their environmental impact, in addition to the more familiar economic one. The transformation from a linear economy to a circular economy (CE) reduces waste and improves resource efficiency through the deployed R-cycles, such as recycle, reuse and repair. This transformation is feasible for multinational enterprises because they can allocate sufficient resources for their strategic development goals. For small and medium-sized enterprises (SME), any additional investment must be carefully assessed and planned. Thus, SMEs need support and tools to select their next development investments. Generally, maturity models help companies find their status (compared to others) and identify the most important development areas and actions. This paper presents the CE maturity matrix, which comprises five maturity levels mapped with seven linear manufacturing value chain phases. The matrix was piloted with nine manufacturing industry companies, four of which were from Finland, one from Italy, one from Germany and three from Ireland. The CE matrix interview results showed that none of the interviewed manufacturing industry companies remained at the linearity level. The most common levels varied between systemic material management and CE thinking. In the interviews, over 40 CE actions were identified as the argument for a company reaching a CE maturity level. The transition towards sustainable manufacturing has already started but will require efforts to accelerate and to engage companies to proceed.

The hidden concept and the beauty of multiple “R” in the framework of waste strategies development reflecting to circular economy principles

Purpose The purpose of this study is to explore the integration of risk management and circular economy (CE) principles within the healthcare sector to promote sustainability and resilience. Specifically, the study aims to demonstrate how risk management can support the transition to a circular economy in healthcare supply chains. By integrating risk management practices with CE principles, healthcare organizations can identify potential risks and opportunities associated with circular initiatives. Design/methodology/approach This study adopts a qualitative research approach, using a case study methodology with semi-structured interviews conducted at primary care facilities to understand the application of CE principles in practice. The study uses fuzzy logic methods to assess and mitigate risks associated with strategies promoting CE principles. Additionally, key performance indicators are identified to evaluate the effectiveness and enhance the resilience of these strategies within healthcare supply chains. Findings The study highlights the critical role of robust risk management strategies in facilitating the transition to a circular economy within healthcare organizations. Primary care facilities, which are critical to frontline healthcare delivery, are particularly vulnerable to product shortages due to supply risks. This study focuses on critical protective equipment, specifically latex gloves and assesses operational risks, including supply, demand and environmental risks, using a fuzzy logic-based model. Import delays were found to be a moderate risk, typically occurring once a year. The research highlights critical KPIs for a successful CE transition within healthcare supply chains, such as on-time delivery and service quality, which are directly related to the risk of supply chain disruption. In addition, the study highlights the significant impact of other CE strategies on healthcare supply chains, including localized production and manufacturing, innovation in product development, reverse logistics, closed-loop supply chains and the adoption of lean principles. Practical implications This study provides valuable insights for healthcare organizations to optimize resource efficiency, reduce waste and promote circularity in their operations. By implementing the proposed solutions and focusing on the identified KPIs, organizations can develop strategies to achieve sustainability goals and enhance resilience in healthcare supply chains. Originality/value This study contributes to the literature by demonstrating the application of risk management in facilitating the transition to a circular economy in the healthcare sector. The use of fuzzy logic methodology offers a novel approach to assessing and mitigating risks associated with critical product failures in supply chain activities. The study’s findings provide practical guidance for healthcare organizations seeking to integrate circular economy principles and improve sustainability performance.