Abstract
Since 2002, the University of the Basque Country has supported several teaching experiences related to the so-called Life Cycle Thinking and Ecodesign in collaboration with local and regional public institutions and private companies. The implementation of a Master’s Degree entitled ‘Circular Economy: Business Application’ constitutes a milestone in the framework of these teaching experiences. From the very moment the European Green Deal was approved and, subsequently, before the state and regional strategies were launched, thanks to our prior experience, we have been able to offer the postgraduate course required by our administration and companies. The courses have been specifically designed to provide education for Circular Economy for new graduates as well as professionals with backgrounds as varied as product manufacturing engineering, environmental engineering, business administration or economics. It aims to become a European reference in its goal of promoting Circular Economy, life cycle thinking, ecodesign, industrial symbiosis and sustainable development and, at the same time, support the transition to circular economy in our region. As a result, in just two years the master’s degree has led to the creation within our university of a knowledge hub in Circular Economy, which hosts more than 20 research groups.
Highlights
Circular Economy is a viable and promising alternative to the currently prevailing linear economic system
Stahel coined the term “cradle to cradle” C2C [29] and in 2002 Michael Braungart and William McDonough published a book entitled “Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things” [30], a manifesto for cradle-to-cradle design that exposed specific details of how to achieve the model, few would have imagined the importance of the Product Lifecycle management (PLM) through the entire Lifecycle and even less the introduction of sustainability concepts involved in the Circular Economy definition, such as reducing, reusing, repairing, remanufacturing, repurposing, recycling, etcetera [31]
To identify business opportunities in the field of the Circular Economy for different sectors, stakeholders and design proposals. These intended learning outcomes are fully aligned with the targets proposed by some European universities that are considered to be at the leading edge in this area of knowledge and education [38–40]
Summary
Circular Economy is a viable and promising alternative to the currently prevailing linear economic system. By means of the Agenda Euskadi - Basque Country 2030 [14], and the Strategy for Education for Sustainability of the Basque Country 2030 [15], the government of the autonomous region of the Basque Country is aligned with the aforementioned 2030 Agenda In this context, in January 2020, the Basque Government issued the key points of its Circular Economy Strategy 2030 [16], and among these strategic objectives and challenges, it promoted research and degree studies at university level. The mission of the Basque Country’s Circular Economy Strategy, with a time horizon of 2030, is to promote the transition of the Basque Country towards a Circular Economy model and to position itself as a reference region in Europe It aims to achieve positive results for our territory in three main areas:1) increasing the turnover of Basque companies regarding circular products up to 10,000 million Euros, 2) creating 3,000 jobs in the field of Circular Economy and, 3) reducing by 26% the carbon emissions associated with consumption. The last part gives a brief overview of the Master in “Circular Economy: Business Application” of the University of the Basque Country, including the intended learning outcomes together with a summary of the course related to... with a detailed description of each course
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