Abstract
Circular economy and degrowth offer two different imaginaries for a future social metabolism: both seek to downscale waste and the demand for raw materials. Yet whereas degrowth proposes a circular metabolism to reduce consumption and production, mainstream circular economy sees waste as an opportunity for sustainable growth. This paper puts these two visions of circular futures into dialog. It unpacks the institutional dimensions of these two approaches, focusing on how they produce relations with and responsibilities to the future. It argues that the extent to which circularity can deliver its promise of reduction depends on the value that is ascribed to both present and future waste. This value is defined by the institutional conditions that regulate the responsibilities, geographies and conceptions of value mobilized in dealing with waste. The paper dissects three institutional shifts necessary for a degrowth circularity: from individual consumers to collective responsibilities in waste reduction, from global regional waste markets to bio-regional waste economies and from monetary to socio-ecological value of waste.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
