Towards a more direct policy feedback in circular economy monitoring via a societal needs perspective

Luc Alaerts,Karel Van Acker,Sandra Rousseau,Simon De Jaeger,Gustavo Moraga,Jo Dewulf,Steven De Meester,Steven Van Passel,Tine Compernolle,Kris Bachus,Karl Vrancken,Johan Eyckmans

doi:10.1016/j.resconrec.2019.06.004

Abstract

The increasing focus on circular economy at the level of governments and policy requires the development of appropriate indicators to effectively monitor the progress towards the circular economy. Currently two very different types of indicator areas are under development: (i) monitoring frameworks based on macro indicators that summarize the progress at (supra)national level, and (ii) micro indicators tailored towards assessing circularity at the level of products. It is not possible to obtain sufficiently direct feedback about the impact of policy interventions by either macro or micro indicators alone. In this paper, a conceptual approach is developed that aims to bridge the gap between the micro and macro level with meso level indicators, and thus ultimately deliver more direct feedback for policymakers, via the insertion of an extra level of meso indicators in between the macro and the micro level. These indicators have been extracted from a dedicated workshop that involved policy, sector and societal stakeholders. The aim of these indicators is to report on progress towards circular economy objectives based on the fulfillment of societal needs. In this way the consumption perspective is given a central position, and the role of circular business models is acknowledged. Following the development of the concept, the next steps towards tailored, flexible and agile monitoring frameworks for circular economy at (supra)national and regional level are outlined. The paper concludes with an illustrative example of the framework applied to the mobility system.

Highlights

In recent years the term “circular economy” has gained momentum in the context of sustainable development and as a new focus for policy and business development
When dealing with the level of products and services in the context of circular economy, it is essential to consider that many products exist in combination with services: both terms are commonly understood as an economic good
Only by considering the fact that a car provides access to mobility, higher strategies will come into consideration, like the use of cars in a circular business model like carsharing

Summary

Introduction

In recent years the term “circular economy” has gained momentum in the context of sustainable development and as a new focus for policy and business development. For instance circular economy can be understood to align with a number of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (Schroeder et al, 2018), and many action plans for circular economy and reports on the potential of circular economy for business have been published (McKinsey, 2015; European Commission, 2015; Dutch government, 2018). In the broadest sense possible, circular economy is to be seen as a societal transition, in which the circulation of materials eventually contributes to economic, environmental and societal benefits (Reichel et al, 2016). As circular economy has clear links with e.g. waste management, supply of critical materials, technological innovations, labor, water, food, buildings etc., the potential outcomes are evident in this context. The role of circular economy in preventing runaway climate change has been recognized (Material Economics, 2018)

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Conclusion