Sustainable Circulation Research Articles

Re-enchanting sustainable consumption: Cultural intermediaries, charisma, and fashion

Cultural intermediaries play an essential role in shaping the ‘moral textures’ of sustainable consumption. Drawing on Bourdieu and Weber’s cultural sociologies of religious personas, this article analyses how cultural intermediaries deploy different charismatic modalities in the field of fashion to advocate for sustainable consumption. Using illustrative methods and media examples, we illuminate how ‘prophetic’ taste influencers, ‘ascetic’ producers of upcycled fashion, ‘priestly’ secondhand clothing recyclers, and ‘mystic’ guides to minimalist lifestyles deploy these ideal-typical charismatic performances to frame, albeit unstable, re-enchanting affinities between the domains of sustainable production, circulation, and consumption. We suggest that via such charisma sustainable fashion consumption gestures towards the formation of neo-confessional identities, further symbolizing the possibility of individual and collective salvation of humanity through an elect group of sustainable consumers. We conclude by proposing a research agenda focused on how the different tensions present in the charisma-sustainability-consumption nexus are best addressed through a cultural sociological framework.

Organic π-Conjugated Polymers as a Photoelectrocatalyst for Water-Splitting

Introduction Hydrogen gas (H2 ) is an important chemical feedstock; it is used as a reductant in petroleum refining, ammonia synthesis, the manufacture of stainless steel, and the production of core chemicals (e.g., methanol) and food (e.g., margarine). H2 is also regarded to be a critical and indispensable clean fuel for sustainable energy systems because of its extremely high energy density of 142 kJ g−1 (vs. 44 kJ g−1 for gasoline) and low pollution emissions.1) However, H2 is presently produced by conversion of hydrocarbons or fossil fuels and is accompanied by enormous energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. To realize carbon neutral and sustainable circulation technology, carbon-free and green H2 production methods, such as water-splitting, are required. 2) Results and discussion This presentation describes organic π-conjugated polymers as a novel photoelectrocatalyst towards water-splitting.2-4) π-Conjugated polymers synthesized without residual metals were developed to function in "water", which defied common sense, leading to this novel catalytic ability. In detail, (1) we succeeded in synthesizing polythiophene, which is a type of π-conjugated polymer, in a film form without residual metal by our unique iodine-vapor-phase polymerization method (2) We found that this polythiophene film worked as a novel photoelectrocatalyst that absorbs visible-light and highly efficiently reduces water to generate H2 . (3) In addition, based on a rigid π-conjugated polymer structure, this polythiophene film catalyzed water-splitting/ H2 production with surprisingly high durability (more than 1 month without no degradation). The development of environmentally-friendly organic catalysts that do not use precious metals will lead to the production of truly green H2 .We will also describe developments to other catalytic functions (O2 reduction/ H2O2 production etc.) of organic π-conjugated polymers. References 1) Schlapbach, L. et al., Nature, 2001, 414, 353-358.2) Oka, K. et al., Adv. Energy Mater., 2021, 11, 2003724.3) Oka, K. et al., Energy Environ. Sci., 2018, 11, 1335-1342.4) Oka, K. et al., Adv. Energy Mater. 2019, 9, 1803286. Acknowledgment This work was partially supported by Grants-in-Aids for Scientific Research (No. JP23K17945, JP23H03827, JP24K01552) from MEXT, Japan. K. Oka. also acknowledges the support from Shorai Foundation for Science and Technology, TEPCO Memorial Foundation, Amano Industry Technology Laboratory, Sugiyama Houkoukai, The Yamada Science Foundation, Kenjiro Takayanagi Foundation, Kansai Research Foundation for Technology Promotion, and JACI Prize for Encouraging Young Researcher.

Verification of On-Site Applicability of Rainwater Road Surface Spraying for Promoting Rainwater Utilization and Analyzing the Fine Dust Reduction Effect

This study conducted a pilot test and field demonstration to analyze the feasibility of using rainwater for road surface sprinkling and its effectiveness in reducing fine dust to create sustainable cities. The pilot test results verified the effectiveness of rainwater sprinkling on road surfaces in reducing fine dust. Subsequently, to ensure field applicability, a test bed with different pavement sections was established along Ojeong-ro in Bucheon, Gyeonggi-do, and a circulatory system for reusing the runoff rainwater was installed and tested for its acceptable dust reduction effectiveness. The results showed that the section with porous pavement exhibited a significant reduction in acceptable dust levels, and a trend of decreasing pollutant levels due to the initial washing effect of rainwater was observed. However, the water quality and quantity analysis revealed that additional purification processes are necessary to reuse the water for road surface sprinkling. Based on these findings, this study suggests that expanding porous pavement and introducing purification systems are essential for installing rainwater utilization facilities to reduce fine dust in urban areas. This research provides critical foundational data that can contribute to urban environmental improvement and establish a sustainable water circulation system.

TRANSNATIONAL RECEPTION RESEARCH ON TURKISH TV DIZIS (SERIES): A META-SYNTHESIS

This study aims to analyse empirical research conducted in various countries on the reception of Turkish TV series (dizis) that have gained worldwide popularity. The purpose of the study is to enhance existing knowledge by comparing and synthesizing the findings and to provide a comprehensive perspective that can be used in practice. With the new millennium, Turkey ranked second in the world in TV series exports. In 2023, the 100th anniversary of the Republic, it has become a country exporting hundreds of dizis to more than a hundred countries. Turkish TV dizis, whose popularity is increasing daily, are reaching viewers worldwide through various platforms and influencing them. Without isolating local and universal cultural values from each other, Turkish TV dizis offer a transnational cultural acquaintance opportunity to audiences far and near. The soft power of TV dizis should be considered in Turkey’s culturally diversified tourist spectrum. Studies on the perception of Turkish TV dizis in various continents require meta-synthesis. Although these studies mainly emphasise the transnational success of Turkish TV dizis, negative criticisms are also encountered. According to the findings, even if there are geographical and religious differences, empirical research in the Google Scholar database shows a diverse reception of cultural proximity. Such a meta-synthesis is necessary to contribute to the global sustainable circulation of the dizis and their positive potential reception and impact.

All-natural chitosan-based polyimine vitrimer with multiple advantages: A novel strategy to solve nondegradable plastic waste pollution

The increasing amount of nondegradable petroleum-based plastic waste releases chemical hazards, posing a significant threat to the environment and human health. Chitosan, derived from marine wastes, is an attractive feedstock for the preparation of plastic replacement due to its renewable and degradable nature. However, in most cases, complex chemical modifications of chitosan or hybridization with chemicals from fossil resources are required. Herein, we present a high-performance chitosan-based polyimine vitrimer (CS-PI) through a mild and catalyst-free Schiff base reaction between chitosan and vanillin. The CS-PI were formed by integrating dynamic imine bonds into the polymer networks, resulting in superior thermo-processability and mechanical performances. The tensile strength and Young’s modulus of the CS-PI films reached 38.72 MPa and 3.20 GPa, respectively, which was significantly higher than that of both commercial petroleum-based plastics and bioplastics. Additionally, the CS-PI films exhibited good light transmittance, self-healing ability, reprocess capacity, water resistance, and durability to various organic solvents. Moreover, the CS-PI films could be completely degraded under both acidic and natural conditions, enabling a sustainable circulation. Therefore, this work offers a new design strategy for developing all-natural environmentally friendly polymers as sustainable replacements for petroleum-based plastics, thus reducing the accumulation of nondegradable plastic waste.

예비교사 및 교사들의 2022 개정 실과 내 농업영역 성취기준에 관한 관심도, 이해도 및 중요도 조사연구

This study has its purpose to investigate the interest, understanding, and importance of prospective
 teachers and teachers in 2022 practical agricultural achievement standards to use them as evidence
 for writing textbooks, field applications, and revising the next curriculum.
 Degree of interest rates, understanding, and importance were all the highest in ‘sustainable
 agriculture and agricultural circulation and ecological respect’ In importance, The future of
 agriculture was also high, The future agricultural exploration of agricultural and agriculture related
 to future agricultural and agricultural products.On the other hand, the the life technology of
 plants in all areas, The Life Technology was all low. Overall, it is important to organize various,
 accurate, and in-depth contents on the circularity of sustainable agricultural monster agriculture and
 ecological respect newly proposed in 2022, and future agriculture and multiple values of
 agriculture also needed a lot of attention. In addition, new and developed contents such as
 understanding and classifying animal and plant resources and life technology of animal and plant
 resources were urgently needed. The differences between pre-service teachers, future agricultural
 experiences, garden experiences, and sustainable agricultural experience variables on the 2022 revised
 agricultural area achievement standards are 'understanding and classifying animal resources',
 'ecological respect', 'sustainable agricultural and agricultural circulation', 'future value of
 agriculture'The differences in experience were significant differences in animal and plant-related life
 technology, knowing how to grow and care animals, experiencing growing and caring animals,
 and the cycle of sustainable agriculture. This was closely related to the corresponding experience
 in each area. In particular, 'sustainable agriculture and agricultural circulation' showed significant
 differences in interest, understanding, and importance, indicating that differences between variables or
 experience have a large impact on the educational content.

Carbohydrates generated via hot water as catalyst for CO2 reduction reaction

Combining terrestrial biomass with submarine-type hydrothermal environments for CO2 reduction is a possible approach for realizing new energies while achieving sustainable circulation of carbon. Herein, carbohydrate-enabled CO2 reduction based on NaHCO3 conversion to formate revealed that hydrothermal environments facilitated direct hydrogen transfer from carbohydrates (glucose, cellulose) to CO2/NaHCO3 with hot water (250–300 °C, 5–20 MPa) acting as homogeneous catalyst in absence of any conventional catalysts giving CO2/NaHCO3 reduction efficiencies as high as 76% for cellulose. Time-resolved operando hydrothermal DRIFTS spectra of glycolaldehyde in hot water (250 °C, autogenous pressure) verified that water catalyzed NaHCO3 reduction by converting the -CHO group in the carbohydrate to its hydrated state as -CH(OH)2, which enabled NaHCO3 reduction by direct hydrogen transfer and that the ratio of hydrogen transfer from water:glycolaldehyde for NaHCO3 reduction was about 13:87 on an atom basis. For cellulose exploited as energy input, a greater than 3.4% solar-to-formate efficiency can be theoretically attained, which is unprecedented compared with present literature values. These findings provide basic data for future studies on biomass-enabled CO2 reduction and broaden the scope of hydrothermal chemistry for developing net-zero emission processes.

Free nitrous acid-assisted asymmetrical alternating current electrochemistry (FNA-AACE) for multi-heavy metals decontamination in waste activated sludge

Heavy metal contamination of waste activated sludge (WAS) is a key factor limiting the land application of sludge for nutrients recovery. This study proposes a novel free nitrous acid (FNA)-assisted asymmetrical alternating current electrochemistry (FNA-AACE) process to achieve high-efficiency decontamination of multi-heavy metals (Cd, Pb, and Fe) in WAS. The optimal operating conditions, the heavy metal removal performance of FNA-AACE, and the related mechanisms for maintaining the high performance were systematically investigated. During the FNA-AACE process, FNA treatment was optimal with an exposure time of 13 h at a pH of 2.9 and an FNA concentration of 0.6 mg/g TSS. Then the sludge was washed with EDTA in a recirculating leaching system under asymmetrical alternating current electrochemistry (AACE). The 6-h working and the following electrode cleaning were defined as a working circle of AACE. After three cycles of working-cleaning periods in AACE treatment, the cumulative removal efficiency of the toxic metals Cd and Pb reached over 97% and 93%, respectively, whilst that of Fe was greater than 65%. This surpasses most previously reported efficiencies and possesses a shorter treatment duration and sustainable EDTA circulation. The mechanism analysis suggested that FNA pretreatment provoked the migration of heavy metals for leaching enhancement, as well as reduced the demand for EDTA eluent concentration and increased conductivity, which can improve the AACE efficiency. Meanwhile, the AACE process absorbed the anionic chelates of heavy metals and reduced them to zero-valent particles on the electrode, regenerating the EDTA eluent and maintaining its high extraction efficiency for heavy metals. In addition, FNA-AACE could provide different electric field operation modes, allowing it to have flexibility for the real application processes. This proposed process is expected to be coupled with anaerobic digestion in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) for high efficiency of heavy metal decontamination, sludge reduction, and resource/energy recovery.

Sustainable recovery of lithium from spent LiFePO4 via proton circulation

Excessive chemical consumption and its concomitant secondary pollution have become persistent issues in the wet chemical recycling process of spent LiFePO4 batteries (sLFP). In this study, a prospective recycling strategy is proposed based on sustainable proton circulation between organic leachants, extractants, and strippants, whereby expensive organic leachants can be regenerated and secondary pollutants are reduced. The leaching dependence of the sLFP powder on the structure of the organic leachants is determined. Monocarboxylic acids with low pKa and short carbon chains exhibit preferable lithium leaching performance (98.7 % for formic acid), and the leaching behavior of metal impurities (Al, Cu) are coupled with organic acid complexation and solution pH. The direct separation of lithium from organic leachates is explored with acidic extractants for the first time. Benefitting from the buffering capacity toward protons and the salt-out effect of organic acid anions, Li element could be successfully extracted with di-(2-ethylhexyl) phosphoric acid and the organic acids can be significantly regenerated by proton exchange equilibrium. Dilute H3PO4 is employed to selectively strip Li and contribute protons to regenerate the extractant, where the separation factors of Li/Cu and Li/Al are 148.9 and 54.1, respectively. Through two-stage counter-current extraction and stripping processes, the extraction and stripping efficiency of Li could enhance to 98.62 % and 99.38 %, respectively. Thus, the Li overall yield in the leaching-extraction-stripping processes is calculated as 96.73 %, exhibiting promising prospects for proposed proton circulation strategy.

The current situation of fast fashion industry and how to reduce the waste

Since entering the 21st century, the development of fast fashion has faced a number of environmental problems. The design of circular economy is the best way to deal with fast fashion pollution, while the existing recycling system, traditional waste disposal methods are inefficiencies and are no longer enough to deal with the pollution caused by today's fast fashion industry. So this paper discusses some cutting-edge technologies to meet the development of circular fashion and achieve the approaches for sustainable development of fashion industry. After a specific analysis of the pollution of the fast fashion industry to the climate, water and the waste caused, this paper introduces the infrared technology to accelerate the sorting of clothing raw materials in the waste, enzymatic technology to process and degrade the raw materials, and the use of new sustainable materials in three steps to obtain an advanced technology support, sustainable fashion circulation system. In the future, this improved fast fashion circulation system still needs more experiments to be tested, also the government and relevant departments need to formulate relevant policies to support the development of this system. On the other side, the fast fashion industry's pollution of the environment, especially water bodies, and its treatment methods need to be studied.

Rollable and Ventilated Net‐Based Solar Thermal Water Evaporator for Casting on Water Surface

The solar‐thermal evaporator provides a sustainable freshwater production strategy, of which the large‐scale floating applications on river or sea still confront the challenge of the highly efficient flexible evaporator. However, existing flexible evaporators often use porous gel to load solar‐thermal materials, which only allow water to evaporate out from outermost surface but waste heat by dissipating into bulky water. Herein, a rollable and ventilated flexible solar‐thermal evaporator based on dendritic net substrate is presented, which can be cast in a scalable way on waving water surface. Compared to that of the porous gel, the dendritic structure can not only capture photons efficiently, but also enlarge the ratio of water evaporation area to heat dissipation area by over 109 times, with efficient water transfer path of merely 0.3 cm length in average for even 1 m2 water evaporation area. The flexible evaporator can achieve a photothermal evaporation temperature of 108 °C and an evaporation rate of >1.46 kg m−2 h−1@1 sun illumination. A sustainable ecological circulation evaporation system is demonstrated to show its potential for scalable floating‐on‐sea applications.

Precautiously Circular: Perspectives on the Application of the Precautionary Principle in European Union Waste and Chemicals Regulation

AbstractBoth the waste regulation and chemicals regulation of the European Union are based on the precautionary principle. The main objective of the chemicals regulation is to protect human health and the environment from the risk caused by hazardous chemicals. The modern waste regulation aims, among other things, at fostering the recovery of waste. These material circulation aims have been recently emphasised by introducing the ambitious circular economy objectives. Many of the waste streams contain hazardous substances that may pose risks to human health and the environment. This article examines the role of the precautionary principle in the circular economy. We argue that sustainable material circulation can only be achieved through a case-by-case application of the precautionary principle, but this also requires participatory discourse in which competing arguments, beliefs and values are openly discussed.

Features of legal regulation of the financial system in the modern world

The article is devoted to the study of complex system analysis of the current state of the financial system and its elements. The current national financial legislation, by-laws and experience of forming the financial system in the European Union are considered. It is noted that the development and implementation of financial policy, the organization of sustainable and stable money circulation in the country is one of the important activities of the state. That is why the issue of the financial system has always, one way or another, been reflected in the constitutions, ie it was and remains one of the objects of legal regulation. As the world economy developed, the relevance and comprehensiveness of its legal regulation gradually increased, growing both in depth and breadth: on the one hand, the number of financial institutions and relations governed by the constitution and other sources of constitutional law increases, and on the other such regulation. In order to understand the points of contact between law and the financial system, the reasons, content and aspects of its legal regulation, it is necessary to try to formulate a general concept of finance and the financial system of the state and its structure. Only on the basis of the analysis of the essence and correlation of the named phenomena it is possible to determine the place and significance of finance in law. There is currently an urgent need for major legal changes regulation of financial and economic relations. Modern financial transformations have covered a wide range of public relations, as evidenced by changes in tax, budget, currency, insurance legislation, banking and credit reforms. However, the reality shows that the improvement of all management systems is taking place in a crisis caused by Russia’s military intervention in Ukraine’s internal affairs, in connection with which the need to use the experience of the European Union is particularly acute. This applies not only to fiscal policy, but also, in particular, issues of taxation, banking, building an effective financial management system, creating an effective structure of financial authorities.

USING A THREE-TIER MULTIPLE-CHOICE DIAGNOSTIC INSTRUMENT TOWARD ALTERNATIVE CONCEPTIONS AMONG LOWER-SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS IN TAIWAN: TAKING ECOSYSTEMS UNIT AS AN EXAMPLE

This research is conducted to identify the scientific conceptual cognition of ecosystem and the corresponding alternative conceptions by lower-secondary school students in Taiwan. Concept mapping, interviewing, and two-tier diagnostic test cannot make explicit reasoning pathways that students may use. Therefore, its purpose is to develop, validate, and utilize a three-tier multiple-choice diagnostic instrument for the ecosystem concept (TDIEC). The instrument can assist teachers in analyzing their students’ reasoning. This does not only distinguish alternative conceptions from lack of knowledge but also determines the percentages of false positives and false negatives. One hundred and six students were tested with this instrument in Taiwan. The data analysis reveals common alternative conceptions shared by students, indicating that 35.59% of the samples had inaccurate conceptualizations of ecosystems. Common alternative conceptions of ecosystems include the following: (i) Only biological components constitute an ecosystem; (ii) The Venus flytrap and pitcher plants are preys; (iii) Competition is synonymous to predation; (iv) Ecological balance refers to the sustainable circulation of energy and matter in the environment; and (v) The simpler the species, the more stable the ecosystem. It concludes with the interpretation of the results, suggestions for the application of the TDIEC, and correct alternative conceptions in Ecology classes. Keywords: Three-Tier Diagnostic Instrument, ecosystem concepts, alternative conceptions, lower-secondary students

Designing a Sustainable Circulation System of Second-life Traction Batteries: A Scenario-based Simulation Approach

As electric vehicles (EVs) have been widely adopted globally, the volume of used lithium-ion batteries (LiBs) is expected to increase in the future. It is thus essential to design a sustainable circulation system of LiBs to reduce the environmental impact caused by their production while utilizing residual values of second-life LiBs. However, one challenge is the lack of support for EV OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) in selecting appropriate life cycle options (e.g., refurbishment, repurposing, and recycling) under various uncertainties in the future. To analyze the influences of such uncertainties on the environmental impact, this paper aims to develop a method for designing a sustainable circulation system of second-life traction batteries by combining scenario analysis and life cycle simulation. We develop a life cycle simulation model to calculate the environmental impact through the life cycle of LiBs. The model consists of two sub-models, a life cycle model of traction batteries and a market model that considers customer behaviors and preferences for market demand estimation. Using the developed model, we analyze several scenarios to clarify critical factors for achieving sustainable circulation. To demonstrate the potential of the proposed method, we carry out a case study of Japan. Results show that reusing LiBs in the new EV assembly process could reduce the environmental impact in the entire life cycle of LiBs.

Circular Economy Driven Communities – Sustainable Behavior Driven by Mobile Applications

The Circular Economy (CE) aims at keeping products in circles to reduce their environmental impact. To implement CE, the products themselves need to be sustainable, and they need to be used and handled sustainably, e.g., by reuse, sharing, and circulation. Mobile apps can help users understand the environmental impacts of the use and consumption of products and adjust their behavior accordingly.This paper aims to present an approach to address both sustainable use and circulation of products within the example of e-cargo bikes. The development and evaluation of an app prototype is shown, integrating the concept of eco-profile and ecopoints as an incentive system for sustainable actions. The app is found to be an excellent vehicle to intensify and elongate the use of products.

Ultrasonic-Assisted Removal of Undesirable Submicron-Sized Particulates To Realize Sustainable and Eco-Friendly Circulation of Drilling Fluid

SummaryRemoval of useless and submicrometer-sized solids from drilling fluid, which exert significant effects on drilling performance, is a crucial part of sustainable and eco-friendly circulation in drilling operations. However, current solid-control methods for drilling-fluid reuse and recirculation, such as electronic-adsorption and chemical-flocculation methods, are associated with high cost and low efficiency and/or pollution of drilling fluid. In this study, a novel method using ultrasonic waves has been proposed to remove unwanted submicrometer-sized solids from polysulfonate drilling fluids. The results show that the suspension stability, viscosity, and particle size can all be significantly reduced, while the solid-separation ratio of the drilling fluid can be greatly enhanced by ultrasonic-wave treatment. The parameters of ultrasonic waves are optimized to be power of 3 kW, treating time of 30 minutes, treating frequency of 20 kHz, and ventilation (i.e., air) for 5 minutes in a laboratory scale. The scanning electron microscope (SEM) analysis shows that solid particles exhibit more obvious crystal morphology after ultrasonic-wave treatment, indicating that the breaking of gel-structure of drilling fluid due to the cavitation, mechanical, and heat effects of ultrasonic waves is the main mechanism for decreasing the suspension stability. Thus, the proposed ultrasonic-assisted technique has a high potential for removing undesirable solids from drilling fluid and fulfilling its recirculation in a cost-effective and environmentally friendly manner. This new technology has been successively applied to 12 wells, and good results were obtained.

Potential Impacts of the European Union’s Circular Economy Policy on Japanese Manufacturers

While the European Union’s (EU) Circular Economy policy package includes various aspects, such as waste treatment, plastics recycling, reduction of food waste, and remanufacturing, it is essentially an industrial and employment promotion policy. In regard to the promotion of circular businesses, including remanufacturing, product-service system (PSS), and digital platforms, this policy may change the shape of the EU market and the core of market competition. However, many Japanese manufacturers are not aware of the difference between the circular economy and the traditional 3R (reduce, reuse, and recycle) policy and are unfamiliar with the impacts on business competition. The objectives of this paper include an analysis of the EU’s Circular Economy (CE) policy and its potential impacts on the Japanese manufacturing industry (as a representative of a non-EU manufacturing industry). First, we summarize the EU’s CE Policy and analyze its meaning. Second, as examples of CE implementation, we introduce Ecodesign Directive “Directive 2009/125/EC” and the European companies, Siemens and Veolia. Then, we discuss the implication of EU’s CE policy; its double-layered structure, the different attitudes toward CEs among European and Japanese companies, and some notes taken from a CE that may be of importance to Japanese manufacturers. Companies are suggested to be proactively integrate sustainability with their main business activity. Finally, this paper points out key enabling technologies. While there are a lot of technologies related to ecodesign, process technologies, business strategy and planning, and digital technology, an indispensable technology for realizing a CE, is life cycle engineering, which synthesizes a sustainable circulation system, by integrating the technologies mentioned above. We also illustrate a hypothetical scenario in which the traditional manufacturing industry transforms into a life cycle value creating industry.

Special Issue on Design and Manufacturing for Environmental Sustainability

This is the fifth Special Issue on Design and Manufacturing for Environmental Sustainability. The first Special Issue on this topic was issued in 2009, and the previous one was in 2018. The acceptance of sustainability has been increasing, as evidenced by the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), various carbon neutral movements, and, among others, the gradual recognition of potential impacts of the EU’s “Circular Economy,” which promotes circulation-based businesses to increase the employment and market competitiveness of the EU. This increase in acceptance has brought with it increased activity in the research area of design and manufacturing for environmental sustainability, with the result that this fifth Special Issue includes seventeen well-written papers, a significant increase over the six that appeared in the fourth. The first paper “Potential Impacts of the European Union’s Circular Economy Policy on Japanese Manufacturers” overviews the EU’s Circular Economy and points out key enabling technologies. To approach environmental sustainability, we should promote various technologies related to ecodesign, process technologies, business strategy, and digital technology. At the same time, we must focus on life cycle design and management, an indispensable technology which synthesizes a sustainable circulation system by integrating the technologies mentioned above. Accordingly, this Special Issue covers both aspects, with the seventeen manuscripts in it organized as follows. The first three papers, authored by Y. Umeda et al., K. Halada, and M. Kojima, give overviews and discuss requirements for technological development. The next two manuscripts by K. Fujimoto et al. and Y. Kikuchi et al. discuss modeling, simulation, and assessment of circulation systems. Papers six to eight, written by W.-H. Chung et al., S. Yamada et al., and K. Yoda et al. develop life cycle design methods. The remaining manuscripts advance fundamental technologies. Manuscripts nine to eleven, by R. Yonemoto et al., T. Samukawa et al., and Y. Yaguchi et al., deal with sustainable manufacturing. Finally, six manuscripts by C. Tokoro et al., K. Tsuji et al., A. Ogawa et al., A. Yoshimura et al., T. Hiruta et al., and S. Nasu et al. are about life cycle processes; recycling technologies and product use phase such as car sharing and maintenance. Most of the papers, revised and extended in response to the editor’s invitations, were originally presented at EcoDesign 2019: the 11th International Symposium on Environmentally Conscious Design and Inverse Manufacturing, held in Yokohama, Japan. The editor sincerely thanks the authors and reviewers for their devoted work in making this Special Issue possible. We hope that these articles will encourage further research into design and manufacturing for environmental sustainability.

An attempt to create the holistic flow chart of forest resources

The environmental development of a building has an important role to play in terms of the sustainable development of our society. Against this background, wood and wood-based products have lately attracted notable attention as promising construction materials due to then-unique environmental properties, such as renewability and carbon storage capacity. For the sustainable use of wood, a relevant balance between supply and demand of forest resources is significant. However, little work has been conducted on a comprehensive understanding of forest resources flow. The objective of this study was. therefore, to draw an integrated chart of forest resources flow including forest conditions, round wood production, wood product manufacturing, wood stock in buildings and waste management at the end of product life, mainly focusing on building material flow. The flow charts were drawn for five countries (Japan. Finland. Germany, Sweden and Canada) based on statistical data. Instead of directly showing numerical information, the chart is presented as an infographic in order to promote intuitive understanding of the contents. The chart is intended as a basis for the development of sustainable forest resource circulation. This paper focuses on introducing the chart as such ad briefly discusses how the chart can be utilized for further study in relation with SDGs.