Transitioning to a sustainable circular economy: The transformation required to decouple growth from environmental degradation

Abstract

The UN 2030 agenda of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) envisions a future of inclusive equity, justice and prosperity within planetary boundaries, and places an important emphasis on ending poverty (SDG 1) and on sustainable economic growth (SDG 8). Target 8.4 refers to the need to improve global resource efficiency in consumption and production, and decoupling economic growth from environmental degradation, the ultimate goal of a sustainable circular economy. Here, we explore the potential of the transition to such an economy, and discuss the transformation required for moving away from our current model of consumption with its ever increasing generation of waste. The primary aim of such transformation is to rethink what we understand as growth, in order to redefine what is meant by progress and, in the process, redesign our economies, ultimately decoupling our prosperity from material consumption, carbon emissions and waste. Dematerialisation, servitisation, collaborative consumption and a shift from ownership to access have the potential to restructure the economics of consumption, accelerate decoupling, and help us to envision and potentially create a circular economy that delivers social, economic and environmental benefits for all. However, their current deployment without policy steer, public support and appropriate technology developments could turn to be a missed opportunity for ensuring sustainable economic growth fully aligned with sound environmental stewardship and social development, and the transition to a truly sustainable circular economy.

Can the Circular Economy Unlock Sustainable Business Growth? Insights from Qualitative Research with Specialists in Romania

“…Resource consumption has grown faster than population growth, indicating that it is driven not by population growth but by the current model of economic development based on consumerism and mass industrial production. Society's focus on producing and consuming as cheaply as possible has created the linear economy model in which objects are briefly used and then discarded as waste [24]. Transitions should not only be understood as global phenomena, but also as uneven and developments in specific technologies, following different paths in different national and regional contexts and settings over time [25].…”

Zero-waste initiatives and circular economy in the U.S.: A review: Exploring strategies, outcomes, and challenges in moving towards a more sustainable consumption model

“…Dematerialization, servitization, collaborative consumption, and a shift from ownership to access are potential strategies to restructure the economics of consumption, accelerate decoupling, and create a circular economy that delivers benefits for all. However, their deployment without policy steer, public support, and appropriate technology developments could be a missed opportunity for ensuring sustainable economic growth aligned with environmental stewardship and social development (Voulvoulis, 2022).…”

Techno-Economic Assessment of Chitin Nanofibrils Isolated from Fungi for a Pilot-Scale Biorefinery

“…2 In this context, academia, industry, and policymakers are joining efforts to transition from of our current linear fossil-based economy into a sustainable circular economy. 3,4 The inherently renewable and biodegradable bio-based polymers play a pivotal role in the ecological transition and sustainable development. 5,6 In this context, cellulose and chitin, structural polysaccharides widely found in living organisms such as plants, algae, tunicates, crustacean exoskeletons, insects, and fungi, are being exploited as sustainable technological materials.…”

“…These global threats are exacerbated by 36.1 GtCO 2 being released into the atmosphere every year from the extraction and consumption of fossil fuels . In this context, academia, industry, and policymakers are joining efforts to transition from of our current linear fossil-based economy into a sustainable circular economy. , The inherently renewable and biodegradable bio-based polymers play a pivotal role in the ecological transition and sustainable development. , …”