What Is in a Name? The Rising Star of the Circular Economy as a Resource-Related Concept for Sustainable Development

Abstract

The most popular definition of sustainable development, which can be found in the Brundtland Report, sets an ideal goal but do not provide a clear direction for the implementation of sustainable solutions. Other related concepts and approaches have emerged as means to progress towards sustainability in a more pragmatic way, such as the circular economy. The circular economy has risen to prominence at a rate and on a scale to rival the idea of sustainable development itself. This is despite the fact that there is relatively little about the circular economy that is entirely original-it draws heavily on precursor concepts such as industrial ecology and industrial symbiosis. These ideas have received renewed impetus even whilst being eclipsed in both academic and policies debates. In order to address this paradox and help establish the identity and contribution of these fields, this article presents the concepts of circular economy, industrial symbiosis and sustainable development, summarizing their complex and often intertwined evolutionary paths, focusing on relevant developments and implementation challenges. In addition, the authors point out the divergences and interrelations of these concepts and link them to other adjacent concepts and research fields, such as ecological modernisation and the green economy. Additionally, the potential contribution of industrial symbiosis and the circular economy to sustainable development and to the Sustainable Development Goals set in the United Nations Agenda 2030 is briefly discussed.

O sistema de Economia Circular e a Agenda 2030: análise da evolução em Portugal

“…Os desafios da implementação do DS têm-se tornado cada vez mais evidentes ao longo dos últimos 30 anos (Cecchin et al 2021). Com efeito, embora as referências às preocupações ambientais remontem à década de 60 do século passado, o conceito de DS, e a necessidade de integrar as questões ambientais e sociais na definição de políticas económicas, é claramente identificado e assumido no Relatório Brunddtland 26 -Our Common Future.…”

“…O conceito de EC tem recebido um amplo e crescente interesse, quer de académicos, quer de profissionais, e tem sido analisado no âmbito de diferentes áreas de pesquisa, desde a Engenharia, Economia, Ecologia, Arquitetura e Urbanismo, Biologia, entre outras. O sistema de EC é visto como um modo de operacionalizar e implementar o DS (Cecchin et al 2021;Kirchher et al 2017;Vasiljevic-Shikaleska, et al, 2017) existindo, assim, muitos conceitos e representações deste sistema alternativo ao sistema produtivo linear. De acordo com a EEA (2016), a EC é um sistema que procura respeitar os limites do planeta através de uma maior utilização de recursos renováveis e recicláveis, redução do consumo de matérias, energia e redução das emissões poluentes.…”

Life Cycle Sustainability Analysis of Resource Recovery from Waste Management Systems in a Circular Economy Perspective Key Findings from This Special Issue

“…It is time for CE-based societies where responsible and sustainable manners of managing waste are implemented and pursued. A successful transition should be, however, envisioned, designed, tested and implemented to ensure production, distribution and consumption of value-added waste-derived commodities that respond to the three dimensions of sustainability, or to the seventeen United Nations sustainable development goals [28,29].…”

Core Elements Towards Circularity: Evidence From the European Countries

“…Savings of resources depend on how quickly products are collected from consumers, reach recycling sites, and how quickly they are processed. The shorter duration of the processes also leads to a lower need for material (and natural) resources [19,21,54].…”

“…The efficient use of resources could help to protect the environment but may hamper economic growth or vice versa. So, the modelling will help to define these boundaries [21].…”