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Circle Economy and ICLEI have partnered up to initiate the go to knowledge hub of case studies about the circular economy in cities. The Cities Collection is a repository of case studies that demonstrate the role of cities in the circular transition, and includes policies, business cases and research articles. Cases in the Collection flow into an ecosystem of digital products which support users in transitioning cities to circularity, for example [Ganbatte](https://ganbatte.world/cities/) and <a href="https://circulars.iclei.org/" target="_blank">ICLEI Circulars</a>, both part of the <a href="https://circulars.iclei.org/circle-lab-for-cities/" target = _blank">Circle Lab for Cities Programme.</a>




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Circular Cities

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Article / Report

Impact on the ease of innovation, and facilitating uptake of innovations

Innovation

Reduced green house gas emissions released into the biosphere

Reduce Emissions (SDG13)

Reduced use of virgin materials and/or an increase of the use of secondary and bio-based materials

Reduce Material Consumption (SDG12)

Minimise waste through diversion: Instead of sending waste to landfill, it is redirected into other industrial processes for handling, treatment, recycling, recovery, or reuse in various forms. 

Minimise waste through design: At the outset of a process of project, plan and design such that there is zero waste or minimal waste during production, use, and at end of life. 

Minimise Waste (SDG12)

Reduced use of fossil fuel energy sources and/or increased use of renewable energy

Reduce Energy Consumption

Extracting resources and processing them to produce materials for use bysociety

Materials and Fuels

Providing electricity and gas services, including traditional and renewable energy generation, natural and manufactured gas and operating gas networks

Energy Utilities and Independent Power Producers

Producing electric cables and wires, power-generating equipment, including solar modules, motors, power turbines, as well as electronic equipment and instruments, including computer chips, communication equipment, analytical instruments, lasers, display screens, point-of-sales machines, security system equipment, and healthcare equipment

Electrical and Electronic Equipment

Refining and processing ores and producing ferrous and non-ferrous metal and glass products, including packaging

Metal and Glass

Ensure renewable, reusable, non-toxic resources are utilised as materials and energy in an efficient way

Prioritise regenerative resources

While resources are in-use, maintain, repair and upgrade them to maximise their lifetime and give them a second life through take back strategies when applicable

Stretch the lifetime

Utilise bio-based, reusable, non-toxic and non-critical materials

Regenerative materials

Replace energy sources with less impactful alternatives and enact energy efficiency measures

Regenerative energy

Give products and parts another life after their end-of-use

Maximise lifetime of products after use

Designing to enable multiple uses and lifecycles of a product and its materials

Design for cyclability

Implement innovation programmes

'Manage' influences the use and function of physical and material elements within the urban environment. 

Manage

'Mobilise' sets the direction of and builds momentum towards long-term change, while also determining how this direction is determined and governed.

Mobilise

Govern the Transition

Site planning for circular material use

Circular use of public-owned assets (land, buildings and equipment)

Maintenance to extend useful life

Performance standards

Technology standards

Eliminate waste by maximizing the recovery of resources at the end of the use phase so that they can be reintroduced into production processes


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Recover

Process waste into valuable industrial inputs or consumer products; distribute processed waste to users.

Process waste and ensure its re-entry into industry at its highest value

Cities consume about 75% of global energy and emit between 50% and 60% of global greenhouse gases (UN-Habitat). To reduce the negative impact of their energy consumption, cities need to shift away from fossil fuels and move towards renewable energy sources. Such a shift will help cities work towards their climate change mitigation and adaptation action plans. Renewable energy technologies such as wind, water, solar, and geothermal can also help improve access to energy in vulnerable and marginalised neighbourhoods through, for example, decentralised, off-grid solutions.

Renewable energy technologies can harvest the energy in nature’s processes, such as wind, and solar radiation and geothermal heat, that can be replenished within a human lifespan. In contrast, fossil fuels are materials that are not replenished within a human lifespan and are combusted for energy, losing the fuel material and resulting in emissions.

Local governments can develop sustainable energy plans, considering different energy resources and requirements, to develop a robust strategy for the development of renewable energy technologies and infrastructure throughout the city. They can also institute specific legislation and tax systems to regulate energy production and consumption, incentivise research and development of cleaner, more efficient technologies. Via Power Purchase Agreements cities can buy renewable energy from green energy providers and fix the price in order to provide security to financial institutions to finance renewable energy infrastructure. Furthermore, increasing awareness and facilitating capacity-building on planning urban sustainable energy projects can help the uptake of clean energy across the city by different stakeholders—from citizens to businesses and institutions. Facilitating collaboration, then, will be crucial, since private companies operate most of the world’s energy systems.


⚡ Energy Systems

Businesses

Governments

Buildings house all production activities, and also are where people spend the majority of their time. Consequently ‘buildings’ consume  resources, namely energy and water, and produce large amounts of waste. 

The use phase of buildings represents the largest resource flows during their lifecycle. Optimised operations for different types of buildings—such as offices, industrial and commercial facilities or houses—can reduce energy, water and waste consumption, as well as operating costs, and enhance the wellbeing of users. 

Local governments can support Information and communication technology (ICT) innovation for the circular management of building operations for instance, by adopting new technologies, digital services and systems that can help with the monitoring and evaluation of (water and energy) efficiency. At the local level, policy can also set new building standards that can scale up net-zero waste, energy and water buildings. Then, the uptake of  ‘green contracts’—agreements that require the contractor to develop and implement a site management plan and favour certain types of resources—can also stimulate circular operations by legally ingraining circularity in the relationship between building owners, operators and users.


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🏢⚡  Optimised facility management

Currently, most Construction and Demolition (C&D) waste is mixed and used for backfilling or sent to landfill. Some of it is incinerated or downcycled into products of much lower value. This has become a pressing issue in many urban areas due to the sheer volume of C&D waste, which often is the biggest proportion of the waste stream. However, the built environment in cities is already a “mine” from which to recover valuable materials from the existing building stocks. 

Improving separation of different materials at demolition sites and establishing or improving facilities for reuse and recovery of C&D waste allows for value to be retained within the local economy, reducing the burden of urban C&D waste management and helping cities achieve a more resource-efficient urbanisation. By recovering building components from buildings that are to be demolished, fewer new components need to be produced, and fewer raw materials need to be extracted. This reduces environmental impacts and emissions at each step of the value chain, from extraction to transportation and manufacturing. 

Cities can influence the type of waste management infrastructures developed within the city’s borders, as well as how different facilities throughout the city connect to one another. They can invest and support in developing infrastructure, both physical and digital, that can facilitate the closing of material and energy loops throughout the urban built environment. This can take the form of C&D recycling facilities, facilities for reconditioning of deconstructed building elements, and material and component marketplaces to collect and recover disassembled pre-used building components and material. Finally, they can invest and facilitate research to map the building stock aiding in identification of recovery opportunities and adequate demolition practices.


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🏢  Construction and demolition waste reuse and recycling

Energy efficiency means to use less energy to perform a function—that is, eliminating energy waste, a core strategy in a circular economy. Since 2015, global improvements in energy efficiency have been declining. Reversing this trend will be needed to achieve global climate and sustainability goals. Indeed, energy efficiency could deliver more than 40% of the reduction in global energy-related greenhouse gas emissions over the next 20 years ([IEA](https://www.iea.org/topics/energy-efficiency)). In addition to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, energy efficiency can also help reduce energy extraction and imports and bring cost savings for households and industries.

Energy efficiency can be applied to a range of sectors, such as in buildings, energy generation, industry and mobility ([EESI](https://www.eesi.org/topics/energy-efficiency/description)). In buildings, energy efficiency can lead to the creation of zero-energy buildings. In regards to power generation, energy efficiency could mean smart grids for electric generation, distribution, and consumption. For mobility, energy efficiency could mean vehicles that require less fuel to cover the same distance as well as better rail and truck transportation. 

Cities can create energy efficiency programmes that involve both the public and private sector. Actions involving the private sector can be implemented in various forms, such as: regulations (e.g. setting energy efficiency standards in buildings), incentivisation (subsidising energy saving products) and informative campaigns (encouraging energy efficient behaviours). Actions involving the public sector may also be implemented in various forms, such as: public procurement standards (e.g. energy efficient power generation equipment), retrofitting public buildings (e.g. improving insulation) and upgrading energy inefficient infrastructure (e.g. replacing lighting with more energy efficient alternatives such as LED street lighting). These programmes generally have goals and timelines in which the actions are intended to be taken.


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⚡  Energy efficiency improvement programmes

Renewable energy already accounts for over 50% of the newly installed power generation capacity ([IRENA](https://www.irena.org/publications/2019/Apr/Global-energy-transformation-A-roadmap-to-2050-2019Edition)). As the power generation shifts towards renewables, oil and gas assets will need decommissioning and demand for materials will increase to meet the need for new energy infrastructure. However, secondary materials are rarely available. The majority of materials and equipment from old energy infrastructure is downcycled rather than reused or repurposed. Whereas recycling processes for renewable energy equipment are not widespread yet, mainly because until now, the issue of their disposal and recycling has not existed on a large scale. 

The circular economy could reduce virgin material extraction and offer high-value alternatives through recycling and decommissioning old energy infrastructure—from recycling glass in solar panels to repurposing wind turbines into bikeshed and bridges. The global market for disposal and recycling of solar and wind equipment could be worth upwards of $360 million by 2024, meaning great opportunities for green job and workforce development ([Better Energy](https://www.betterenergy.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Waste-and-Recycling-Fact-Sheet.pdf)). Repurposing and recycling these assets can also reduce emissions associated with the disposal of their components and create revenue to finance decommissioning through the reselling of components at end-of-life.

Local governments can facilitate this transition by setting the right regulations that enable repurposing and recycling of these assets, offer upskilling and reskilling opportunities for workers that could focus on decommissioning and recycling assets as we move away from building new facilities, and require approved end-of-life management plans to be included in tenders for energy projects managed by the city. Governments can also support research on recycling technologies and ensure that financial resources are available for end of life handling of the equipment even if the original parties are unable to perform it (e.g. if they have gone out of business)—via a performance bond or other surety.


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⚡  Recycling and repurposing energy equipment

Slow strategies aim to keep materials in use for as long as possible, for example through design for durability and repairability. A more circular economy is also a slower one: materials, components, and products—and even buildings and infrastructure—that we lock in stocks are made to last. This will lower material demand in the long run, in essence also serving to narrow resource flows.

Slow

Regenerate strategies phase out hazardous or toxic materials and processes and substitute them with regenerative biomass resources. A circular economy aims to mimic natural cycles—by shifting to more regenerative farming practices, for example—while also maximising the share of circular biomass that enters the economy. Regeneration can happen both at the systems level (by designing regenerative processes) as well as at the product level (by switching synthetic to organic fertilisers, for example).

Regenerate

Impacts

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Industries

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A framework of policy instruments that enabled and encourage the transition to the circular economy

Policy Instruments

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A framework of policy instruments that enable and stimulate the transition to the circular economy

The principles of a circular economy concern designing out waste, regenerating ecosystems and keeping items in use. Decoupling the economy from material flows—improving the rate of resource productivity faster than the economic growth rate—is also a consistent guide. By evolving with the growing number of applications of circular economy principles, and consolidating these strategies across thematic areas, Circle Economy’s Key Elements Framework (KE) renders the elements of the circular economy salient and serves as a basis to derive contextual strategies and interventions. 


The Framework consists of:
- Core Elements: Activities directly handling product or material flows; and uniquely,
- Enabling Elements: those that remove obstacles for core actors.


Key elements of the circular economy

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Circle Economy's framework of strategies and activities that define the circular economy

The Circular City Actions Framework provides urban changemakers with five complementary strategies they can use to start working towards a more circular system. 

The framework is action-based to provide users with concrete strategic directions and showcase the desired outcomes of each strategy. 
The framework consists of five complementary **strategies**, under which **sub-strategies** provide further detail. Finally, each sub-strategy consists of a diversity of tangible **solutions** which are framed in relation to key thematic areas. 

Note: solutions are currently focused on:
- 🍏 **Food systems**
- 🏢  **Built environment**
- 👕📱  **Consumer goods**
- ⚡ **Energy Systems**
- 🚌 **Mobility Systems**
- 💧 **Water Systems**

More thematic areas are coming soon...

'Click through each of the five strategy cards below to explore the framework and circular economy case studies in more depth!'



This framework was developed in collaboration with ICLEI, Metabolic and Ellen MacArthur Foundation with support from the MAVA Foundation. Read more about it [here]( https://circulars.iclei.org/action-framework/). 



Circular City Actions Framework

An action-based framework for local governments working towards circular cities

Thematic Areas

City Stakeholders

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Based on the work of [Bocken et al. (2016)](https://www.researchgate.net/publication/309699661_Product_design_and_business_model_strategies_for_a_circular_economy), the Four Flows Framework serves as a simple framework for managing resource flows in a circular economy by using less (Narrow), using for longer (Slow), using again (Cycle), and using clean, regenerative materials and energy (Regenerate).

These different principles of circular economy can be applied to our socioeconomic metabolism: we can design stocks like buildings, infrastructure, machinery, and vehicles to be rich resource mines for the future, and design manufactured goods and consumables to be cycled and made regenerative. Furthermore, the focus must also centre on getting more value out of fewer materials. Achieving the aims of a circular economy—minimising material use, regenerating the Earth, and preventing material losses—can be done through these four key strategies mentioned above.

Source: Circle Economy. (2023). *[The circularity gap report 2023](https://www.circularity-gap.world/2023)* (p.22). Amsterdam: Circle Economy. 

Four Flows Framework

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The Netherlands is increasingly focusing on green energy, and new wind turbines are being built at a rapid pace, both on land and at sea. But what should be done with the wind turbine blades when they are decommissioned? A circular recycling process has been set up in Eemshaven in Groningen, which covers everything from dismantling these rotor blades to reusing the raw materials. “You can use them in 3D printers and countless other applications,” says Maaike van Heeren, communications consultant at Chemport Europe, an incubator for green chemistry, which is involved in the project. 
Anyone who thinks about wind turbines soon imagines a clean environment. Although wind energy is making an indispensable contribution to the energy transition, the actual recycling of the blades is far from sustainable. They usually end up in a landfill or in an incinerator and are still rarely reused for high-end applications. This is now about to change in Groningen. Various companies, organizations and educational institutions are joining forces to set up the Decom North consortium. The aim is to make recycling viable. This is quite a daunting task: the blades are made of composite, a material as strong as steel. Yet it can be done. Chemport Europe, Groningen Seaports and the Offshore Wind Innovation Centre, among others, all play an important role in the establishment of the consortium. 
An entire chain
“Recycling composites is not new,” van Heeren points out. “But it is new that an entire chain is being set up. From dismantling, the logistics, the processing of the composites, to making new raw materials and doing research into high-end applications: it’s all happening here in Groningen.” The ultimate goal is clear. “Windmills for windmills,” says van Heeren. “However, that is not possible at the moment, because as soon as you cut into the blades, the strength goes out of the material, which is made of fiberglass and resin. Eventually, though, it should be possible. But until that time, countless other applications are possible. The great thing about this is that it is already happening – processing blades into new products. So, as a result, CO2 is being saved right now.”
Pilot plant
In a brand new pilot plant in Eemshaven, where the blades are chemically recycled, there is scope for researchers and students as part of the Knowledge-based High-value Applications Project. This project is looking for applications that are of the highest possible quality. Students from Windesheim University of Applied Sciences, Stenden and Hanze University of Applied Sciences, among others, are able to work on projects at the pilot plant. “I think it’s really cool that students from the region are involved and can contribute to the energy transition this way,” says Van Heeren. Students are able to work on different research questions. “What are all the materials that can be used? What properties does a certain raw material have? And how much CO2 can you actually save? I can see plenty of opportunities for the students.”
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Chippings from windmill blades. Photo: CRC Decom North
Shoring up shoreline banks and construction materials
Sylvia Oomen, managing director of Circular Recycling Company (CRC) is involved in the pilot plant that is coming to Eemshaven. “The aim of the plant is to make raw materials when recycling the blades and to cut down on CO2 in the process. Applications are possible in shoreline revetments (ed. a revetment serves as a protection for a shoreline bank, to protect against, among other things, wave motion). Often posts are installed there that are made of tropical hardwood. We can use raw materials from the pilot plant instead. In addition, a company like Nedcam from Heerenveen can use raw materials for printing objects in 3D. I am also excited about applications in the construction industry. The construction industry has traditionally not been particularly circular. We can use our raw materials to make more sustainable plates and posts.”
Also interesting: Quickly detect damage in wind turbine blades with Tarucca’s AI
Tests and challenges
Before any of these applications become a reality, tests and calculations must be done first. Until that happens, the consortium is turning to Neocomp in Bremen. That company processes the cut-out fiberglass and synthetic resin rotor blades into cement. Oomen: “We face major challenges. We have to be able to supply consistent, dependable materials to the construction and automotive industries, for instance. That calls for complex calculations. And we must, for example, look at tensile forces on the material by doing casting tests whereby we work with molds.
In part due to these challenges, it will take some time before the fully circular ‘windmill for windmill’ process will be in place. “There is an insane amount of force on the blades of wind turbines. If your material is not consistent, and a blade is 10 percent heavier, then you are already contending with an energy yield that is significantly less. Eventually, it should be possible to find applications for wind turbines, but until then, we already have some great products that we can make.”
Just the beginning
Oomen envisages that similar projects will be launched elsewhere in the country over the coming years. “The project is completely in line with the targets set by the Netherlands to go green. As a consumer, if you find out that your green electricity is generated by a wind turbine that is subsequently incinerated or dumped and buried, that doesn’t make you very cheerful. I am confident that as a country we are becoming increasingly aware and are taking better care of the earth.”
You can read other stories about Groningen via this link. 

South Korea

North Chungcheong

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Municipality of Chungcheongbuk-do

The IEA is at the heart of global dialogue on energy, providing authoritative analysis, data, policy recommendations, and real-world solutions to help countries provide secure and sustainable energy for all.

The IEA was created in 1974 to help co-ordinate a collective response to major disruptions in the supply of oil. While oil security this remains a key aspect of our work, the IEA has evolved and expanded significantly since its foundation.

Taking an all-fuels, all-technology approach, the IEA recommends policies that enhance the reliability, affordability and sustainability of energy. It examines the full spectrum issues including renewables, oil, gas and coal supply and demand, energy efficiency, clean energy technologies, electricity systems and markets, access to energy, demand-side management, and much more.

Since 2015, the IEA has opened its doors to major emerging countries to expand its global impact, and deepen cooperation in energy security, data and statistics, energy policy analysis, energy efficiency, and the growing use of clean energy technologies. 

International Energy Agency

<p>Photovoltaic (PV) technology is one of the most promising technologies for improving energy security and mitigating climate change. Managing end-of-life PV modules to recover valuable materials that can displace virgin ones is an important step toward meeting the challenge of sustainability.</p>