Business case

Impact on the availability of resources as well as their effect on living organisms, ecosystems, and components of the environment.

Ecological Impact

Impacts on the social fabric of the community and well-being of the individuals and families.

Social Impact

Impacts on the financial condition of a company, as well as the the economicconditions of its stakeholders and on economic systems at local, national, andglobal levels.

Economic Impact

Impact on increased knowledge and understanding as a result of the case study

Increase Awareness

Direct and indirect reduction in economic costs

Cost Savings

Scalability

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)

Extracting resources and processing them to produce materials for use bysociety

Materials and Fuels

Societal Services

Providing public and private education and support services at any level or for any profession, and governmental and public administration services, including judicial, regulatory, and legislative activities, taxation, defence, public order and safety, immigration services, foreign affairs and the administration of government programmes

Education and Government Services

Producing basic and specialty chemicals, inks, agricultural chemical such as fertilisers and pesticides, plastics including packaging, and rubber

Chemical and Plastic

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

Metal and Glass

Extracting and gathering wood through forestry and producing wood and paper products

Wood and Paper

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

Consider opportunities to create greater value and align incentives that build on the interaction between products and services

Rethink the business model

Work together throughout the supply chain, internally within organisations and with the public sector and communities to increase transparency and create joint value

Team up to create joint value

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

Regenerative materials

Upgrade, repair, and maintenance while in-use

Maximise lifetime of products in-use

Deliver products through business models that ensure maximum value

Product business models

Industry peers to industry peer collaboration to create joint value and identify synergies

Industry collaboration

Engage internally to guide employees and facilitate greater knowledge sharing between internal divisions

Internal collaboration

Using materials that can be easily reused or recycled after use

Reusable, recyclable materials and inputs

Providing DIY repair kits or spare part programmes for enabling self-repair

Self-repair, spare part service

Providing products through sharing between consumers, customers, etc.

Peer to peer sharing

Engaging in discussions with industry stakeholders to share circular economy best practices and push the industry towards greater circularity

Guidance, dialogue with industry stakeholders

Facilitate discussions and meetings between internal team members to identify circular opportunities

Dialogue with internal stakeholders

Provide guidance or professional training to educate employees to use circular economy principles

Training on the circular economy

Integrate principles of circularity into primary, secondary and tertiary curriculum and conduct workplace trainings

 Education and Curriculum

 Develop research, structure knowledge, encourage innovation networks and disseminate findings with integrity


Strengthen and advance knowledge

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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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

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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 circular economy is based on four key principles:If we narrow flows—use less—the amount of materials used or greenhouse gases emitted in the making of a product or in delivering a service decreases. This can be achieved through circular design (material efficiency or lightweighting, for example), circular business models (sharing and rental models, for example) or using materials and products more often, thereby reducing the need for new ones (multifunctional buildings, for example). Of course, the ultimate way to narrow flows is to stop using unnecessary goods or services, such as excess travel or fast fashion clothing.If we slow flows—use longer—resource use is optimised, as the length for which we can use a product expands. Durable design and materials, and service loops that extend product lifetimes such as repair, all contribute to slowing rates of extraction and use. Ultimately, we need to make the most of what we have, be it clothing, electronics or buildings, by applying strategies such as repair, refurbishing, renovation or remodelling.If we regenerate flows—use cleaner resources—fossil fuels, pollutants and toxic materials are replaced with regenerative and natural sources. This helps us maintain natural ecosystems. The clean energy transition is, therefore, also a circular activity, as is regenerative agriculture. Using regenerative materials like wood over toxic or emissions-intensive plastic or cement also serves this goal.If we cycle flows—use again—we make the most of materials and products at their end-of-life stage by creating a circular flow of resources. This is enhanced by improved collection and reprocessing of materials, as well as getting the most out of the material by creating value in each stage of reuse—for example upcycling rather than downcycling. To achieve this, products should be designed for recyclability (both technical and biological) and for disassembly, which facilitates both reuse and recycling.

        Près de trois planètes Terre seraient nécessaires si tout le monde vivait comme la population suisse   Le déséquilibre entre empreinte écologique par personne de la Suisse et la biocapacité mondiale existe depuis plusieurs décennies. Ce mode de vie est uniquement possible grâce à l'importation de ressources naturelles ainsi qu'en exploitant des biens communs globaux (comme l'atmosphère). Toutefois, ce mode de vie n’est pas durable car la consommation suisse par personne est 2,8 fois plus grande que les prestations et ressources environnementales globales disponibles par personne (1,6 hectares globaux, gha). Nous vivons donc aux dépens des générations futures et d'autres régions du globe.   Certaines régions du globe vivent aux dépens des autres   En 2017 l'empreinte écologique mondiale par personne dépasse de 1,2 gha la biocapacité mondiale disponible par personne. Cette moyenne cache toutefois d’importantes différences dans la consommation des ressources : la plupart des pays industrialisés consomment en effet plus de deux planètes Terre tandis que les pays du sous-continent indien, d'Asie du Sud-est et africains en consomment moins de une. L'empreinte par personne de la Suisse se situe dans la moyenne des pays d’Europe occidentale. Le Qatar, le Luxembourg, les Emirats arabes unis, le Bahreïn, la République de Trinité-et-Tobago, le Canada, la Mongolie, les Etats-Unis, le Kowaït, le sultanat d'Oman, l'Australie, l'Estonie, le Danemark et la Belgique ont consommé plus de 4 fois plus que la biocapacité mondiale disponible.   La consommation d'énergie de la Suisse détermine largement son empreinte écologique   Près de trois-quarts de l’empreinte de la Suisse est imputable à sa consommation d’énergie fossile. C’est également la part de l’empreinte ayant le plus augmenté au cours des dernières décennies. Nos besoins en terres de culture, en forêt et en prairies naturelles (herbage) ne sont pas sans importance. Ils représentent 24% de l'empreinte écologique totale.   La méthode L'empreinte écologique est une sorte de "comptabilité des ressources"    Elle saisit quelle part de la capacité de régénération de l’environnement est sollicitée par l’être humain. La méthode convertit l’intensité des utilisations et des charges exercées sur la nature, telles que la culture des champs, la production de fibres végétales ou l’absorption de CO2 en équivalents de superficie qui sont nécessaires pour produire ces ressources par des moyens renouvelables ou absorber ces émissions. L’empreinte écologique exprime toute consommation, de quelque nature qu’elle soit, en superficie requise, nommé hectare global, et montre dans quelle mesure l’utilisation de la nature dépasse ou non la capacité de régénération de la biosphère (biocapacité). Ainsi, une utilisation des ressources naturelles est durable tant que l'empreinte écologique ne dépasse pas la biocapacité.  
L’empreinte écologique ne mesure pas tout   Elle considère uniquement une partie de la dimension environnementale de la durabilité, et fait abstraction des dimensions sociale et économique. L’empreinte mesure les flux et ignore l’état des stocks de ressources naturelles. Elle ne tient pas compte de la destruction d’écosystèmes ou de ressources naturelles renouvelables et non renouvelables, de la perte de biodiversité, de la consommation d’eau douce ou encore de la pollution due aux métaux lourds ou aux émissions de polluants difficilement dégradables. L’empreinte écologique n’est donc pas un indicateur complet de la durabilité.
Une étude publiée en 2006 par les offices fédéraux de la statistique (OFS) du développement territorial (ARE), de l'environnement (OFEV) et de la Direction de la coopération et du développement (DDC) a évalué la méthode du "Global Footprint Network" avec les données de la statistique publique suisse. Les résultats démontrent une excellente concordance entre ces sources de données.
La méthode du Global Footprint Network, issue de sources internationales (principalement les Nations Unies), a été adaptée sur la base des recommandations de cette étude ainsi que de rapports gouvernementaux d’autres pays. Des résultats mis à jour et améliorés sont publiés chaque année par le Global Footprint Network. Ceux-ci incluent l’empreinte écologique et la biocapacité de la Suisse ainsi que de 190 autres pays.   Informations supplémentaires 

Switzerland

Basel

Zurich

Bern

Lucerne

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Swiss Recycling

<p>Despite a high recycling rate in Switzerland, Swiss Recycling wants to take it further by connecting stakeholders from the whole value chain in order to spiral upward in knowledge-sharing and in implementing environment-oriented solutions.<strong> </strong></p>