Business case

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)

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

Collecting waste from households and businesses by means of refuse bins, wheeled bins, containers, etc., and providing treatment, incineration, materials recovery and reclamation, and disposal of hazardous and non-hazardous waste

Waste Management

Producing building materials and finished and semi-finished building products for construction

Construction Materials and Products

Transforming waste products into materials and lower value products within other industries

Open loop downcycling

Make collected and sorted recyclables available for use by citizens, small businesses up to large scale industrial processes. 

Use recyclables

Implementation of strategies to collect recyclable waste in order to make it accessible and available to be used as an input in industrial processes (big or small). These are door-to-door collection (higher recovery rates but more costly intensive), drop-off schemes (cheaper but less effective, more common in cities with high housing density), or a combination of the two, and their corresponding incentive schemes. 

Collect recyclables

Infrastructure for citizens or cities to sort waste and extract recyclables, including incentives and pay-as-you-throw policies, as well as clear and targeted communications campaigns.

Sort recyclables

Collection of waste arising from commercial and industrial actors

Collect non residential

Collect organic waste generated by households and related businesses for use in, for example, composting and anaerobic digestion facilities.

Collect organic

Other

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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  News item | 23-09-2016 | 17:10The Netherlands is famous for its bike paths, now it has opened the world’s first bike path made from recycled toilet paper.    Image: GWW totaal  The bike path runs from Friesian provincial capital Leeuwarden to the town of Stiens. A consortium of local authorities and construction companies (Wetterskip Fryslân (Friesland’s water company), Province of Friesland, Stowa, Jansma & Roelofs, Esha Infra Solutions and KNN Cellulose joined forces to use the fibres from paper to make asphalt.Waste water Every year, 180,000 tons of toilet paper is flushed down the loo. On average a ton of asphalt requires 3 kilos of fibre, the industry needs around 10 to 15 thousand tons a year. The consortium put its best minds together to set up a process to recover the cellulose from waste water so it can be added to bitumen to prevent so-called “dripping”. In other words by increasing the viscosity of the asphalt it lasts longer. This unique process is a step towards making road construction more sustainable.
 Green Deal At the same time, everyone benefits from the circular economy. The water company finds a profitable outlet for getting rid of its slib - normally a costly business. And for the other partners in the circle, less energy and raw materials are used and therefore costs are reduced. The consortium is planning to construct two more bike paths from toilet paper.Water hub It’s no accident that Leeuwarden is the location for this pioneering technique as it is home to the European Technical Water Hub center WaterCampus and hosts the annual Watermatch conference.
 The project Van Afval naar Asfalt is part of the Green Deal made between the Ministries of Economic Affairs and Infrastructure and the Environment in 2014.

Wetterskip Fryslan

Province of Friesland

Stowa

Jansma & Roelofs

Esha Infra Solutions

KNN Cellulose

Leeuwarden has opened the world's first bike path made from recycled toilet paper. A consortium of local authorities and construction companies (Wetterskip Fryslan - Friesland's water company, Province of Friesland, Stowa, Jansma &amp; Roelofs, Esha Infra Solutions and KNN Cellulose) joined forces to use the fibres from paper to make asphalt. Read more at:

Repurposing toilet paper into asphalt

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The Circularity Gap Report: Friesland is a joint initiative led by Circulair Friesland, the Province of Friesland, and Circle Economy to track Friesland’s progress toward a more circular economy while also serving as a model for other regions. As the organizations behind this dashboard, we aim to provide structured indicators to measure key aspects of circularity—such as resource efficiency, waste reduction, and circular jobs—alongside on-the-ground case studies that highlight innovative local initiatives. This approach helps policymakers, businesses, and communities assess progress, address challenges, and accelerate Friesland’s transition to a circular economy. In doing so, Friesland is working toward meeting the national goal of reducing primary resource use by 50% by 2030 and achieving a fully circular economy in the Netherlands by 2050.

Beyond Friesland, this dashboard is designed as a replicable tool that can be implemented in other regions worldwide. By fostering comprehensive comparisons, it enables knowledge sharing and collaboration, allowing regions to learn from one another and scale successful strategies. In addition to tracking current trends, the monitor offers forward-looking recommendations to drive circular development—both within Friesland and beyond—helping to create a more sustainable global economy.

This case study collection supports the dashboard, in showcasing circular economy projects and initiatives already occurring in the region.

CGR Friesland

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Producing agricultural products and processing them into food and beverageproducts for consumption

Agri/Food

Utilise waste streams as a source of secondary resources and recover waste for reuse and recycling

Use waste as a resource

**Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all**

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Billions of people still lack access to safe water, sanitation, and hygiene, despite improvement in the provision of these basic services. Water scarcity is a growing problem in many parts of the world, and conflicts and climate change are exacerbating the issue. 
Water and sanitation are at the core of sustainable development, and the range of services they provide underpin poverty reduction, economic growth, and environmental sustainability. However, in recent decades overexploitation, pollution, and climate change have led to severe water stress in locales across the world.  
In addition, water pollution is a significant challenge that affects both human health and the environment in many countries. 

Today, 2.2 billion people lack access to safely managed drinking water, and more than 4.2 billion people lack safely managed sanitation. Climate change is exacerbating the situation, with increasing disasters such as floods and droughts. 80 percent of wastewater in the world flows back into the ecosystem without being treated or reused, and 70 percent of the world’s natural wetland extent has been lost, including a significant loss of freshwater species. 

The COVID-19 pandemic poses an additional impediment, impairing access for billions of people to safely manage drinking water, sanitation, and hygiene services – services desperately needed to prevent the virus from spreading. 

Boosting infrastructure investment, improving cross-sectoral coordination, and addressing climate change are key to getting SDG6 back on track.

Sources: [https://sdgs.un.org/goals/goal6](https://sdgs.un.org/goals/goal6)
[https://sdgs.un.org/topics/water-and-sanitation](https://sdgs.un.org/topics/water-and-sanitation)



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6. Clean water and sanitation  

Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all

**Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns**

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The world is seriously off track in its effort to halve per-capita food waste and losses by 2030.The COVID-19 pandemic has had significant impacts on consumption and production patterns, with disruptions to global supply chains and changes in consumer behaviour. 

Responsible consumption and production must be an integral part of the recovery from the pandemic. 
But the global economy also needs to speed up the decoupling of economic growth from resource use by maximizing the socio-economic benefits of resources while minimizing their negative impacts. 

Reporting on corporate sustainability has tripled since the beginning of the SDG period, but the private sector will need to significantly improve reporting on activities that contribute to the SDGs. 

This primarily entails environmentally sound management of "toxic chemicals" A substantial use of chemicals is essential to meet the social and economic goals of the world community, and these can be used with a high degree of safety when best practices are followed.  Gross chemical contamination, with grave damage to human health, genetic structures reproductive outcomes, and the environment, has been continuing within some of the world's most important industrial areas, and restoration will require major investment as well as the development of new techniques.
Effective control of the generation, storage, treatment, recycling and reuse, transport, recovery and disposal of hazardous wastes is another similar challenge. 
In addition,  solid wastes include all domestic refuse and non-hazardous wastes such as commercial and institutional wastes, street sweepings construction debris, and, in some countries, human wastes. As hazardous waste is frequently intermixed with other waste, this poses particular management challenges.
Finally, this target ensures that radioactive waste is safely managed, transported, stored and disposed of, with a view to protecting human health and the environment. 

To deliver SDG12, it is crucial to implement policies that support the shift to sustainable practices and decouple economic growth from resource use.

Sources: [https://sdgs.un.org/goals/goal12](https://sdgs.un.org/goals/goal12)
[https://sdgs.un.org/topics/chemicals-and-waste](https://sdgs.un.org/topics/chemicals-and-waste)

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12. Responsible consumption and production

Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns

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

Cycle strategies aim to cycle and reuse materials at their highest value: they maximise the volume of secondary materials re-entering the economy, ultimately minimising the need for virgin material inputs and therefore also narrowing flows. Of course, virgin materials will always be needed to a degree: all materials degrade and can’t be cycled infinitely, use energy, and require blending with virgin materials to maintain strength and functionality.

Cycle

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**These 17 Goals recognize that ending poverty and other deprivations must go hand-in-hand with strategies that improve health and education, reduce inequality, and spur economic growth – all while tackling climate change and working to preserve our oceans and forests.**

The SDGs build on decades of work by countries and the UN, and especially on the Millennium Declaration adopted in September 2000 at UN Headquarters in New York which let to the elaboration of eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) to reduce extreme poverty by 2015.

In 2015, the Paris Agreement was signed. A major blueprint came out of this: The Sustainable Development Goals: 17 overarching goals—and 169 targets—that governments are aiming to meet by 2030. Significant progress has been made in terms of poverty, health and inequality, but there's still a way to go. This is where the circular economy comes in: by circulating resources multiple times, the circular economy tackles issues of scarcity and allows all to access what they need—without overburdening the earth. If it's implemented in a holistic way—affording attention to social considerations and the fair distribution of resources— it also offers a pathway for achieving the SDGs; and the link between the two is ever-growing. To read more about the link between the SDGs and the circular economy, click [here](https://www.circle-economy.com/blogs/how-the-circular-economy-can-help-us-reach-the-sustainable-development-goals).

It is the Division for Sustainable Development Goals (DSDG) in the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA) which provides substantive support and capacity-building for the SDGs and their related thematic issues. TheDSDG plays a key role in the evaluation of UN systemwide implementation of the 2030 Agenda and in advocacy and outreach activities relating to the SDGs. In order to make the 2030 Agenda a reality, broad ownership of the SDGs must translate into a strong commitment by all stakeholders to implement the global goals. DSDG aims to help facilitate this engagement.
Alongside this, the annual High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development serves as the central UN platform for the follow-up and review of the SDGs.
In addition, the UN Secretary-General presents an annual SDG Progress report, which is developed in cooperation with the UN System, and based on the global indicator framework and data produced by national statistical systems and information collected at the regional level.

To read more information: [https://sdgs.un.org/goals](https://sdgs.un.org/goals)

Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

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 Het programma is ontstaan aan de Ambitietafel Sluiten Nutriëntenkringlopen. Het consortium aan deze tafel bestaat uit Wetterskip, Agricycling, Mulder Agro, Kollectievenberied, BoerenNatuur, gemeente Leeuwarden, gemeente Súdwest Fryslân, Provincie Fryslân, Wetsus, CEW, Van Hall Larenstein, Bioclear Earth, NHL Stenden Hogeschool, Hanze Hogeschool, RUG Campus Fryslân, Innovatiepact Friesland & Vereniging Circulair Friesland. Zij hebben gezamenlijk het thema verkend en dit naar een programma-opdracht vertaald. Mede vanuit de drijfveer van agrariërs om een toekomstbestendige positie in het voedselsysteem te verwerven, wordt er door een groep Friese koplopers reeds gewerkt aan het sluiten van deze kringlopen: 

Bermmaaisel en GFT en reststromen uit de voedingsmiddelenindustrie. Die kringloop ambities loopt tegen een aantal knelpunten aan die opgepakt dienen te worden. En om de kringloop volledig te sluiten moet uiteindelijk ook onze poep en plas (humane excreta) weer terug naar de grond. Op dat terrein zijn de eerste stappen gezet, maar ook daar loopt men tegen drempels aan. Met het programma ‘Sluiten Nutriëntenkringlopen’ worden de gezamenlijke knelpunten geadresseerd om de kringloop van humane excreta sneller tot ontwikkeling en realiteit te brengen.  Bekijk in de onderstaande platen wat het programma Nutriëntenkringloop verder inhoudt!  

Friesland

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Vereniging Circulair Friesland

WaterCampus

Van Hall Laurenstein University of Applied Sciences

The Programma Sluiten Nutriënten Kringlopen (SNUK) aims to close nutrient cycles in Friesland by returning organic waste and human excrements to the soil as valuable resources. Through collaborative efforts, Frisian frontrunners, including farmers, researchers, and policymakers, are working to develop circular solutions for organic waste streams, such as roadside cuttings, green waste (GFT), and residual flows from the food industry. The initiative is crucial for reducing nutrient loss, enhancing soil health, and creating a more sustainable food system in Friesland.The SNUK programme showcases Friesland’s leadership in circular agriculture and nutrient management. Through collaborative action and innovation, it provides a replicable model for sustainable nutrient cycling in regional food systems.