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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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Business case

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)

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

Providing air, water, rail, and land transportation for passengers, such as airlines, airports, ferries, cruise-ships, tour boat operators, marine ports, railways, train stations, tour bus operators, vehicle rental, and taxi companies, travel agencies and related services

Passenger Transport Services

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

Rethink the business model

Providing services where customers are charged only when they use it

Payment per use

Incubator and investment programmes

Create and support online platforms and physical spaces for sale, sharing and exchange of spaces, items and materials.

Facilitate second-hand markets, sharing & exchange platforms

Put enablers in place that allow circular businessesto grow, thrive and innovate (e.g. incubators, start-up funding, partnerships, innovation deals, business capacity building and testing groundsfor new business models).


Support circular and resource-efficient business innovations

The demand for transport is rising globally—but current modes are heavily material- and fossil-fuels-intensive. Emissions from the transport system could grow by 60% by 2050, and transport is the number-one user of oil worldwide. GHG emissions result not only in warming global temperatures, but also in ocean acidification, which has severe consequences for entire ecosystems and further destabilises our climate. The transport system also drives land-use change and biodiversity loss through the development of infrastructure—also releasing harmful pollutants into the ocean. Key circular solutions:

- Embrace and enable car-free lifestyles
- Invest in high-quality public transport
- Rethink unnecessary air travel
- Electrify remaining vehicles

🚌 Mobility Systems

Businesses

Governments

On average, mobility is responsible for around half of the energy that is consumed in cities (excluding industry), and with it, a large share of the greenhouse gas emissions that are generated in cities. At the same time, many mobility assets, such as private cars can remain parked for up to 92% of the day ([Ellen MacArthur Foundation](https://ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/circular-economy-opportunity-and-benefit-factsheets)). 

A combination of shared mobility options (such as public transport, bike and car sharing) and low-carbon mobility systems (such as walking and cycling) can significantly reduce the energy demand and associated emissions of moving people and goods in cities. If implemented effectively, these solutions can reduce the overall demand for vehicles by alleviating the need for personal car ownership, and consequently also reducing the extraction of virgin materials required for the production and fuelling of private vehicles.

Local governments can make low-carbon and shared mobility options a viable and preferred alternative to private vehicle use. They can improve the availability and accessibility of electric charging infrastructure for private electric vehicles. Moreover, cities can play a role in the connection and integration of different forms of shared mobility (such as bike sharing, public transport, and car sharing) through a city-wide or national online platform. Then, to discourage private car use, parking bays can be replaced with pocket parks, parking costs can be increased (in certain parts of the city), cycling lanes can be expanded, and car free zones or congestion charges introduced.


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🚌  Low-carbon and shared mobility systems

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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 MaaS Global is the world’s first true MaaS operator, and with our award-winning Whim app we’re set to make the biggest change in transport since cars became widely affordable. Whim, the first all-inclusive MaaS solution commercially available on the market, gives its users all city transport services in one step, letting them journey where and when they want with public transport, taxis, bikes, cars, and other options, all under a single subscription. MaaS as a concept MaaS is short for Mobility as a Service, bringing all means of travel to one place, easily accessed through a smartphone, anytime, anywhere. MaaS offering delivers the best of each form of transport, by leveraging technology and connectivity to meet changing consumer preferences. It offers consumers a true alternative to car ownership and therefore MaaS could be the single most powerful tool to decarbonise transport for future generations. Mobility as a Service is a revolution that will in the coming years sweep through the transportation market. New mobility services and global development are expected to drive an increase in global passenger transport spend to €8tn in 2030. Overall market driven will be by population growth, increasing urbanisation and middle-class wealth in developing nations. 

Helsinki

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Whimapp

<p>Helsinki is the first MaaS (Mobility-as-a-Service) developer city worldwide, launching Whim as a multimodal journey planning app. With three types of services, Whim offers a free option for journey planning; Whim Urban provides access to public transport, bicycles and taxis (10 Euro) and Whim Unlimited offers access to all transport types.</p><p>Whim can support the use of shared public transport and reduce the dependency on private transport.</p>