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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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Policy 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 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

Direct and indirect reduction in economic costs

Cost Savings

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)

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

Construction Materials and Products

Account for the systems perspective during the design process, to use the right materials, to design for appropriate lifetime and to design for extended future use

Design for the future

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

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

Manage

Asset Management

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

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

The built environment, including housing, commercial buildings, and the necessary infrastructure for mobility, is essential for our livelihoods, but:
- the extraction of minerals used to produce construction materials is responsible for a quarter of global land use change,
- approximately 40% of global GHG emissions can be attributed to buildings’ construction, use and demolition, and
- construction and demolition processes drive nearly one-third of all material consumption. 

Making the built environment more circular must prioritise a heavy reduction in material use—while also closing the loop on materials and bringing secondary and renewable material choices to the fore. Our four key solutions for the built environment are:
- Make the most of what already exists: Make the most of existing materials by reusing, repurposing, upgrading and renovating following circular approaches. Where new builds are needed, use secondary materials and be as efficient as possible with urban planning solutions that follow circular design principles so that buildings can be reused, repurposed, and easily disassembled in the future.
- Be as energy efficient as possible: From the design phase, utilise circular strategies to create material- and energy efficient buildings. Couple these designs with a rollout of clean energy solutions, and prioritise energy-efficient appliances and retrofitting. 
- Utilise secondary materials: Maximise the high-value reuse of buildings and components where possible. Ideally, enable the utilisation of construction and demolition outputs and ensure that as much of it as possible is recycled to avoid the need for virgin materials, such as sand and gravel.
- Prioritise circular materials and approaches: Transition to using renewable wood, timber or cross-laminated timber instead of steel and concrete, or move to other locally available materials. Utilise mainstream modular construction and prioritise lightweight frames and structures to reduce cement and steel use, as well as green roofs where possible.



🏢 Built Environment

Communities

Governments

Buildings and infrastructures often include many types of components and materials used in ways that make disassembly or repurposing difficult. Some of the barriers can be solved by integrating circular concepts over the entire lifecycle of buildings and infrastructures. Flexible and modular design facilitates repurposing in response to changing needs over the life of a building and supports lifetime extension, as modular constructions are often easier to renovate. Design for disassembly (DfD) enables deconstruction instead of demolition at the end of life and recovery of high value components and materials such as doors, flooring, windows and other elements before demolition. Selective demolition, finally, allows to retain the structural integrity of a building while refurbishing it for new uses. These practices not only increase the material reused and value recovered at the end-of-life of buildings, but are often labour-intensive, creating more jobs than conventional demolition. As such, they can spur local innovation and industry, preserve local character and heritage of buildings, while reducing landfill costs and limiting the need for virgin and often carbon-intensive materials.

City governments can promote the adoption of these practices by providing locally appropriate guidance on flexible and modular design, design for disassembly and selective demolition, and including these principles in their procurement guidelines. They can also enable such practices through end-of-life standards and regulation. Additionally, they can undertake a cost-benefit analysis of deconstruction, building material reuse and DfD in the city compared to demolition and new build. This type of analysis can encourage circular approaches and help cities set targets for construction and demolition, waste minimisation and material reuse in their plans, as well as standardise design for modularity and disassembly. Finally, cities can create enabling conditions for the upscaling of such solutions by supporting digital tools such as material passports and Building Information Modelling (BIM). 
For these strategies to be successful, the city can take an active role in awareness building and demonstrating circular approaches in city owned buildings. It is also important to involve relevant stakeholders in the planning and implementation of building deconstruction and disassembly. Cities need to involve and support collaboration among representatives of their planning and construction departments, and representatives of property developers, construction companies, neighbourhood groups, deconstruction companies, and recycling and waste management companies.


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🏢  Disassembly, selective deconstruction and demolition of buildings and infrastructure

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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  In cooperation with kadawittfeldarchitektur, we planned the RAG administration building in Essen that was completed in 2017. A quality assurance process for the choice of materials was implemented that goes far beyond the legal standard for new buildings. Particular attention was paid to building products that are in direct contact with the interior. By using building products with low emission values and healthy content, a high quality of the interior air is guaranteed. Green walls and a dust-binding carpet ensure a pleasant indoor climate.
The multifunctional, extensive green roof creates a high-quality space for recreation and functions as a retention area for rainwater. For energy production and as a shading measure, pergolas equipped with PV modules were erected over the usable area and multiple charging stations for electric cars and e-bikes were built.
To ensure a conversion at the end of the building’s lifecycle, flexible and circular constructions were implemented in the design - instead of load-bearing interior walls, lightweight walls were installed.
In order to increase the separability and regeneration of the materials, adhesive bonding was largely replaced by mechanical connections. A carpet made of regenerative fibres and a C2C-certified parquet flooring were used as the floor covering. Both are part of a manufacturer's take-back system. All materials used are documented in a Material Passport that turns the building into a raw material depot for valuable materials.
The RAG building is DGNB Platinum certified.          
    Usage of regenerative sources of energy Designed to be flexible and reusable Improved indoor air quality Closed water cycle  

Wooden Nursery / Djuric Tardio Architectes        
© Clément Guillaume+ 27
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© Clément GuillaumeProgram. The project concept grew out of a phase of research and development by the office. The request for proposals issued by the municipal government of Paris was an opportunity to implement this system to build a 48-cradle nursery. Modular and nomadic, the building fulfills the requirements for rehousing Parisian children deprived of their usual child care establishments undergoing works. Thus, the building is designed to be disassembled, moved and reassembled. Inaugurated in the 6th arrondissement where it will remain for 2 years, thereafter the nursery will be relocated to the 13th arrondissement, in keeping with the specifications brief.© Clément GuillaumeSite. The French Senate made available to the city of Paris an area of the Jardin du Luxembourg located close to the Rue Guynemer. The sloping, tree-lined alley, whose tree roots could not be damaged by the construction, lay above quarries located at a depth of 15m below, which threatened the stability of the ground and trees above. The temporary construction of the nursery provided the Senate with the opportunity to fill these dangerous underlying cavities. The site will be restored to its initial state in 2 years’ time thanks to foundations on micro piles.© Clément GuillaumeMaster plan© Clément GuillaumeArchitectural approach. The Jardin du Luxembourg is an exceptional site. Therefore, the building had to take into account the constraint of a short-term existence and the requirement of a harmonious insertion. This high-performing and bio-sourced building was designed with the principle of reversibility. It can be entirely reconfigured to be utilized for this program or others (emergency housing, offices, etc.), in order to serve new needs and future uses. The Luxembourg site will be identically returned to its original state in two years and the building will be erected elsewhere.© Clément Guillaume© Clément Guillaume© Clément GuillaumeConstruction system and materials. The design of the nursery is based on a primary dismountable structure inspired by a construction system of Jean Prouvé’s, enabling the manipulation of self-bearing modules. The assemblages are borrowed from traditional Japanese systems. The structural envelope is prefabricated in the workshop and the interior layout and utilities are also modular.© Clément Guillaume© Clément Guillaume
See allShow less Location to be used only as a reference. It could indicate city/country but not exact address.
Published on March 13, 2020Cite:  "Wooden Nursery / Djuric Tardio Architectes" 13 Mar 2020. ArchDaily. Accessed . <https://www.archdaily.com/935476/wooden-nursery-djuric-tardio-architectes> ISSN 0719-8884 

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Paris

Municipality of Paris

Luxembourg Nursery 

<p>Paris supported the design and construction of the Luxembourg nursery, a temporary children's nursery in the Jardin du Luxembourg. The building is constructed with sustainably sourced materials and "designed for disassembly", allowing it to be moved and repurposed to meet the city’s future needs.</p>