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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

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)

Extracting resources and processing them to produce materials for use bysociety

Materials and Fuels

Societal Services

Producing building materials and providing services to create residential and non-residential infrastructure and real estate


Construction and Infrastructure

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

Use waste as a resource

Engaging in discussions with government bodies and policymakers to push for regulations that support the circular economy

Advocacy for circular economy policy

Biogas produced by the anaerobic digestion of organic solid waste can be used as an energy source for cooking, lighting and generate electricity, replacing thus other fuels. Moreover, the treatment of organic waste alleviates the solid waste crisis in urban and peri-urban area if the developing world.


Use biogas

Locally produced food has to travel shorter, which means less fuel is consumed and less greenhouse gases are generated. Moreover, buying locally produced food helps local farmers and markets and creates more jobs in the local businesses. 


Produce locally

Other

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

Mobilise

Visions and Ambitions

Roadmaps and strategies and targets

Redesign systems to lay the foundation for circular activities and enable the transition to a circular economy 

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Rethink

High-level changes to policy and practice (such as taxation systems, investment and procurement guidelines and criteria) that disincentivize activities that perpetuate linear economic systems, as well as vision-setting (goals, roadmaps) to catalyze
action on circularity across the city

Eliminate linear incentives and set goals and incentives for circularity

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

Governments

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

Policies

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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

Urban Opportunities

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

     Infrastructure touches the life of every Londoner: from turning on the taps in the morning, to travelling to work, to switching off the lights at night. Infrastructure also supports London's productivity and competitiveness, and can reduce the impact we have on our environment.
    

London

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Municipality of London

In the chapter 10 of the Plan, the implementation of the Circular Economy model is outlined. The consultation report sets out the ambition to significantly reduce the amount of waste being disposed of, by helping London to move towards a circular economy, where materials are reused, remanufactured or recycled rather than thrown away.

London Infrastructure Plan 2050

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This collection comes from the <a href="https://www.circle-economy.com/circular-jobs-initiative/" target="_blank">Circular Jobs Initiative</a>, an initiative of Circle Economy.

The workforce is an essential lever for transforming our economy from linear to circular. The Circular Jobs Initiative aims to maximise the employment opportunities offered by the circular economy. It provides practical support and insights to businesses and governments that want to adopt circular strategies that have a positive social impact.The Circular Jobs Initiative works through three focus areas: 

- Upskilling the workforce

- Quality of work

- Inclusive job opportunities 

CJI has defined circular jobs as any occupation that directly involves or indirectly supports one of the strategies of the circular economy. It distinguishes between three types of circular jobs: core, enabling and indirectly circular jobs.

**Core circular jobs** are all jobs that ensure the closure of raw material cycles, including jobs in repair, renewable energy, waste and resource management. 

**‍Enabling circular jobs** are jobs that remove barriers for and enable the acceleration and upscaling of core circular activities, including jobs that arise in leasing, education, design and digital technology. 

**Indirectly circular jobs** are jobs that occur in other sectors that do not play a direct role in furthering the transition to the circular economy but can still adopt circular strategies. They include jobs that provide services to core circular strategies, including jobs in information services, logistics and the public sector.

The Knowledge Hub Collection includes examples of circular jobs, publications, reports, case studies and policies different organisations, governments and businesses are already using to advocate for a person-centred circular economy. 

Visit the <a href="https://www.circle-economy.com/circular-jobs-initiative/" target="_blank">Circular Jobs Initiative</a>

Visit the <a href="http://jobsmonitor.circle-economy.com/" target="_blank">Circular Jobs Monitor</a>

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Circular Jobs Initiative

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Impact on the quantity or quality of jobs, and shifts in the labour market

Jobs

Reduced green house gas emissions released into the biosphere

Reduce Emissions (SDG13)

Producing transporation equipment and providing services for thetransportation of goods and people

Transportation and Logistics

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

Regenerative energy

Recover waste energy or generate fuels and energy from waste streams

Energy recovery from waste

Using renewable energy like solar, wind, etc. or renewable fuels like biomass, etc.

Renewable energy, fuels

Processing waste streams into fuels such as biogas, biofuels, pellets, etc.

Processing waste into fuel

Develop infrastructure to support sustainable lifestyles

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

Prioritize solutions that use the power of functioning ecosystems as infrastructure to provide natural services to benefit society and the environment; consider nature-based replacements for grey infrastructure.

Prioritise renewable resources 

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

Residual organic and food wastes can offer a quasi-renewable and low-carbon source of energy. By processing organic wastes, often under high temperatures, pressures and in the absence of oxygen, organic wastes can be transformed into fuels, which can be used for heating, electricity generation, as well as transportation. A variety of technologies have been developed to generate biogas from organic materials, for example, anaerobic digestion. Such facilities can vary in scale from single units that can process the waste of a single building or neighbourhood, to large-scale facilities that can process the majority of the organic wastes generated from the entire city. 

Cities have a key role to support the utilisation of organic materials as biofuels due to their close oversight and influence on the urban waste management system. In particular, cities can support the financing of large-scale facilities to help to overcome the investment costs, as well as develop relationships with businesses to operate such facilities. 


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🍏  💧  Biogas from organic materials

The food system nourishes populations and employs 50% of the global workforce, but:
- it currently drives a quarter of the overshoot on the climate change planetary boundary due to its greenhouse gas (GHG) production, 
- animal farming alone uses over one-quarter of all land, equivalent to the size of the Americas,
- nearly a quarter of freshwater resources are lost due to rampant food waste, and
- it is the single largest driver of biodiversity loss.

A circular food system must address the whole value chain, from production to consumption to waste management. The four key solutions for the food system are:
- Put healthier, satiating foods first: Prioritise satiating and healthy foods with a lower environmental impact—ideally shifting calories from meat, fish, and dairy towards cereals, fruits, vegetables, and nuts.
- Go local, seasonal, and organic: Prioritise the production and consumption of local, seasonal, and organic produce (sometimes in combination with GMO to reduce pests and disease loss on crops), which can lead to a significantly reduced need for chemical inputs, fuels, and processing services that contribute to environmental impacts.
- Mainstream regenerative agriculture: Scale up agricultural practices that regenerate ecosystems, recirculate nutrients and sequester carbon by design. 
- End avoidable food waste: Minimise food loss and valorise waste following the food waste hierarchy along the supply chain and at the consumer level through better management of transport and storage, more refrigeration and smart planning, and technology at the consumer and food service levels.



🍏 Food Systems

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

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

The mobility system is a major consumer of fossil fuels. All modes of transportation that consume fossil fuels contribute to global greenhouse gas emissions, as well as air and water pollution. Despite growing recognition of electric mobility, global oil demand for transportation (personal and freight vehicles, aircraft, rail and also marine) over the next two decades are expected to exceed demand for the previous two, largely because of projected transportation sector growth in the global south ([APS](https://www.aps.org/policy/reports/popa-reports/energy/transportation.cfm)).

A shift towards sustainable energy sources for transportation is needed to counteract the escalating climate crisis and its threat to our planet's ecosystem and society. Increased electrification and use of low-carbon fuels must be a priority over the next decade to decrease the negative impact of the mobility system. Electrification must be coupled with a decarbonisation electricity system, moving away from power generation from fossil fuels, in order to gain the potential carbon emission reduction benefits. Low-carbon fuels (LCF) such as biodiesel, bioethanol, green hydrogen and renewable compressed natural gas (R-CNG), for instance, can also help to lower carbon emissions from transportation.

Local governments can stimulate the use of low-carbon energy throughout the urban mobility system by improving the availability of electric charging infrastructure to help ensure that it can be financially attractive compared to that of fossil fuels. Additionally, cities can transition their own mobility fleet towards electric vehicles or to be powered with low-carbon fuels. The production of such low-carbon fuels can be produced by residual materials that are collected and managed by the municipality (such as developed biofuel from food loss and waste, which can power buses or waste collection vehicles). 


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🚌  Low-carbon energy input for mobility

     We want to turn London’s used cooking oils (UCO) and fats oils and greases (FOG) into biodiesel to power all of London’s buses and public sector road fleet.
    

To help create a low carbon, high tech transport network in London, the Mayor’s Biodiesel Programme is working with the fuel industry and local authorities to inspire a biodiesel industry revolution in London. The Mayor wants to grow London’s biodiesel infrastructure so it can produce biodiesel made from London the South East’s Used Cooking Oil (UCO) and Fats, Oils and Greases (FOGs), right in the city.&nbsp;Growing London’s biodiesel industry to fuel buses and municipal fleets can deliver green jobs, provide a local renewable fuel supply and reduce carbon dioxide.

Mayor's Biodiesel Programme

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

Reduce Material Consumption (SDG12)

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

Prioritise regenerative resources

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

Regenerative materials

Using <a href="http://ec.europa.eu/growth/sectors/raw-materials/specific-interest/critical_sv" target="_blank">materials that are not considered critical</a>.

Non-critical materials and inputs 

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

Manage

Infrastructure

Do better with less by using and supporting infrastructure, processes and products that are designed to minimize material, water and energy use and waste generation from production to end of use


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Reduce

Ensure that infrastructure and built assets in the city are designed and upgraded to be as resource-efficient as possible.

Design infrastructure and the built environment for resource efficiency

 Olympic Delivery Authority (England)SummaryThe London bid to host the 2012 Games set out a plan for how the Games could play a major role in the revitalisation of east London. Equally important was to achieve this in a sustainable manner, provide value for money, and to leave a lasting legacy for east London. The Olympic Delivery Authority’s (ODA) central job was to deliver venues, facilities and infrastructure and transport in a way that ‘maximised the delivery of sustainable objectives, on time and within the available budget’. This included the supply of the innitially estimated 500,000 m3 of ready-mix concrete required to build both the sporting venues and supporting infrastructure.
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The London bid to host the 2012 Games set out a plan for how the Games could play a major role in the revitalisation of east London. Equally important was to achieve this in a sustainable manner, provide value for money, and to leave a lasting legacy for east London. The Olympic Delivery Authority’s (ODA) central job was to deliver venues, facilities and infrastructure and transport in a way that ‘maximised the delivery of sustainable objectives, on time and within the available budget’. This included the supply of the innitially estimated 500.000 m3 of ready-mix concrete required to build both the sporting venues and supporting infrastructure.

Sustainable concrete at Olympics

Impact on the health and happiness of human populations

Well-being

Contribution to social parity, or impact on social disparity

Equality

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

Innovation

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

Participating in government programmes that support and advance the circular economy

Government programmes

Grant funding

Incubator and investment programmes

Businesses

The industrial production and consumption of meats and animal-based products places increasing pressures on land- and water-use, and is a driving cause of global greenhouse gas emissions. Local governments can play an important role in encouraging residents to shift towards local and plant-based diets that can improve the health of the planet, as well as residents and local economies if the food is sourced regionally.

For example, local governments can help to raise the awareness of the positive ecological and health impacts of a locally sourced and plant-based diet through information campaigns in the city. Local governments can improve access to locally produced plant-based foods throughout the city by allocating space for, and supporting local markets and suppliers. To lead by example, canteens managed by the public sector, for example, in schools and municipal offices, can develop menus that offer plant-based and seasonal choices. 


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🍏  Seasonal plant based diets

Businesses support the innovation and implementation of circular strategies. Yet innovations and startups that close loops and facilitate reuse often face additional challenges, due to the lack of infrastructure that supports circular initiatives for example physical and digital infrastructure to support reverse logistics.

Sustainable business ecosystems connect circular businesses around common problems and provide coordinated support, education and financing opportunities for these businesses to operate and scale together. This solution stimulates the local economy, which can promote local circular job opportunities in the future, and provides an attractive and supportive environment for more circular businesses to start up and scale the city.

The local government may partner with innovation ecosystems and circular domain experts to create training modules and facilitation programmes for small businesses, making knowledge resources available to small businesses looking to go circular. Local governments may also provide financial support - either directly or in partnership with financial institutions - to target and stimulate ecosystems around specific circular business models. 


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🍏  Sustainable food and agriculture business ecosystems

The Good Growth Fund is&nbsp;Mayor Sadiq Khan's&nbsp;£70&nbsp;million regeneration programme&nbsp;to support growth and community development in London.&nbsp; Working with the&nbsp;London Economic Action Partnership&nbsp;(LEAP), the fund supports innovative, best practice regeneration activities, that enable:Londoners to actively participate in their local community and have a say in how their city is shapeddelivery of co-ordinated place-based strategies that welcome growth in a way that works with the physical character of London’s many placesdiverse and accessible local economies – from our high streets and town centres to industrial areas – to realise their full potential and making London a place of opportunity for all For example, the fund supported a local farmers coop that prioritised providing locally sourced food to residents as well as fair remuneration for farmers.