The first time I had heard the phrase “circular economy” was on a Freakonomics episode about the very topic. Maybe you’ve picked up on this new, multi-layered economic approach circulating in the news lately. Put simply, a circular economy is a systemic economic development designed to benefit businesses, societies, our health, and the environment. As the Ellen Macarthur foundation elegantly asserts, “an economy that is restorative and regenerative by design.” It’s no secret that our current trajectory of materials production and waste management is depleting nourishment from the ground we stand on.
But, isn’t that what recycling is for? Well, recycling is arguably considered an outdated solution and there’s evidence that recycling behavior is often inappropriately executed, adding to the “not great for the environment” narrative. John Oliver spent an entire episode on his show opining on how plastics recycling is a broken system.
A huge step in decoupling growth from the linear consumption model was taken in March of 2020 when the European Commission adopted the “circular economy action plan” as one of the key pillars of Europe’s ambitious goal towards climate neutrality by 2050 (also referred as the European Green Deal).
