Take, make, use, dispose. For decades, this has been the standard approach to production and consumption. Companies take raw materials and transform them into products, which are purchased by consumers, who ultimately toss them out, creating waste that ends up in landfills and oceans. Worried about climate change and environmental degradation, people are challenging the sustainability of this linear model and urging a so-called circular economy of take, make, use, reuse and reuse again and again.
It often leads to a system that is inefficient, costly and depletes natural resources. The mining of commodities from gold to coal can spoil ecosystems and disrupt communities. Making steel from ore requires a large amount of energy, which produces Earth-warming carbon dioxide. A byproduct of the linear model is material waste, which takes up space and may include contaminants, threatening biodiversity. Trash ends up in undesirable places: Scientists this year reported finding microplastics in human blood for the first time, and hazards to public health remain unknown.
The two ideas are related, but a circular economy is more systemic and ambitious. Most recyclable products in the linear economy can only be downcycled, meaning they lose quality for each new life cycle and ultimately become waste. A truly circular economy would involve no new material inputs at all, reducing emissions, waste and eventually costs. Some industries are already coming close to this -- almost all of a car can be reclaimed, for example. Other industries, such as fashion, have far to go: Every second, the equivalent of a truck full of clothes is buried in a landfill or burned. Beyond improving recycling systems, a circular economy would educate people on their consumerism habits. This isn’t a new idea. The slogan “make do and mend” was popularized during World War II to encourage as little waste as possible.
Plenty. Making a production cycle fully self-sufficient is virtually impossible. Some new input will always be necessary; some waste will always be created. Critics say it’s difficult to measure the environmental impacts of a circular economy since the concept could mean anything from improving recycling systems to using technology to streamline the sharing economy. Building a circular economy also requires high upfront costs, as organizations invest in more technology and in educating employees and consumers to adapt to new habits. There’s concern that companies are developing circular systems in only parts of their operations, making it difficult to achieve long-term sustainability. Some say the circular economy will only delay the negative environmental effects of the linear economy.
Investing in more circular supply chains. This can mean changing to recycled materials, extending the lifecycle of a product and improving recovery at the end of its life. Companies including SC Johnson & Son Inc. and Unilever Plc are developing refillable packages for cleaning products and laundry detergents. Siemens Gamesa is installing the first wind turbines with recyclable blades in Germany. BlackRock Inc. runs a Circular Economy Fund that allows investors to support companies transitioning to the new model. As of August, the fund had almost $2 billion assets under management. Consumers are largely responsible for pushing organizations to shift to the circular economy. More and more consumers are thrift-shopping clothing and furniture, for example, as vintage and antiques made a comeback in recent years.
They’re making cross-border commitments and developing action plans to nudge consumers and producers to move toward a more circular economy. In March, 175 nations began talks of a binding pact to end plastic pollution. Countries such as Canada are banning single-use plastics, including checkout bags, cutlery and straws, pushing stores and restaurants to invest in eco-friendly solutions. The European Commission adopted a new circular economy action plan in March 2020. On a regional level, Amsterdam’s Sharing Economy Action Plan has supported the creation of startups such as LENA, a “fashion library” where consumers pay a monthly subscription to borrow high-end vintage clothing.