Circular economy: another buzzword or your city’s future?
- indotplace
- Dec 14, 2016
- 1 min read
In times of decreasing resources and growing responsibilities, many cities and regions are understandably skeptical towards what seems to be yet another buzzword. However, a transition to a circular economy is both a necessity and an opportunity, with the potential to offer long-lasting economic, environmental and social benefits.
What is circular economy? How can cities and regions support this transition? And, perhaps most importantly, where to start? Read on to find answers that are based on the experience of the European Territorial Cooperation programmes and the projects they support.
The article below is based on a joint policy brief „Pathways to a circular economy in cities and regions” produced by ESPON, Interact, Interreg Europe and URBACT and launched during the 2016 European Week of Cities and Regions. Full version of the brief is available here.
From a linear to a circular economy
The conventional understanding of economic activity is based on a linear model: natural resources are extracted and transformed into products; the products are bought and used by consumers who, as soon as the products no longer fulfill their needs, throw them away. However, this model ignores the high economic, environmental and social costs related to the extraction, transformation and disposal of resources, and is therefore unsustainable in the long term.
Read the whole article HERE
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