Does the circular economy conserve resources?

The purpose of the project is to investigate how circular practices affect the linear production and consumption systems.

The environmental legitimacy of the circular economy is based almost exclusively on the assumption that circular practices shall phase out and displace linear activities and thereby conserve natural resources.

However, if there is no displacement, the circular economy must bear its own environmental impacts, and the environmental arguments to implement circular activities are largely lost.Hence, much hangs on an assumption, with a remarkably uncertain empirical basis.

The purpose of this project will therefore be examined from different perspectives, which can increase the empirical foundation. First, we will examine the very idea behind the assumption that circular practices conserve resources.

How did the assumption come about and what are its empirical basis, is it a myth or a fact?Next, case studies will investigate the main purpose of the project; how circular practices affect the linear systems.

This involves quantitative and qualitative case studies of hybrid companies that offer both circular and linear products. What are the statistical impact of the circular activities´ on new sales, production and resource extraction?

Finally, we will examine through workshops how the capacity for circular practices to phase out linear production and consumption systems can be maximized.