Assessing Circularity Performance in Aircraft Component Design using ISO 59004:2024
Since the European Green Deal, circular economy and its strategies have gained interest across various industrial sectors, as a means for embedding sustainability in products and systems - including in the aviation sector. For the implementation of circular strategies to be successful, monitoring their effectiveness and progress is necessary. Though several methodologies, metrics and indicators to assess circularity have been developed, their application is fragmented and unstandardised across all sectors, thus including aviation. This work proposes a methodology for the aviation sector to evaluate the circularity performance of aircraft or airframe components. As part of the methodology, a framework is developed which can account for the multi-level character of circular economy; within the framework, aviation-related indicators are put in relation with the resource management actions from ISO59004:2024. Such a framework can fulfil both the need to assess how much circular economy principles are embedded in aviation and the necessity to provide engineers with guidelines to implement circular economy principles in aviation, and in aircraft design specifically.
Copyright (c) 2026 Ligeia Paletti, Dionysios Markatos, Spiros Pantelakis, Angelos Filippatos (Author) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Unlocking Potentials of Blue Economy: The Status, Opportunities, Challenges and Future Perspectives
The Blue Economy refers to the sustainable use of ocean and aquatic resources for sustainable economic growth, improved livelihoods, and job creation, while preserving the health of aquatic ecosystems and resilient of aquatic environment. This review assessed the current status of the Blue Economy and highlighted its significance to the national economies and sustainable development. It has explored key sectors such as fisheries, aquaculture, maritime transport, eco-tourism, and renewable energy. In addition, the review also identified the major challenges hindering the full realization of Blue Economy potentials, including overfishing, marine pollution, and climate change. Furthermore, it has provided actionable insights and forward-looking recommendations for policymakers, stakeholders, and practitioners. The findings demonstrate how countries can sustainably and inclusively harness their aquatic resources to advance economic development, environmental stewardship, and resilience.
Copyright (c) 2026 Dr. Francis P. Mmanda (Author) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Context-Dependent Implementation of Circular Economy: The Case of Australia
As the circular economy entails system-wide transformation, no single actor can deliver this change alone. Integrating public governance with network governance is therefore expected to enhance implementation effectiveness. This paper adopts a dual governance perspective, drawing on insights from transition management and public administration. Empirical evidence on the effectiveness of this governance model within a specific national context remains lacking. This study examines the context-dependent implementation of CE in Australia, with a focus on the textiles and building sectors. A mixed-methods approach was employed, including a literature review, workshops and interviews, engaging approximately 2,000 stakeholders over a three-year period. The findings indicate that while the national-level analysis provides a general overview of CE governance, greater insight emerges at the sectoral level, where implementation occurs in practice. The analytical framework used to investigate dual governance across levels proved comprehensive for the purposes of this study. This understanding can also assist practitioners.
Copyright (c) 2026 Prof. Jacqueline M. Cramer, Prof. Usha Iyer Raniga (Author) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Institutional Readiness and Systemic Barriers to Circular Economy Transitions in Emerging Urban Economies: Evidence from a Rapidly Industrializing Gulf Metropolitan Area
Circular economy (CE) transitions are increasingly promoted as a pathway for sustainable urban development; however, their implementation in emerging urban economies remains constrained by institutional and governance-related challenges. This study examines institutional readiness for CE transitions at the metropolitan scale, using the Dammam Metropolitan Area (Saudi Arabia) as an empirical case of a rapidly industrializing urban region. Adopting an institutional and urban governance perspective, institutional readiness is conceptualized as the capacity of metropolitan institutions to coordinate, regulate, and operationalize circular strategies through coherent governance arrangements and effective service delivery. Drawing on an expert-based survey of 230 stakeholders from municipal authorities, industry, and academia, the study employs a sequential quantitative approach combining descriptive analysis, inferential tests, principal component analysis, and multiple regression modeling. The findings indicate that institutional readiness for CE adoption remains moderate and uneven, reflecting a persistent gap between policy ambition and implementation capacity. Governance fragmentation, regulatory gaps, and funding constraints emerge as interrelated systemic barriers; however, municipal waste management system effectiveness is identified as the strongest determinant of perceived readiness in the multivariate analysis. This result highlights operational capacity as a practical institutional mechanism through which broader governance conditions are experienced and assessed by stakeholders. Rather than advancing conceptual novelty, the study contributes to circular economy scholarship by providing a place-based, metropolitan-level empirical assessment of institutional readiness and by demonstrating how operational service performance shapes the feasibility of CE transitions in emerging urban economies. The findings offer policy-relevant insights for aligning governance reform and infrastructure investment to move CE strategies beyond strategic intent toward effective urban implementation.
Copyright (c) 2026 Abdulkarim Alhowaish (Author) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Smart Data Management in Circular Construction: A Sustainable Business Model for Stakeholder-Material Coordination
The transition of the construction sector toward a circular economy requires overcoming market fragmentation, weak data infrastructures, and persistent coordination gaps. This study investigates how a digital platform can support circular (de)construction by prioritizing smart data management over transactional material exchange. Through participatory action research involving 58 professionals from the French construction ecosystem, we co-designed a sustainable business model aligned with practitioner workflows and regulatory requirements. We characterized 21 user personas, identified eight value propositions, and proposed a freemium strategy to reduce adoption barriers. Using a quantified sustainable business plan, we evaluated economic, environmental, and social performance over a nine-year horizon. Results indicate that each €1 invested is projected to generate €5.10 in environmental value, €2.10 in social value, and €1.70 in economic return, with sensitivity analyses identifying pricing and market reach as key viability thresholds. By embedding compliance automation, secure data exchange, and coordinated logistics into existing routines, the findings demonstrate how digital infrastructures can operationalize circular economy principles within the French context and beyond.
Copyright (c) 2026 Thibaut Menny, Stéphane Le Guirriec, Catherine De Wolf (Author) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Examining Job Satisfaction in the Social and Solidarity Circular Economy
Interest in the social dimensions of the circular economy (CE) has grown over the last decade, but empirical research on the quality of circular jobs remains scarce, hindering efforts to progress towards a just circular transition. Scholars highlight the risk that the circular transition could deepen existing inequalities, with a growing body of research calling for further investigation into its impacts on labor market transformations and its embedment with social and solidarity economy (SSE) as a potential solution towards circular justice. Building on the emergence of this new paradigm, this article contributes to the nascent literature on the social and solidarity circular economy (SSCE) by presenting an exploratory study of job satisfaction. Applying both quantitative and qualitative methods, it aims to characterize work in the SSCE and to open avenues for future research aimed at identifying the specific characteristics of work within this model. It offers two main conclusions. First, the perceived quality of circular jobs is heterogeneous because it depends on the type of organization, circular strategy and job position. Second, it remains difficult to clearly isolate characteristics that are specific to work within the SSCE, as many of its features appear to be derived from those traditionally associated with the CE and the SSE respectively. Focusing on job satisfaction and quality of work, this article provides empirical data to reinforce the emerging yet predominantly conceptual literature on the SSCE.
Copyright (c) 2026 Clara Alagy, Sophie Bernard, Emmanuel Raufflet (Author) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Leveraging Circular Business Models to Achieve Living Incomes for Ivorian Cocoa Farmers
Purpose: value chain transparency and circularity are tested as concepts that could enable Ivorian cocoa farmers to maintain a living income, defined as the amount needed for a household to afford a decent standard of living. The Fair Score Framework is a proposed conceptual framework designed to measure value chain fairness. Its development responds to calls in the literature for improved implementation of the circular economy. Methodology: this study uses a qualitative approach, combining a narrative review with a conceptual framework development design. The primary dataset includes a farmer questionnaire (n=215), consumer questionnaire (n=212), and semi-structured interviews (n=12). The research is guided by consumption theory, drawing on Keynes, Friedman, and Modigliani. Findings: farmers suggest that adopting circular practices yields minimal income gains unless value chain inequalities are structurally addressed. Consumers from six countries increased the share paid to farmers by 7.41% after watching an informational video. A Cronbach’s Alpha of 0.79 confirms acceptable reliability. Interviewees noted that while circularity may reduce waste, it cannot ensure poverty alleviation in its current form. This presents an opportunity to develop entrepreneurial circular business models that address income distribution. Originality: entrepreneurial circular business models could be leveraged by incorporating the Fair Score Framework, using the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, Nutri-Score label and Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Circularity Scoreboard as reference points.
Copyright (c) 2026 Dr. Simeon Human (Author) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
The Circular Space Economy: Review, Conceptualization, and Research Agenda for Narrowing, Slowing, and Closing the Loop in Orbit
The Space Economy (SE) is rapidly expanding, yet its reliance on a linear production and consumption model is intensifying the orbital debris problem and stands in tension with the core principles of a Circular Economy (CE). Despite increasing attention to both domains, scholarship at their intersection remains fragmented and conceptually underdeveloped, limiting cumulative theorizing on how circularity can be conceptualized in SE contexts. Addressing this gap, I conduct an integrative review of CE and SE research published between 2010 and 2025, synthesizing the contemporary literature into an organizing framework for conceptualizing the Circular Space Economy (CSE). Building on this synthesis, I advance a ten-point research agenda structured across four distinct yet interdependent pillars: (1) Orbital Property Rights and Governance; (2) Circular Ecosystems and Supply Chains; (3) Circular Business Models and Circular Product Design & Technologies; and (4) Methods and Metrics for CSE. This agenda supports future theory development and empirical research and offers a roadmap for scholars, policymakers, and industry leaders to secure the orbital environment and advance circular resource stewardship on Earth.
Copyright (c) 2026 Felix Carl Schultz (Author) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Informal Entrepreneurship and Circular Economy: A Bibliometric Analysis
This study maps the thematic structure of two intersecting lines of research—informal entrepreneurship and circular economy—highlighting an often ignored and under-researched reality: informality is intrinsically linked to circularity. The bibliometric approach builds on Scopus-indexed publications from the last 25 years (2000-2025). The analysis reveals intense research activity during 2020-2025 and predominantly European research output, with notable contributions from India, China, and Brazil. From a domain perspective, findings show that environmental science journals publish most of this work, while business and entrepreneurship journals lag behind. Finally, the theoretical core of this research niche remains fragmented between institutional debates and practical examples that lack generalizability.
Copyright (c) 2026 Brunilda Kosta, Rodica Ianole-Calin (Author) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Digital Product Passport: A Digital Catalyst for a Circular Transformation
This review explores the importance of the digital product passport as a catalyst for circular transformation. In response to the European Union’s recent regulatory efforts to enhance product transparency and circularity, the digital product passport is set to become obligatory across an increasing spectrum of product categories. By enabling access to product-related data throughout the value chain, the digital product passport offers significant potential to support the implementation of circular strategies. Although recent studies have advanced our understanding of digital product passports, this study aims to update the current status of research in the context of the manufacturing industry with particular attention to circular ecosystems. The findings show that prior research gives little attention to pre-use circular strategies and continues to emphasize the digital product passport’s regulatory scope, leaving its role in supporting circular value creation underexplored. The developed framework supports companies in adopting circular solutions enabled by the digital product passport and offers a conceptual foundation for further academic research on smart circular economy ecosystems.
[CLOSED FOR SUBMISSION] Application and Integration of Digital Tools for a Circular Economy
Copyright (c) 2026 Katrin Dietrich, Tassilo Schuster, Lydia Bühler (Author) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Towards a Smart Circular Ecosystem in the Automotive Industry: The Role of Data and Digital Technologies
As the automotive industry transitions toward circularity, smart circular ecosystems become essential for coordinating strategies across the vehicle lifecycle. Using a design science research approach, this study identifies the key actors, data flows, and digital technologies that enable such ecosystems. The results reveal a complex ecosystem of 31 actors interconnected through material, financial, and data flows, with data exchanges being particularly intensive for slowing resource loops during the middle of life phase, which involves the greatest number of actors and transactions. The study highlights the critical role of digital technologies and interoperable digital infrastructures in facilitating data collection, storage, analysis, and application to support circular strategies across all product lifecycle phases. A conceptual model is proposed that integrates principal ecosystem components, emphasizing key actors, technologies and data flows. By providing theoretical insights and practical guidance for implementing circular strategies in the automotive sector using digital technologies, this study advances understanding of how circular ecosystems can be effectively orchestrated, emphasizes the critical role of data governance, and addresses the coordination challenges inherent in multi-actor, cross-organizational settings within the emerging smart circular economy field.
[CLOSED FOR SUBMISSION] Circular Ecosystems: Origins, Significance and Implications for the Future of Sustainable Business
Copyright (c) 2026 Daniela Fendt, Tassilo Schuster, Andreas Hamper (Author) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Repurposing Electric Vehicle Lithium-ion Batteries for the Household Context: A Delphi Study
The shift towards circular economy is accelerating, driven by policies incentivising circularity, and industry adapting sustainable business models. In Europe, the European Green Deal is a catalyst, including the new battery regulation adopted in 2023, which sets requirements for reuse, repurposing, and recycling of electric vehicle (EV) Lithium-ion Batteries (LiBs). These steps are particularly relevant because of the widespread adoption of EVs which is expected to increase the number of First End-of-Life (FEoL) LiBs in the near future. Repurposing these batteries, for example in energy storage systems (ESS), can extend their useful life before being recycled. This study explores the likelihood and feasibility of repurposing FEoL EV LiBs in the household context across short-, mid-, and long-term perspectives. It uses the Delphi method to gather expert opinions on key aspects such as the share of repurposed batteries in the future, value chain structures, emerging sustainable business models, drivers and barriers, and customer willingness to adopt repurposed batteries. The findings suggest that while technical feasibility is promising in the short-term, opinions about economic feasibility are polarised. Factors such as declining prices of new LiBs and alternative battery chemistries may challenge the adoption of repurposed EV LiBs for the household context.
Copyright (c) 2025 Leander Pantelatos, Saad Ahmed, Dr. Casper Boks, Dr. Elli Verhulst (Author) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Circular Economy Ideas for Sustainable Management of Automotive Waste: Evidence and Lessons for Closing Policy and Legal Gaps in Zimbabwe
The automotive industry has significant anthropogenic impacts on the environment yet the extent to which circularity strategies for the automotive industry sector are elaborately crafted in Zimbabwe is not known. To address the gap between circular economy principles and the reality in Zimbabwe, a qualitative research approach was used to explore circular economy ideas for managing solid automotive sector waste. Findings show that pioneering literature on circular economy strategies represents a largely European and Asian bias while literature on circular economy ideas on Zimbabwe is just emerging. Findings further show that circularity has various context specific definitions and therefore no universal understanding of the concept exists. Additionally, findings show that circular economy strategies in developing countries are fragmented and even though several strategies exist, they require supportive social, legal and regulatory systems to be successful. The study also establishes that circularity has overshooting effects on sustainable environment management but lack of awareness about circularity principles results in restrictive approaches that further complicate solid automotive waste management in developing countries. The study concludes that circularity is an innovative route to achieve sustainable solid waste management in the automotive sector. Based on these findings, a circular economy model for the automotive sector is proposed. The study finally recommends that the circular economy concept as well as the drivers and barriers to its implementation must be understood upfront and should inform creative green policy thinking that supports the adoption of the proposed model to realize the benefits of circularity.
Copyright (c) 2026 Dr. Taurai Muparadzi, Professor Ricky M. Mukonza (Author) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Minimizing then Closing Material Cycles: The Ignored Potential of Food Waste Reduction to Transform the Urban Food Metabolism of the Paris Metropolitan Area
Food waste constitutes the majority of biowaste in cities. Although its reduction is prioritized on political agendas, its potential to minimize environmental impacts from urban consumption and to limit the scale of closed material loops has been disregarded. This paper aims to quantify food waste at city level and to qualify its minimization potential by developing a method using the urban metabolism framework and a set of granular data sources, taking the Paris metropolitan area (France) as a case study. The findings show that, in 2014, food waste at the level of Paris metropolitan area amounted to 783 kt, that is, 101 kg per capita. They also show that a minimum of 29% of this food waste was subject to reduction policies since this share concerned once edible food wasted by households, the biggest contributing sector. Local authorities should monitor waste composition closely, at least for households and public institutions. A distinction should moreover be made between edible and inedible parts, as the politically desired increase of biowaste collection should be limited to the waste of inedible parts of food, controlled by means of efficient reduction policies for wasted food. This quantification study for the year 2014 can be considered a starting point, or a baseline, for the future assessment of food waste. Reduction targets for food waste announced by the government of cities like Paris can be effectively controlled only when a methodology and appropriate data are available to monitor progress.
Copyright (c) 2025 Barbara Redlingshöfer (Author) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Value Profiles as Tools to Understand and Guide Societal Decision Making: Applications for Circular Economy Transitions
Complex transitions toward circular economy face implementation challenges despite broad goal support, stemming from conflicting interests and difficulty making values explicit. We present a framework combining decision support methods with participatory approaches to systematically document stakeholders' factual beliefs and value judgments. The framework organizes policy-relevant information as interconnected objects: actions, scenarios, nodes, hypotheses, impacts, and value profiles. We tested this approach by analyzing 18 Finnish parliamentary candidates' responses to environmental policy questions in a voting advice application, documenting their reasoning within the framework structure. Analysis of 36 contributions produced an insight network of 23 nodes and 12 value profiles. The framework distinguished between factual disagreements and value differences, revealing that apparent conflicts often stemmed from different assumptions rather than different values. This distinction enables more focused debate and sense-making. The approach is relevant for circular economy transitions, where multiple stakeholders must coordinate across value chains and complex trade-offs exist between environmental, economic, and social impacts.
Copyright (c) 2026 Jouni Tuomisto, Bernhard Bliem, Juha Yrjölä, Tero Tikkanen, Sonja-Maria Ignatius, Maija Faehnle (Author) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Strategic Urban Projects through the Lens of Circularity: The Case of Masterplans in the Brussels Capital Region
This article explores how circularity principles are integrated into urban design and planning, with a focus on Strategic Urban Projects (SUPs) in the Brussels Capital Region (BCR). It examines the role of the Plan d’Aménagement Directeur (PAD, in English simply ‘regulatory masterplan’) as both a regulatory and strategic urban design and planning instrument for embedding circularity-driven ambitions within urban transformation processes. Through a comparative analysis of three such master plans as carefully selected case studies, the research examines the main question: how planning instruments, stakeholder dynamics, and urban design strategies contribute to more circular, resource-conscious, and inclusive urban development. The study draws on a literature review, semi-structured interviews, urban design analysis, and a simplified methodology to estimate the weight of construction material stocks and flows moved or preserved in each project and its scenarios. Findings show that circularity-inspired ambitions introduce a critical shift by decelerating urban transformations. This shift reveals an inherent tension between urban planning practices that tent to mainly focus on transformation, and circularity’s call for a slower pace of change in the physical layout of urbanity. Negotiating this friction is crucial, as it necessitates balancing urban development objectives with the ecological impacts of transformations. The study underscores the importance of integrating top-down policies with bottom-up civic engagement and academic research to foster a pluralistic approach to circular urbanism. Thus, through this analysis, the article advances the hypothesis that SUPs can serve as experimental platforms for advancing circular paradigms, while acknowledging the challenges of operationalising circularity in practice.
Copyright (c) 2026 Giulia Caterina Verga, Victor Ooghe, Ahmed Zaib Khan (Author) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Digital Equity as a Catalyst for Circular Economy Transitions
In an era in which sustainable development requires both technological advancements and social presence, this study examined the crucial role of digital equity in facilitating the adoption of circular economy (CE) practices and principles, grounded in the fundamental human right to live with dignity and opportunity. Although digital equity and sustainability receive support, the collaboration, particularly from the perspective of constitutional rights as a key link, remains inadequately addressed. This research study proposes and tests a structural equation model (SEM) examining the relationships between Digital Equity (DE), the Right to Live (RL), and the adoption of a circular economy (CE). Using validated constructs aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the model assesses the causal relationships across three scopes: digital equity, the right to live, and the adoption of a circular economy. By outlining digital equity as a driver of social human rights to live, which in turn supports circular and sustainable practices, this study identifies key research gaps in sustainability analysis. The model proposes that advancing towards a circular economy (CE) involves not only frameworks and improvements but also a commitment to digital equity, digital inclusion, and digital social integrity.
Copyright (c) 2026 Vidhi Agarwal (Author) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
The Territorial Circular Ecosystem: Foundations for a Systemic and Place-Based Approach to Circular Economy
This article introduces the concept of the Territorial Circular Ecosystem (TCE) as a framework to understand the conditions that support the deployment of circular economy principles at the local level. It draws on the legacy of local production systems, from Marshallian districts to more recent approaches such as green clusters and industrial symbioses. These models have contributed to the ecological transition of economic systems but continue to show important limitations regarding for example the coordination of actors, the integration of stakeholders, and the implementation of circular strategies based on the 10R. The TCE framework defines a set of components and relational mechanisms rooted in territorial dynamics. It places emphasis on various types of local cooperation, geographical and organized proximities, institutional support, and societal involvement. This contribution establishes a conceptual foundation for the analysis of local circular systems and provides useful orientations for public policy and future empirical research.
Copyright (c) 2026 André Torre, Sebastien Bourdin (Author) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
How Circular is the Linear Economy? Analysing Circularity, Resource Flows and Their Relation to GDP
The concept of Circular Economy (CE) has evolved rapidly over the past decade, yet its macroeconomic interpretation remains constrained by narrow, recycling-centric definitions of circularity which ignores higher-value strategies like maintenance, repair, refurbishment, and remanufacturing enabling prolonged use and reuse of assets. This study critically examines prevailing circularity metrics, particularly the “circular material use rate” often used as a measure of “circularity” and explores how global resource flows and stocks relate to economic value creation, expressed as gross domestic product (GDP). Using a mixed-methods approach that combines global material flow data with macroeconomic analysis, the study shows that while the commonly reported circularity rate is about 9%, correcting for non-recoverable materials reveals a “real” circularity of approximately 27%. However, even this higher circularity corresponds to only about 1.4% of global GDP, highlighting the limited economic impact of recycling-centric approaches. The analysis further demonstrates that nearly two-thirds of GDP is generated through the use and management of existing material stocks and assets, practices that already align with core circular economy principles. The study thus proposes an essential change in the assessment framework that: (a) replaces annual input-based metrics with economic value creation as the primary indicator, (b) integrates stock utilization efficiency as a core circularity measure and (c) recommends new policy targets focused on value retention and reuse rather than mere material recovery. These findings call for an essential shift in circular economy assessment and policy, from counting recycled materials to optimizing economic resilience through intelligent stock management and service-based value creation.
Copyright (c) 2026 Amir Rashid (Author) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Municipalities as Buyers of Reclaimed Building Material: Previous Experience and Future Outlook
Circularity of construction material can counteract the large resource and waste footprint of the built environment. The public sector purchases a large volume of material and can potentially exemplify circular practices. This study aims to gauge which factors can influence local governments to include reclaimed construction materials in their tender process. Quantitative data was collected by surveying 104 municipalities in Norway via phone interviews. The survey revealed most municipalities had limited previous experience; however, a large majority stated high future likelihood of purchasing reclaimed material, partly influenced by the municipality size, projected population growth and prior positive experiences as explained by an ordered probit model. Top-ranked enablers for incorporating reclaimed materials in the tender process are economic incentives and infrastructure improvements, whereas regulation enablers and stakeholder pressures are ranked lower. Study findings can aid policymakers to develop public procurement guidelines that support circular practices in the tender process of local authorities.
Copyright (c) 2026 Shumaila Khatri, Hanne Sjølie, Anders Nyrud (Author) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Catalysing the Circular Economy in SMEs: A Systematic Review of Digital Tools, Barriers, and Enablers
This paper presents a systematic literature review, conducted following the PRISMA 2020 framework, to investigate the role of digital and technological tools in facilitating Circular Economy (CE) adoption within small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Despite their critical contribution to global economies, SMEs encounter significant barriers, including financial constraints, technological complexity, and regulatory ambiguities that hinder their transition to circular models. This review synthesises evidence from 45 peer-reviewed journal articles, case studies, and industry reports published between 2018 and 2025. The findings demonstrate how technologies such as AI, IoT, and blockchain enhance resource efficiency, supply chain transparency, and product lifecycle management. Key enablers identified include government subsidies, targeted training programmes, and collaborative innovation networks, which collectively mitigate adoption barriers. Employing a critical analytical lens, this review moves beyond cataloguing tools, synthesising findings into an integrative framework that links SME digital maturity with circular innovation capacity. The study offers a unique theoretical contribution by merging the discourse on digital transformation with circular economy principles within the specific context of SMEs, an area that has not been thoroughly examined. Practically, it offers actionable implications for SME managers, policymakers, and technology developers, advocating for tailored, cost-effective digital solutions and coherent policy frameworks. By mapping the current research landscape and proposing a focused agenda for future inquiry, this review aims to accelerate sustainable innovation and bolster the competitiveness of SMEs in an evolving circular economy.
Copyright (c) 2026 Pardon J Muzondo, Rahabhi Mashapure, Purity Hamunakwadi, Bronson Mutanda, Julius Tapera, Admire Mthombeni (Author) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Environmental Policies as a Path to the Development of Circular Economy - the EU Perspective
Circular economy is a dynamic and integrative framework within modern environmental economics, designed to reduce resource dependency, mitigate climate issues, and foster regenerative systems. The transition to a circular economy is a key pillar of the European sustainable development concept. However, under current volatility in the global context, the efficiency and effectiveness of this shift remain under concern. Underpinned by limited quantitative research on the efficacy of circular economy policies, it is important for authorities to consider and mitigate external factors influencing the transition. This paper empirically assesses the degree of impact the new circular economy action plan has on circular economy among the European countries during the period of 2010-2023. As one of the main pillars of circular economy is waste management, the recycling rate of municipal waste is used as an indicator of circular economy. The objective of this research is to identify whether the circular economy action plan significantly increased the circular economy (measured by recycling rate). Furthermore, other variables, which are expected to impact the adoption of the circular economy model, are included in the model. The study uses an econometric approach based on a multiple linear regression model with fixed effects. Also, tests for cross-sectional dependence, stationarity, and cointegration are performed. The results indicate that the adoption of the action plan substantially improved the circular economy and structured the process of transition. In addition, R&D expenditure and all types of government ideology are found to have significant positive effects, whereas no strong relationship is identified between wealth and urbanization level. Overall, policies are found to have a positive impact, however, as a circular economy is a broad concept, there are many factors influencing the process.
Copyright (c) 2026 Ulugbek Ismoilov (Author) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
The Adoption of Circular Business Models in Small Island States: Barriers and Enablers
Circular economy (CE) practices create solutions to environmental challenges facilitating commercial, financial and social benefits. Despite the considerable research about barriers and enablers to adopting circular business models (CBM) little is known about small and micro businesses operating in small island states. We address this gap by a qualitative study conducted with owner-managers in the Mediterranean island state of Malta. It emerges that the specifics of an island context – history, values and culture – may create challenges to the adoption of CBM in these states. Yet there are also opportunities which if used in policymaking will accelerate the CE shift. This study provides empirical data which, whilst complementing previous research, adds further knowledge about the adoption of CBM. It will assist policymakers and support educational programmes, aiding this island state, and regions with similar small business economies, in their CE transition.
Copyright (c) 2026 Carmelina Frendo, Peter A. Packer (Author) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Systemic Interdependencies of Circular Plastics Ecosystems
This paper examines how circular economy ecosystems (CEEs) are enacted by investigating systemic interdependencies within emergent circular plastics ecosystems (CPEs). We present a qualitative case study on the plastics industry and show how systemic interdependencies, regulation, technology, markets, consumer behaviour, and collaboration form mutually reinforcing yet contradictory dynamics that shape plastic circularity outcomes. The findings reveal a set of core paradoxes at the heart of circular plastics transitions. Regulation operates as a layered and sometimes conflicting force, technological pathways are contested, market structures remain fragile and fragmented, and consumer participation is inconsistent. At the same time, collaboration proves fragile and difficult to sustain. Taken together, these systemic interdependencies generate what we term the “recycling for nothing paradox”, in that despite significant investments in the recycling, reuse, and reduction of plastics, misalignments across the ecosystem dilute or neutralize progress and limit the transformative impact. Conceptually, this paper advances CEE research by framing CPEs as enacted, adaptive, and contested processes embedded in material-specific contexts. Practically, this paper underscores the need to address the systemic contradictions rather than isolated drivers of plastics circularity to enable the effective transition towards CPEs and their value chains.
Copyright (c) 2026 Ville-Veikko Piispanen, Kristina Leppälä, Hanna Lehtimäki (Author) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Process Performance Measurement Framework For Circular Supply Chains: An Updated SCOR Perspective
This paper presents a theoretical and conceptual approach for measuring the supply chain’s performance in the circular economy era. Since not only economic but also environmental, social, and especially circularity performance must be measured within circular supply chains, adapted performance measurement systems are required. The proposed performance measurement system is based on a SCOR model adapted for circular supply chains (including the processes use and recover) and provides a comprehensive composition of indicators to holistically measure the supply chain’s performance from an economic, environmental, social, and circular perspective.
Copyright (c) 2025 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
The Circular Economy and Natural Capital in the Tourism and Hospitality Industry
There is growing interest in the role that the circular economy and natural capital might play in the transition to a more sustainable tourism and hospitality industry. While both concepts have attracted attention in the academic, professional and policy literature, few leading tourism and hospitality companies have publicly embraced the two concepts to inform their sustainability programmes. This paper is a narrative review that reports and reflects upon the existing literature, and offers two illustrative case examples of how hotel companies are publicly addressing these concepts. The paper concludes that the circular economy and the protection and enhancement of natural capital offer linked environmental and business benefits for the tourism and hospitality industry, but that, for a number of reasons, there is limited evidence that the two concepts have informed sustainability programmes within the sector. Further research could usefully build upon this study to examine, amongst other aspects, stakeholder involvement in pressuring companies to pursue circular economy and natural capital objectives, the role of digital technologies in supporting this transition, and the wider supply chain implications of such initiatives.
Copyright (c) 2025 Peter Jones, Martin Wynn (Author) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Twin Transition: Synergies between Circular Economy and Internet of Things – A Study of Danish Manufacturers
The relation between digital technologies of the industry 4.0 agenda and the circular economy agenda is being coined as mutually beneficial in the twin transition agenda. However, the agenda is in a pre-paradigmatic stage where the dual relationship is primarily discussed at a conceptual level. At the same time, manufacturers are challenged in building sustained performance improvements from either transition. Therefore, this study adopts the multiple case study methodology for investigating the synergetic relation between the internet of things (IoT) and the circular economy (CE) in ten Danish manufacturers as representations of the constituting constructs of the twin transitixon agenda. Accordingly, this study proposes two empirically based propositions for the synergetic relationship between the two: IoT enables the circular economy engagement from the cumulative build-up of data capabilities and their connection to particular value propositions. At the same time, the value and purpose of digital technology are elevated to a strategic perspective when adopting circular economy as a design parameter.
Circular Economy Rebound: The Third Wheel on the Date Between Circularity and Sustainability
The Circular Economy Rebound (CER) effect is a phenomenon that can compromise the capability of a Circular Economy to achieve its intended benefits. Its occurrence can lead to firms overstating their environmental performance and being prone to greenwashing. From a broader point of view, it jeopardises sustainability and economic prosperity from the circular transition and can hinder the decoupling between production and virgin resource extraction. Thus, CER may play a pivotal role in micro and macroeconomic decision-making and policy-making in a Circular Economy. Yet, it is largely unknown, and the search for concrete solutions to limit its occurrence and mitigate its effects is strongly overlooked. Accordingly, this perspective paper aims to increase awareness about CER and tease academics, practitioners, and policymakers to join forces and develop holistic, actionable solutions to manage this detrimental unintended consequence of establishing circularity.
Entrepreneurship in International Context: Trends and Coping With Eco-Entropy
The rupture of the international system by the Ukranian war provides ecopreneurial opportunities for circular economies given gaps in national sovereignties laid bare by protectionism. The entropy of a full range of human needs from jobs to housing, etc. can be countered with sustainable, ‘green-green’ start-up designs stimulated by state policies yielding chances for ‘individual sovereignty’ and positive future perspectives.
You Can’t Go Circular Alone – A Stakeholder Approach to Circular Innovation
Circular solutions in industrial companies strongly depend on an interlinked network of diverse stakeholders. Therefore, innovations in the field of a circular economy are difficult to achieve in traditional innovation processes. They rather require an open innovation approach involving internal and external stakeholders in co-creations. This perspective article gives first insights on which stakeholders to involve, how to involve them, and how to overcome barriers. Research- and practice-based experience shows that diverse stakeholders should be selected based on the needs of the specific innovation context and are best involved in a network approach, possibly combined with crowdsourcing. A three-step process is suggested to overcome organizational barriers and to successfully anchor circular innovations in the company. As most firms are not experienced in open circular innovation yet, this article aims at giving them first insights on the topic to support them on their way toward a circular economy.