TY - JOUR
T1 - Lessons, narratives, and research directions for a sustainable circular economy
AU - Leipold, Sina
AU - Petit-Boix, Anna
AU - Luo, Anran
AU - Helander, Hanna
AU - Simoens, Machteld
AU - Ashton, Weslynne S.
AU - Babbitt, Callie W.
AU - Bala, Alba
AU - Bening, Catharina R.
AU - Birkved, Morten
AU - Blomsma, Fenna
AU - Boks, Casper
AU - Boldrin, Alessio
AU - Deutz, Pauline
AU - Domenech, Teresa
AU - Ferronato, Navarro
AU - Gallego-Schmid, Alejandro
AU - Giurco, Damien
AU - Hobson, Kersty
AU - Husgafvel, Roope
AU - Isenhour, Cynthia
AU - Kriipsalu, Mait
AU - Masi, Donato
AU - Mendoza, Joan Manuel F.
AU - Milios, Leonidas
AU - Niero, Monia
AU - Pant, Deepak
AU - Parajuly, Keshav
AU - Pauliuk, Stefan
AU - Pieroni, Marina P.P.
AU - Richter, Jessika Luth
AU - Saidani, Michael
AU - Smol, Marzena
AU - Peiró, Laura Talens
AU - van Ewijk, Stijn
AU - Vermeulen, Walter J.V.
AU - Wiedenhofer, Dominik
AU - Xue, Bing
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 The Authors. Journal of Industrial Ecology published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of International Society for Industrial Ecology.
PY - 2022
Y1 - 2022
N2 - The current enthusiasm for the circular economy (CE) offers a unique opportunity to advance the impact of research on sustainability transitions. Diverse interpretations of CE by scholars, however, produce partly opposing assessments of its potential benefits, which can hinder progress. Here, we synthesize policy-relevant lessons and research directions for a sustainable CE and identify three narratives—optimist, reformist, and skeptical—that underpin the ambiguity in CE assessments. Based on 54 key CE scholars’ insights, we identify three research needs: the articulation and discussion of ontologically distinct CE narratives; bridging of technical, managerial, socio-economic, environmental, and political CE perspectives; and critical assessment of opportunities and limits of CE science–policy interactions. Our findings offer practical guidance for scholars to engage reflexively with the rapid expansion of CE knowledge, identify and pursue high-impact research directions, and communicate more effectively with practitioners and policymakers.
AB - The current enthusiasm for the circular economy (CE) offers a unique opportunity to advance the impact of research on sustainability transitions. Diverse interpretations of CE by scholars, however, produce partly opposing assessments of its potential benefits, which can hinder progress. Here, we synthesize policy-relevant lessons and research directions for a sustainable CE and identify three narratives—optimist, reformist, and skeptical—that underpin the ambiguity in CE assessments. Based on 54 key CE scholars’ insights, we identify three research needs: the articulation and discussion of ontologically distinct CE narratives; bridging of technical, managerial, socio-economic, environmental, and political CE perspectives; and critical assessment of opportunities and limits of CE science–policy interactions. Our findings offer practical guidance for scholars to engage reflexively with the rapid expansion of CE knowledge, identify and pursue high-impact research directions, and communicate more effectively with practitioners and policymakers.
KW - industrial ecology
KW - narratives
KW - policy relevance
KW - research agenda
KW - science policy
KW - sustainability
KW - industrial ecology
KW - narratives
KW - policy relevance
KW - research agenda
KW - science policy
KW - sustainability
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85145295836&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - https://doi.org/10.1111/jiec.13346
DO - https://doi.org/10.1111/jiec.13346
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85145295836
ER -
