Geo Cities Ch 5, Fig. 2: Circular Norway Figure 5.2: Outline of a circular economy


Renewables


Renewables flow management


Farming/ collection


Biochemical feedstock


Cascades Biogas


Extraction of biochemical feedstock


Collection Customer User


Minimise systematic leakage and negative externalities Source: Ellen MacArthur Foundation 2019 Collection


Parts manufacturer Product manufacturer Service provider


Recycle


Refurbish/ remanufacture


Share


Reuse/redistribute Maintain/prolong


Regenerate


Finite materials Substitute materials Virtualise Restore Stock management


Cities Declaration (European Circular Economy Stakeholder Platform 2020)2


since its launch in 2020. This followed the


launch of the Green Circular Cities Coalition in East Asia in 2019, which aims to connect cities, experts, businesses and relevant stakeholders to shift the mindset from “waste management” towards “resource management”, reduce waste, and increase circularity via exchange of experiences and mutual learning (ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability East Asia 2021).


Despite these efforts, global resource flows are becoming less circular each year, declining from 9.1 per cent to 8.6 per cent circular between 2018 and 2020 (Circle Economy 2020a). It is estimated that doubling current levels of circularity would reduce global emissions by 39 per cent by 2032 and ensure that global average temperature rise remained below 2 degrees (Circle Economy 2021). Moreover, estimates show that the emissions created by consumption in cities are at least as high as the emissions directly linked to local activities (C40 Cities 2018). In this context, circular economy practices are increasingly being recognized as a means of achieving city-level net-zero carbon targets.


2 The declaration has been developed by a broad group of European organizations committed to enabling the transition to a circular economy at the local level, including ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability, Circular Flanders, the Collaborating Centre for Sustainable Consumption and Production (CSCP), the European Circular Economy Research Alliance (ECERA), the European Investment Bank (EIB), the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, Eurocities, London Waste and Recycling Board (LWARB), UN Environment Programme and the WCYCLE Institute.


Non-state actors such as ICLEI, C40, the Ellen MacArthur Foundation and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) are convening local governments from all regions to assess which policies and local government actions can best support the net-zero carbon circular economy transition (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change [UNFCCC] 2019). Front-running cities such as Turku in Finland are developing circular economy plans to support their carbon neutrality ambitions (ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability 2019).


While a narrow understanding of the circular economy might solely focus on environmental and economic issues, there is increasing recognition of the need to address societal issues too, as highlighted in the description of the first dimension – net-zero circular cities – included in chapter 4. One example of a current related initiative is the collaboration between ICLEI, Circle Economy and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in Bogor, Indonesia, which aims to estimate local circular economy jobs and develop a circular economy action plan for recovery in selected sectors after COVID-19.


The capacity and expertise to gather, analyse and interpret material flow data rarely lies within local governments and typically requires external assistance. In recent years, several specialist organizations have emerged to serve the increased


Achieving Urban Transformation: From Visions to Pathways 99


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78  |  Page 79  |  Page 80  |  Page 81  |  Page 82  |  Page 83  |  Page 84  |  Page 85  |  Page 86  |  Page 87  |  Page 88  |  Page 89  |  Page 90  |  Page 91  |  Page 92  |  Page 93  |  Page 94  |  Page 95  |  Page 96  |  Page 97  |  Page 98  |  Page 99  |  Page 100  |  Page 101  |  Page 102  |  Page 103  |  Page 104  |  Page 105  |  Page 106  |  Page 107  |  Page 108  |  Page 109  |  Page 110  |  Page 111  |  Page 112  |  Page 113  |  Page 114  |  Page 115  |  Page 116  |  Page 117  |  Page 118  |  Page 119  |  Page 120  |  Page 121  |  Page 122  |  Page 123  |  Page 124  |  Page 125  |  Page 126  |  Page 127  |  Page 128  |  Page 129  |  Page 130  |  Page 131  |  Page 132  |  Page 133  |  Page 134  |  Page 135  |  Page 136  |  Page 137  |  Page 138  |  Page 139  |  Page 140  |  Page 141  |  Page 142  |  Page 143  |  Page 144  |  Page 145  |  Page 146