A perspective on a locally managed decentralized circular economy for waste plastic in developing countries

2018 ◽  
Vol 38 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chandni Joshi ◽  
Jeffrey Seay ◽  
Noble Banadda
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Waste Plastic

scholarly journals Waste Plastic, the Challenge Facing Developing Countries—Ban It, Change It, Collect It?

Recycling ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Linda Godfrey
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Civil Society ◽  
Unintended Consequences ◽  
Consumption Patterns ◽  
Waste Collection ◽  
Waste Plastic ◽  
The World ◽  
Single Solution ◽  
Single Use ◽  
Taking Action

With changing consumption patterns, growing populations and increased urbanisation, developing countries face significant challenges with regards to waste management. Waste plastic is a particularly problematic one, with single-use plastic leaking into the environment, including the marine environment, at an unprecedented rate. Around the world, countries are taking action to minimise these impacts, including banning single-use plastics; changing petroleum-based plastics to alternative bio-benign products such as paper, glass or biodegradable plastics; and improving waste collection systems to ensure that all waste is appropriately collected and reprocessed or safely disposed. However, these “solutions” are often met with resistance, from business, government or civil society, due to the intended and unintended consequences, leaving many questioning the most appropriate solution to reducing the leakage. This paper argues that there is no one single solution to addressing the leakage of plastic into the environment, but that the solution is likely to be a combination of the three approaches, based on local considerations.

Implementation of Circular Practices in Small and Medium Enterprises in Developing Countries

2020 ◽  
pp. 144-166
Author(s):  
Michael Torres-Franco ◽  
Valentina Villamil
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Best Practices ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Small And Medium Enterprises ◽  
Business Practices ◽  
Economic Agents ◽  
Production And Consumption ◽  
Medium Enterprises ◽  
The Relationship

New forms of production and consumption seek greater respect for the environment and the environment in which economic agents are. This has led to circular business practices becoming more important and generating benefits in the final product. This chapter will show the relationship between this practice and SMEs, the problems faced by these companies, and the benefits that this practice can generate for the growth and competitiveness of organizations. The chapter will show in its first part the evolution of the circular economy, and then explain the relationship between it and the SMEs, highlighting the problems and obstacles faced by these companies to implement best practices in production. Finally, recommendations are given to facilitate the implementation of this practice in companies.

scholarly journals Open-Source Grinding Machine for Compression Screw Manufacturing

Inventions ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 26
Author(s):  
Jacob Franz ◽  
Joshua M. Pearce
Keyword(s):  
Open Source ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
The Self ◽  
Compression Screw ◽  
Waste Plastic ◽  
Abrasive Disk ◽  
Technical Systems ◽  
Grinding Machine ◽  
1045 Steel

Some of the most promising distributed recycling and additive manufacturing (DRAM) technical systems use fused particle fabrication (FPF) or fused granular fabrication (FGF), where compression screws force post-consumer waste plastic through a heated nozzle for direct 3D printing. To assist the technical evolution of these systems, this study provided the details of an invention for a low-cost, easily replicable open-source grinding machine for compression screw manufacturing. The system itself can be largely fabricated using FPF/FGF following the self-replicating rapid prototyper (RepRap) methodology. This grinding machine can be made from a cordless cut-off grinder and < $155 in parts. The new invention is demonstrated to be able to cut custom screws with variable (i) channel depths, (ii) screw diameters, (iii) screw lengths, (iv) pitches, (v) abrasive disk thicknesses, (vi) handedness of the screws, (vii) and materials (three types of steel tested: 1045 steel, 1144 steel, and 416 stainless steel). The results show that the device is more than capable of replicating commercial screws as well as providing makers with a much greater flexibility to make custom screws. This invention enables the DRAM toolchain to become even more self-sufficient, which assists the goals of the circular economy.

Towards Eco-circular economy worldwide

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sergiu Șișcan
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Business Models ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
Ecological Crisis ◽  
Household Waste ◽  
Public Attention ◽  
The World ◽  
Problematic Issue ◽  
Smart Technologies

&lt;p&gt;Nowadays the global ecological crisis continues aggravating. The environmental issues are on agenda, getting increased public attention (e.g. protests caused by waste problems and climate change all around the world). Depleting resources, trash mountains, garbage islands, toxic emissions etc. require change of economy model from linear (resource extraction-production-usage-throwing away) to the circular one (recycled resource-production-usage-recycling). More than that, multiple waste use as well as resources reuse may bring to business and economy billions of dollars.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The very idea of recycle is practiced in the world since long ago. However, it has been done by few resources (collection of waste paper, scrub metal, glass bottles etc.) without shaping an economic system as a whole.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Another problematic issue is that the recycling does not always means to be ecological. The mode of recycling in countries with low eco-standards results in heavy pollution (e.g. e-waste &amp;#8220;recycling&amp;#8221; by fire at open air in Africa, India leads to emission of toxins; ship recycling in Bangladesh leads to polluted beaches and water). Methods of recycling in developing countries often are primitive and may be dangerous. Sometimes, entrepreneurs from developed countries are responsible for such state of affairs. They send legally or illegally part of wastes for that primitive recycling in developing countries. It is important to have awareness of the fact that everything is interdependent. If one part of the Earth is full of toxins and harmful fumes, its other part is inevitably affected over time. It is necessary to carry out recycling in all countries establishing strict environmental laws worldwide, and to make it based on smart technologies.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Circular economy in its narrowest sense is an economy that simply processes waste.&lt;br&gt;A serious change in business models, public mentality and government policies is necessary to get to environmentally friendly economy. It aims at lengthening the use cycle of goods (e.g. clothes, mobile phones) and minimizing the personal waste of every citizen. The EU household&amp;#8217;s food waste was estimated to be 47 million tons (EU FUSIONS, 2016). &amp;#8220;More than 30% of clothes in Europeans&amp;#8217; wardrobes have not been used for at least a year. Once discarded, over half the garments are not recycled but end up in mixed household waste and are sent to incinerators or landfill&amp;#8221; (EPRS, 2019). YouGov Omnibus research: a third (34%) of respondents of Singapore have thrown away an item of clothing after wearing it just once. (YouGov, 2017).&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Thus, effective circular economy is not just about re-processing and saving resources but, first, emphasizes its focus on greening environment and reducing waste as it is, becoming an eco-circular economy. Secondly, it calls forth measures at not only national or regional level, but also proceeding from &amp;#8220;Earth is our common home&amp;#8221;, worldwide.&lt;/p&gt;

scholarly journals Agent-based Model for Environmental Awareness and Extended Producer Responsibility in Developing Countries

2020 ◽  
Vol 25 (3) ◽  
pp. 430-437
Author(s):  
Yony Fernando Ceballos ◽  
Jesus David Galarcio-Noguera ◽  
Pablo Andres Maya-Duque ◽  
Gloria Lucia Ramirez-Cordoba
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Environmental Awareness ◽  
Heterogeneous Population ◽  
Agent Based Model ◽  
Validation Process ◽  
Agent Based ◽  
Awareness System ◽  
Awareness Level ◽  
Consumption Habits

To make an effective transition towards a circular economy, we must have the responsibility and active participation of all the stakeholders involved, including customers. In this work, we seek to develop an agent-based model to describe and analyze an environmental awareness system in a population, whose behavior is based on an indicator that can change by agent’s interaction and modify its consumption habits. The model is described using the ODD + D protocol, and we use Netlogo software for coding. After model validation process, its results are analyzed to understand how can environmental awareness level, consumption habits and social skills of each individual influence on the average environmental awareness level of a heterogeneous population, which makes simple the identification of emerging behaviors and the forecasting of the potentially recyclable waste according to the quality in the separation at source.

Transition to circular economy in Brazil

2019 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Michel Xocaira Paes ◽  
Gerson Araujo de Medeiros ◽  
Sandro Donnini Mancini ◽  
Flávio de Miranda Ribeiro ◽  
Jose A. Puppim de Oliveira
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Service Sector ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Public Policies ◽  
Local Economy ◽  
Environmental Benefits ◽  
Municipal Solid Waste Management ◽  
Content Type

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to evaluate how improvements in municipal solid waste management systems (MSWMS) can contribute to a transition toward circular economy (CE) in urban areas, outlining actions and guidelines for public policies. Design/methodology/approach The research was carried out in three municipalities located in the state of São Paulo in terms of: diagnosis; elaboration of more positive scenarios in terms of CE and scaling of economic and environmental benefits; and outline actions and guidelines for public policies of MSWMS. Findings In developing countries like Brazil, MSWMS can contribute to a transition toward a CE through new public policies and management practices, or even through the improvement of those that already exist. Examples of this are the integration of the informal sector of the recycling chain and service sector related to repairs of clothing, shoes, furniture and electronics as well as composting at the food production site. This could be strengthened by legal and financial mechanisms, training and carbon credit projects. Moreover, there is a need for integration of public policies between different levels of governments and sectoral policies. Originality/value This paper developed a methodology to examine the potential for a transition toward a CE through the MSWMS in different scenarios and cities. This methodology allows to advance the implementation of the concept of CE in urban areas of developing countries and generating co-benefits to the local economy and the global environment.

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