Closing urban resource cycles through nature-inspired systems

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Wirth ◽  
Johannes Kisser
Keyword(s):  
Circular Economy ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Climatic Conditions ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Management Approach ◽  
Materials Management ◽  
High Resource ◽  
Resource Transformation ◽  
Local Sourcing ◽  
The Eu

<p>The present-day urban system is characterised by a one-directional flow of resources from the rural environment into cities. Cities are centres of human and economic activity, but also of resource use and waste. Therefore, they play both a critical and promising role to support the transition to a circular economy, by keeping incoming products, materials and resources in use. This requires a redesign of biological and technical material cycles in a way that their value can be maintained at the highest possible level for as long as possible, while at the same time natural systems are restored. How can we rethink urban infrastructures to transform cities from resource sinks into circular resource transformation hubs? And how can nature-inspired systems help us to create circular cities?</p><p>alchemia-nova is developing integrated, regenerative systems to close water, nutrient, material and energy cycles in cities, centred around buildings as multifunctional service providers. They include building-integrated nature-based solutions for small-scale on-site wastewater treatment, combined with organic solids management to platform chemicals, biogas and nutrients. This approach can enable the efficient valorisation of the high resource potential of urban nutrient flows, with near zero-energy and chemical input. This way, they provide a more efficient, robust and resilient alternative to the predominant chemical and energy-intensive end-of-pipe approaches to circular cities. Water and nutrients can be safely reused in urban and peri-urban agriculture, renewable energy produced on site, biomass and other solid waste further processed to secondary materials, while also gaining the multifunctional benefits of urban greening. These systems are being demonstrated through the EU H2020 HOUSEFUL project in Austria and Spain, complimented by demonstration sites in Greece (EU H2020 HYDROUSA project), thus ensuring their applicability in highly industrialised infrastructure and temperate climatic conditions, as well as in less developed communal infrastructure and Mediterranean arid climatic conditions. HOUSEFUL’s integrated management approach includes circular materials management along the entire housing value chain, e.g. to enable local sourcing of building materials. Together, the robust, low-maintenance technologies and circular materials management contribute to the creation of distributed resource transformation hubs across cities, where value is maintained, and secondary resources captured and recirculated where they occur, creating more efficient and more resilient circular cities, and a wider circular economy.</p><p>The research conducted in preparation of this presentation as well as the participation at NGU 2020 is funded by the EU-funded HOUSEFUL project (Grant Agreement number 776708).</p><p>HOUSEFUL online: http://houseful.eu/solutions/searching-local-building-material/</p>

European experience in transition to circular economy

2020 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 598-617 ◽  
Author(s):  
S.V. Ratner
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Raw Materials ◽  
Action Plan ◽  
National Level ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Scientific Methods ◽  
European Experience ◽  
General Scientific ◽  
The Eu

Subject. The article considers the concept of circular economy, which has originated relatively recently in the academic literature, and is now increasingly recognized in many countries at the national level. In the European Union, the transition to circular economy is viewed as an opportunity to improve competitiveness of the European Union, protect businesses from resource shortages and fluctuating prices for raw materials and supplies, and a way to increase employment and innovation. Objectives. The aim of the study is to analyze the incentives developed by the European Commission for moving to circular economy, and to assess their effectiveness on the basis of statistical analysis. Methods. I employ general scientific methods of research. Results. The analysis of the EU Action Plan for the Circular Economy enabled to conclude that the results of the recent research in circular economy barriers, eco-innovation, technology and infrastructure were successfully integrated into the framework of this document. Understanding the root causes holding back the circular economy development and the balanced combination of economic and administrative incentives strengthened the Action Plan, and it contributed to the circular economy development in the EU. Conclusions. The measures to stimulate the development of the circular economy proposed in the European Action Plan can be viewed as a prototype for designing similar strategies in other countries, including Russia. Meanwhile, a more detailed analysis of barriers to the circular economy at the level of individual countries and regions is needed.

A Circular Business Model for Cloud Computing Services Providers

10.31355/33 ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
pp. 105-120
Author(s):  
Hamed Motaghi ◽  
Saeed Nosratabadi ◽  
Thabit Qasem Atobishi
Keyword(s):  
Cloud Computing ◽  
Business Model ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Sustainable Consumption ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Extensive Literature ◽  
Computing Services ◽  
Proposed Model ◽  
Cloud Computing Service

NOTE: THIS ARTICLE WAS PUBLISHED WITH THE INFORMING SCIENCE INSTITUTE. Aim/Purpose................................................................................................................................................................................................. The main objective of the current study is to develop a business model for service providers of cloud computing which is designed based on circular economy principles and can ensure the sustainable consumption. Background Even though the demand for cloud computing technology is increasing day by day in all over the world, the current the linear economy principles are incapable to ensure society development needs. To consider the benefit of the society and the vendors at the same time, the principles of circular economy can address this issue. Methodology................................................................................................................................................................................................. An extensive literature review on consumption, sustainable consumption, circular economic, business model, and cloud computing were conducted. the proposed model of Osterwalder, Pigneur and Tucci (2005) is admitted designing the circular business model. Contribution................................................................................................................................................................................................. The proposed model of the study is the contribution of this study where provides the guidelines for the cloud computing service providers to achieve both their economic profits and the society’ needs. Findings Finding reveals that if the cloud computing service providers design their business model based on the “access” principle of circular economy, they can meet their economic profits and the society’ needs at a same time. Recommendations for Practitioners.............................................................................................................................................................. It is recommended to the startup and the existing businesses to utilize the proposed model of this study to reach a sustainable development. Recommendation for Researchers................................................................................................................................................................ It proposes a new circular business model and its linkages with community building. Impact on Society............................................................................................................................................................................................ The proposed model of the study provides guidelines to the cloud computing service providers to design a business model which is able not only to meet their economic profit, but also to meet the society’s and customers’ benefits. Future Research............................................................................................................................................................................................... Future researches can build on this research model which proposed in this study to examine the limitations of this model by using empirical researches.

scholarly journals Development of the Circular Bioeconomy: Drivers and Indicators

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 413
Author(s):  
Maximilian Kardung ◽  
Kutay Cingiz ◽  
Ortwin Costenoble ◽  
Roel Delahaye ◽  
Wim Heijman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Circular Economy ◽  
Food Production ◽  
Conceptual Analysis ◽  
Green Economy ◽  
Political Agenda ◽  
Analysis Framework ◽  
Stakeholder Consultation ◽  
Time Period ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Eu

The EU’s 2018 Bioeconomy Strategy Update and the European Green Deal recently confirmed that the bioeconomy is high on the political agenda in Europe. Here, we propose a conceptual analysis framework for quantifying and analyzing the development of the EU bioeconomy. The bioeconomy has several related concepts (e.g., bio-based economy, green economy, and circular economy) and there are clear synergies between these concepts, especially between the bioeconomy and circular economy concepts. Analyzing the driving factors provides important information for monitoring activities. We first derive the scope of the bioeconomy framework in terms of bioeconomy sectors and products to be involved, the needed geographical coverage and resolution, and time period. Furthermore, we outline a set of indicators linked to the objectives of the EU’s bioeconomy strategy. In our framework, measuring developments will, in particular, focus on the bio-based sectors within the bioeconomy as biomass and food production is already monitored. The selected indicators commit to the EU Bioeconomy Strategy objectives and conform with findings from previous studies and stakeholder consultation. Additionally, several new indicators have been suggested and they are related to measuring the impact of changes in supply, demand drivers, resource availability, and policies on sustainability goals.

scholarly journals Comparison of LPWAN Technologies: Cost Structure and Scalability

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohammad Istiak Hossain ◽  
Jan I. Markendahl
Keyword(s):  
Communication Technology ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Communication Technologies ◽  
Cost Structure ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Area Network ◽  
Wide Area Network ◽  
Generic Framework ◽  
Cost Efficient ◽  
The Cost

AbstractSmall-scale commercial rollouts of Cellular-IoT (C-IoT) networks have started globally since last year. However, among the plethora of low power wide area network (LPWAN) technologies, the cost-effectiveness of C-IoT is not certain for IoT service providers, small and greenfield operators. Today, there is no known public framework for the feasibility analysis of IoT communication technologies. Hence, this paper first presents a generic framework to assess the cost structure of cellular and non-cellular LPWAN technologies. Then, we applied the framework in eight deployment scenarios to analyze the prospect of LPWAN technologies like Sigfox, LoRaWAN, NB-IoT, LTE-M, and EC-GSM. We consider the inter-technology interference impact on LoRaWAN and Sigfox scalability. Our results validate that a large rollout with a single technology is not cost-efficient. Also, our analysis suggests the rollout possibility of an IoT communication Technology may not be linear to cost-efficiency.

scholarly journals How Far Away Are World Economies from Circularity: Assessing the Capacity of Circular Economy Policy Packages in the Operation of Raw Materials and Industrial Wastes

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (8) ◽  
pp. 4394
Author(s):  
Margarita Ignatyeva ◽  
Vera Yurak ◽  
Alexey Dushin ◽  
Vladimir Strovsky ◽  
Sergey Zavyalov ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
The Netherlands ◽  
Waste Management ◽  
South Korea ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Raw Materials ◽  
Industrial Wastes ◽  
New Guidelines ◽  
The 1960S ◽  
Degree Level ◽  
The Eu

Nowadays, circular economy (CE) is on the agenda, however, this concept of closed supply chains originated in the 1960s. The current growing quantity of studies in this area accounts for different discourses except the holistic one, which mixes both approaches—contextual and operating (contextual approach utilizes the thorough examination of the CE theory, stricture of the policy, etc.; the operating one uses any kind of statistical data)—to assess the capacity of circular economy regulatory policy packages (CERPP) in operating raw materials and industrial wastes. This article demonstrates new guidelines for assessing the degree level of capacity (DLC) of CERPPs in the operation of raw materials and industrial wastes by utilizing the apparatus of the fuzzy set theory. It scrupulously surveys current CERPPs in three regions: the EU overall, Finland and Russia; and assesses for eight regions—the EU overall, Finland, Russia, China, Greece, France, the Netherlands and South Korea—the DLC of CERPPs in operating raw materials and industrial wastes. The results show that EU is the best in CE policy and its CERPP is 3R. The following are South Korea and China with the same type of CERPP. Finland, France and the Netherlands have worse results than EU with the type of CERPP called “integrated waste management” because of the absence of a waste hierarchy (reduce, recover, recycle). Russia closes the list with the type of CERPP “basic waste management”.

Behavioural Economic Influences on Primary Market Disclosure – The Case of the EU Regulation on European Crowdfunding Service Providers

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 428-463
Author(s):  
Konstantinos Serdaris
Keyword(s):  
Service Providers ◽  
Preliminary Evaluation ◽  
Full Disclosure ◽  
Content Quality ◽  
Platform Governance ◽  
Capital Markets Union ◽  
Alternative Means ◽  
High Level ◽  
Start Ups ◽  
The Eu

Abstract On 5 October 2020, as part of the Capital Markets Union (CMU) project, the European Parliament adopted, in second reading, Regulation (EU) 2020/1503 on European crowdfunding service providers for business (‘ECSP Regulation’). This Regulation, which shall apply as of 10 November 2021, consists of rules which aim at improving access to crowdfunding for EU businesses in need of capital, particularly start-ups, while, at the same time, providing a high level of protection to investors. To attain that it builds on three sets of measures: clear rules on information disclosures for project owners and crowdfunding platforms; rules on platform governance and risk management; and a coherent approach to supervision and enforcement. The focus of this article is on the disclosure-related set of provisions. Its aim is to demonstrate how the new rules embrace a more behavioural approach to primary market disclosure which, in contrast to the paradigm of full disclosure, focuses on the content, quality and framing of disclosure as an alternative means of enabling informed and, thus, allocatively efficient investment decisions. In a second step, it seeks to provide a preliminary evaluation of these measures both from a practical and a normative perspective.

scholarly journals Circular Agreements—Exploring the Role of Agreements and Deals as a Political Tool for a Circular Economy

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nils Johansson
Keyword(s):  
Value Chain ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Policy Instruments ◽  
Alternative Form ◽  
Advantages And Disadvantages ◽  
Free Rider Problem ◽  
Political Governance ◽  
The Eu

AbstractA problem for a circular economy, embedded in its policies, tools, technologies and models, is that it is driven by the interests and needs of producers, rather than customers and users. This opinion paper focuses on an alternative form of governance—agreements, which thanks to their bargaining approach brings actors from across the value chain into the policy process. The purpose of this opinion paper is to uncover and analyse the potential of such agreements for a circular economy. Circular agreements aim at increasing the circulation of materials and are an emerging form of political governance within the EU. These agreements have different names, involve different actors and govern in different ways. However, circular agreements seem to work when other types of regulations fail to establish circulation. These agreements bring actors together and offer a platform for negotiating how advantages and disadvantages can be redistributed between actors in a way that is more suitable for a circular economy. However, circular agreements are dependent on other policy instruments to work and can generate a free-rider problem with uninvolved actors. The agreements may also become too detailed and long term, which leads to problem shifting and lock-ins, respectively.

scholarly journals Small-Scale Coastal Fisheries in the Midst of Adaptation and Diversification: Insights from Southern Italy

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (13) ◽  
pp. 7393
Author(s):  
Agata Nicolosi ◽  
Donatella Di Gregorio ◽  
Giuseppe Arena ◽  
Valentina Rosa Laganà ◽  
Donatella Privitera
Keyword(s):  
Southern Italy ◽  
Multiple Correspondence Analysis ◽  
Marketing Strategies ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Artisanal Fishing ◽  
Economic Activities ◽  
Coastal Fisheries ◽  
Cluster Identification ◽  
The Eu

The study looks at the problems facing coastal fishing communities. It highlights the impacts that, in the complex framework of the EU reforms, have manifested themselves on economic activities and on society. The aim of the paper is twofold: to examine small-scale artisanal fishing in an area of Southern Italy in order to develop resilience and diversification and at the same time to outline the profiles of local bluefish buyers to highlight development strategies for the sector. The research carried out through a direct survey by administering a questionnaire to fishermen operating in areas of Southern Italy and the data cross-referenced with the opinions of local consumers. A conjoint experiment, followed by a multiple correspondence analysis and cluster identification, was used to outline the profiles of local bluefish buyers. The results of the analysis reveal that the fish market and the restaurant sector are the main distribution channels preferred by fishermen. Furthermore, fishermen are very sensitive to environmental issues and are willing to collaborate and actively participate in the environmental protection of the sea. Consumers recognise the quality of local bluefish, and they implicitly perceive the sustainability of the method of capture. The results show the need to undertake synergistic actions for the fishing industry, capable of activating marketing strategies adequately to support, promote and develop the sector. The results of the study provide helpful information for food companies in order to better segment their market and target their consumers, as well as to effectively promote their product using brands, certifications and traceability.

scholarly journals Unpacking Brazil’s Leadership in the Global Biofuels Arena: Brazilian Ethanol Diplomacy in Africa

2016 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 127-150 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stavros Afionis ◽  
Lindsay C. Stringer ◽  
Nicola Favretto ◽  
Julia Tomei ◽  
Marcos S. Buckeridge
Keyword(s):  
Political Leadership ◽  
Economic Recession ◽  
Scaling Up ◽  
Climatic Conditions ◽  
Global Leadership ◽  
Bioethanol Production ◽  
Land Area ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Alliance Network ◽  
The Eu

Biofuels represent an opportunity for Brazil to exert global leadership by substantially scaling up the production, consumption, and international trade of bioethanol. Africa represents an ideal venue in which to do this, given its suitable agro-climatic conditions and extensive land area. Brazil has consequently sought to establish bilateral partnerships with African countries, as well as North-South-South trilateral partnerships involving the EU and US. However, empirically grounded assessments of how Brazil’s leadership aspirations have unfolded in practice through these partnerships are limited. In this article, we examine Brazil’s potential to exert global political leadership, by analyzing its policy-based, structural, and instrumental qualities in making bilateral and trilateral inroads regarding bioethanol production in Africa. Interviews in Brazil, Africa, and Europe suggest that both the bilateral and trilateral avenues have produced meager results. Lack of domestic strategy and vision, economic recession, and a fragmented alliance network have reduced Brazil’s capacity to achieve its ethanol diplomacy objectives.

‘Losing Leverage’ in the Neighbourhood: A Cognitive Frame Analysis of the European Union Migration Policy

2021 ◽  
Vol 58 (3) ◽  
pp. 302-323
Author(s):  
Jyri J. Jäntti ◽  
Benjamin Klasche
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Migration Policy ◽  
Burden Sharing ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Cognitive Frames ◽  
Playing Field ◽  
Power Shift ◽  
Security Problem ◽  
The Eu

The European Union (EU)–Turkey deal consolidated a shift in the EU’s migration policy. The deal is the culmination of the dominance of the security frame and depicts the continuous externalization of the EU’s responsibility of asylum protection and burden sharing. The strengthening of the security frame has weakened the humanitarian norms that previously dictated EU’s behaviour. This has led to the EU losing some of its comparative advantages in negotiations. Simultaneously, the instrumentalization of the value of asylum, paired with an increased number of asylum seekers, has given negotiation leverage to the neighbouring countries turned service providers. These changes in perception and norms have created a power shift, at the disadvantage of the EU, creating a more leveled playing field for negotiations between the parties. This article tracks the historical shifts in the global refugee regime to explain how today’s situation was created. Hereby, the existence of two competing cognitive frames—humanitarian and security—is assumed, tracked and analysed. While looking at the EU–Turkey deal, the article shows that the EU has started treating refugees as a security problem rather than a humanitarian issue, breaking the normative fabric of the refugee regime in the process. The article also displays how Turkey was able to capitalise on this new reality and engage with negotiations of other neighbouring countries of EU that point towards a change of dynamics in the global refugee regime.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document