Lessons, narratives, and research directions for a sustainable circular economy

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Lessons, narratives, and research directions for a sustainable circular economy

Leipold, S; Petit-Boix, A; Luo, A; Helander, H; Simoens, M; Ashton, WS; Babbitt, CW; ... Xue, B; + view all (2022) Lessons, narratives, and research directions for a sustainable circular economy. Journal of Industrial Ecology 10.1111/jiec.13346. (In press). Green open access

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Abstract

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.

Type:	Article
Title:	Lessons, narratives, and research directions for a sustainable circular economy
Open access status:	An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI:	10.1111/jiec.13346
Publisher version:	https://doi.org/10.1111/jiec.13346
Language:	English
Additional information:	© 2022 The Authors. Journal of Industrial Ecology published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of International Society for Industrial Ecology. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs License, which permits use and distribution in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, the use is non-commercial and no modifications or adaptations are made.
Keywords:	Industrial ecology, narratives, policy relevance, research agenda, science policy, sustainability
UCL classification:	UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Engineering Science UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Engineering Science > Dept of Civil, Environ and Geomatic Eng
URI:	https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10163261