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Circular Economy: What Can You Do To Preserve Your Resources?
07 de September de 2022
For years, developed societies have experienced a spiral of indiscriminate consumption in which the lifespan of products was short and quickly replaceable. If an object wasn’t fulfilling its function any longer or starting to cause problems, it would be replaced… and that was the end of the story. “Disposable” was the norm. Repairing or recycling weren’t options. This short lived life cycle was reinforced by strategies of programmed obsolescence in many products, especially in technological ones, designed to deliberately have a specific duration that would promote the purchase of a new one in a specific time lapse..
However, the effects of climate change and the shortage of resources and raw materials have changed, little by little, the mentality of institutions, companies and users, favouring a production and consumption system that are not as “bulimic”. That’s how concepts such as Circular Economy have taken over the scene: a system in which nothing escapes from the production cycle and both objects and consumer goods can have a second life.
What’s a Circular Economy?
There are numerous examples of companies that promote a circular economy. A good example is ECOALF, a fashion brand that uses materials that are 100% recycled for their clothes.
It’s a resource exploitation system that takes into account the reuse and recycling of everything that goes into the production cycle or that produces waste, in order to stop contamination and reduce the ecological footprint. The ultimate goal is to stop the wearing out of the planet and the raw materials.
According to this strategy, the production system is a closed loop that goes through the following six stages:
1. Design
2. Production / Re-Elaboration
3. Distribution
4. Consumption and Use / Re-use and Repair
5. Recollection
6. Recycling
The European Union estimates that, in 2020, only 12% of production was circular. That’s why it launched a directive for the 2030 Agenda, so that for the year 2050 this system is fully implanted.
Reusing and repairing are two actions that foster ecological designs, prevent the production of waste and house gases.
What Are Its Advantages?
After some time, many companies have come to understand that the goals of the circular economy are in no way incompatible with economic growth. Moreover, big companies have started to get on board these changes, trusting that they will bring new opportunities in new areas of business and innovation. In Spain, huge companies, such as Coca-Cola, Endesa, Repsol or Nestlé, have already promoted circular economy campaigns and actions, while adapting their own business lines to low emission goals.
Innovation and technology are key aspects of this resource exploitation process in which competition is by no means neglected. In fact, it’s estimated that the volume of business linked to the circular economy will represent an increasing percentage of the GDP and generate hundreds of thousands of jobs.
So… How Can I Help?
Consumers are at the centre of the circular economy strategy. They are, largely, the leaders in change of mentality and responsible for exercising a certain pressure on companies so that they adopt more responsible measures.
Here’s some advice that can be helpful in your day to day:
-Check Durability: When it’s time to shop, go for products that guarantee longer lifespans, which means you won’t have to change them so soon.
-Think if It’s Necessary to Throw It Away: What we think is ready to be thrown away is not always really ready. Think twice before ending the life of a product.
-Repair Instead of Throwing Away: Repairing your products is one of the circular economy principles. In 2020, the European Union legislated the right to repair in order to guarantee the durability of products and to offer users alternatives that don’t suppose the end of the product’s lifespan.
-Go for Second-Hand Products: This new consumer awareness envisages a second life for products and objects, passing from consumer to consumer through second hand acquisitions — a trend that’s already on the rise in industries like fashion.
-Recycle: At home and through your shopping habits. Differentiate and separate goods that you will throw away so that they can go back into the market through recycling and buy recycled products.
-Saving at Home: In order to reduce emissions and the wearing out of the planet, home savings are key. Think twice before buying and think about how you will make an efficient and durable purchase.
Consumers and companies have a lot to say in the repairing and reusing strategy of the Circular Economy, which aspires to end the dispose dynamic in the face of planetary wear out and the shortage of raw materials.