How to implement circular economy: four steps to get started

This blogpost is in english

Blogpost by: Katherine Whalen, host of “Getting in the loop” podcast

 “Just do it.” It’s a phrase you’ve probably used before. But when it comes to taking action towards a circular economy, is this useful advice?

After hosting the Getting in the Loop circular economy podcast over the past two years, I’ve noticed a trend. When my podcast guests are asked to share their advice, these three little words come up again and again. What advice would you give aspiring circular economy entrepreneurs? Just do it. How can others interested in circular economy get started? You guessed it – just do it.  

I’m sure a ‘just do it’ approach comes naturally to my podcast guests. They are, after all, circular economy leaders, championing the circular economy around the world. And their stories are inspiring – whether it be a CEO who has founded a company on circular economy principles or a researcher who has developed a new technique to help increase the longevity of a material.  

But, at the same time, I don’t think this is particularly constructive advice. If we want to empower people to start taking action towards circular economy, at some point we need to share our ideas of how to do it. Imagine telling a first-time driver to ‘just do it’ – without first explaining the difference between the brake and accelerator. 

After a recent interview, I started analyzing what these proven circular economy action takers had told me in our chats. Who better to learn ‘how-to’ from than the very people ‘just doing it’ in the first place? I quickly began seeing some overlaps in approaches, and it turns out there are a number of ways to take action towards a circular economy. Today I’m sharing four steps, which I’ve dubbed “ACT Circular” (ACT C) to help you remember:

A: Acknowledge what you already know. 

Think you need to learn more before taking action? You’re not alone. Getting in the Loop podcast guests have shared it’s their natural instinct as well. Many overcame the desire to go back to school and learn about circular economy by thinking about how they could draw on their existing skills. Like my podcast guests, you already hold a unique set of knowledge and expertise. How can you try from what you already know? 

You don't need to know everything about the circular economy before you start. If you have a background in the construction industry, for example, don't think you need to learn everything about the agri-food sector. Instead, think about how you can take your skills from construction and apply them to a circular economy from that perspective. In fact, I think it helps to have a niche. We need more experts who can get down to the nitty gritty details of circular economy in their specific industry or field. Bottom line: Go against the gut instinct that you need to wait.

C: Commit to a small scope.

If you’ve ever worked on a project, then you’ve likely witnessed firsthand the importance of setting boundaries. Clearly stating what you will and will not achieve within the scope of the project from the start helps you avoid disappointed clients when the project ends. So why must it be any different when it comes to taking action towards circular economy? Committing to a small scope from the outset can help you get started, build momentum, and avoid overwhelm, which is precisely what Swedish company loop-it has done. 

As CEO and co-founder Jennifer von der Heydt explained to me in a recent episode, loop-it has high ambitions for where they’re going in the future but chose to start with something small that they could learn from before scaling up. loop-it is a reuse system; their solution allows companies to track products and ensure they get used again (and again and again). But to get started, Jenn and her team committed to a small scope by focusing on one product: reusable coffee cups. Now less than two years later they’re in the process of bridging out to other types of packaging and products. 

How could you commit to a small scope? What could be your coffee cup? Maybe it's not a cup. It could be a building, or street, or something entirely different.

T: Try out different circular economy strategies. 

A child learning to walk for the first time doesn’t give up after falling down. She’ll get up and start again, learning through trial and error. Circular economy leaders also use a similar approach. Take Ashleigh Morris, for instance, who is the CEO of Coreo and one of the brains behind the Circular Experiment. In this project, Ashleigh and her sister selected six different circular economy principles which they then tried to apply to the businesses on a street in Queensland, Australia. One of the principles – asset sharing – led them to discover opportunities to consolidate deliveries amongst the business. (Delivery trucks were constantly idling on the (one-way) street, ruining the aesthetics for customers, not to mention the negative environmental impacts.)

You can adopt a similar trial and error mentality. Many different circular economy frameworks already exist. Choose one and start thinking about how the strategies could be applied to your situation.  (If you’re looking for a suggestion, the ReSOLVE framework comes to mind.)

C: Check the outcomes.

Virginia Cinquemani coaches sustainability professionals on their soft skills like communication and storytelling. One of the biggest mistakes she sees circular economy enthusiasts make is failing to realize that circular economy is not an end goal for most people. Instead, the benefits of circular solutions must be clearly communicated – that they are ‘circular’ is not enough. 

This starts with checking for outcomes. How does your idea fulfill customer needs? Does it save the company money? In the case of the Circular Experiment, Ashleigh found that the businesses that implemented the circular strategies they proposed were not only able to cut costs, but also improve the customer experience and cleanliness of the street. The main takeaway here: Don't forget to think about the outcomes of your solution. In fact, communicating what is expected from your solution can also help you convince others to take action.

ACT Circular to get started taking action

To recap, the four steps circular frontrunners follow to take action towards a circular economy were:

1) Acknowledge what you already know. What skills and expertise do you have? How could you draw on them?

2) Commit to a small scope. Think small and create boundaries.

3) Try out different circular economy strategies. Select a framework you can apply through trial and error.

4) Check the outcomes. How can you quantify the benefits?

My advice if you’re looking to take action? Just do that.

Dr. Katherine Whalen hosts the ‘Getting in the Loop’ circular economy podcast, recognized by GreenBiz as a top sustainability podcast. She researches sustainable and circular business models at RISE Research Institutes of Sweden and joined the Cradlenet Board in February 2021. New episodes of the ‘Getting in the Loop’ podcast air every other Monday, listen online here. All views expressed in this article are her own.

It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

Don’t worry about sounding professional. Sound like you. There are over 1.5 billion websites out there, but your story is what’s going to separate this one from the rest. If you read the words back and don’t hear your own voice in your head, that’s a good sign you still have more work to do.

Be clear, be confident and don’t overthink it. The beauty of your story is that it’s going to continue to evolve and your site can evolve with it. Your goal should be to make it feel right for right now. Later will take care of itself. It always does.