Towards a Circular Economy in Sweden - Barriers for new business models and the need for policy intervention
(2015) In IIIEE Master thesis IMEN41 20151The International Institute for Industrial Environmental Economics
- Abstract
- In order to halt current resource depletion and minimise environmental destruction, we need to reduce our dependency on virgin raw materials. There is a growing political consensus in the EU that we have to move away from our current linear economic system to one that is based on closing material loops, a circular economy. There is therefore a great need for new business models based on for example sharing, reusing and remanufacturing. A small portion of frontrunner companies are leading the way in Sweden and internationally, however the current political and societal trajectory impose numerous barriers for such businesses to scale up. New and revised policy intervention is therefore needed to pave the way for circular business models. In... (More)
- In order to halt current resource depletion and minimise environmental destruction, we need to reduce our dependency on virgin raw materials. There is a growing political consensus in the EU that we have to move away from our current linear economic system to one that is based on closing material loops, a circular economy. There is therefore a great need for new business models based on for example sharing, reusing and remanufacturing. A small portion of frontrunner companies are leading the way in Sweden and internationally, however the current political and societal trajectory impose numerous barriers for such businesses to scale up. New and revised policy intervention is therefore needed to pave the way for circular business models. In Sweden, a lack of policies which promote such development is apparent, and the interrelations between barriers for certain business models and the need for policy intervention is highly unexplored. This study identifies barriers and the need for policy intervention to overcome them, based on input from representatives from companies currently practicing business models based on circular economy thinking. It further maps relevant environmental policies in Sweden, in order to understand how the current political landscape addresses elements related to circular economy and make suggestions for how to further support circular business models in Sweden via policy intervention. Findings show that barriers are first and foremost institutional and market based related to price signals and consumer behaviour. But they are also political in terms of lack of ambition and long-term thinking, technological in terms of product design, and organisational in terms of lack of funding and lack of integration of the concept into core business. Policy intervention therefore needs to be multi-dimensional. A mix of measures based on regulations, economic instruments, information spreading and demand stimulations need to be placed within an overall governance framework based on enabling infrastructure, national targets and broad, long-term agreements. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
http://lup.lub.lu.se/student-papers/record/8170322
- author
- Westblom, Caroline LU
- supervisor
- organization
- course
- IMEN41 20151
- year
- 2015
- type
- H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
- subject
- keywords
- transition, governance, public policy, business models, Circular economy, Sweden
- publication/series
- IIIEE Master thesis
- report number
- 2015:18
- ISSN
- 1401-9191
- language
- English
- id
- 8170322
- date added to LUP
- 2015-11-13 13:01:33
- date last changed
- 2015-11-13 13:01:33
@misc{8170322,
abstract = {{In order to halt current resource depletion and minimise environmental destruction, we need to reduce our dependency on virgin raw materials. There is a growing political consensus in the EU that we have to move away from our current linear economic system to one that is based on closing material loops, a circular economy. There is therefore a great need for new business models based on for example sharing, reusing and remanufacturing. A small portion of frontrunner companies are leading the way in Sweden and internationally, however the current political and societal trajectory impose numerous barriers for such businesses to scale up. New and revised policy intervention is therefore needed to pave the way for circular business models. In Sweden, a lack of policies which promote such development is apparent, and the interrelations between barriers for certain business models and the need for policy intervention is highly unexplored. This study identifies barriers and the need for policy intervention to overcome them, based on input from representatives from companies currently practicing business models based on circular economy thinking. It further maps relevant environmental policies in Sweden, in order to understand how the current political landscape addresses elements related to circular economy and make suggestions for how to further support circular business models in Sweden via policy intervention. Findings show that barriers are first and foremost institutional and market based related to price signals and consumer behaviour. But they are also political in terms of lack of ambition and long-term thinking, technological in terms of product design, and organisational in terms of lack of funding and lack of integration of the concept into core business. Policy intervention therefore needs to be multi-dimensional. A mix of measures based on regulations, economic instruments, information spreading and demand stimulations need to be placed within an overall governance framework based on enabling infrastructure, national targets and broad, long-term agreements.}},
author = {{Westblom, Caroline}},
issn = {{1401-9191}},
language = {{eng}},
note = {{Student Paper}},
series = {{IIIEE Master thesis}},
title = {{Towards a Circular Economy in Sweden - Barriers for new business models and the need for policy intervention}},
year = {{2015}},
}