🔮 Is Circular Economy the Future?
What if beating climate change could be profitable as well?
Climate change is the buzzword of this decade, probably even this century. Much has been talked about how to reduce the impact of climate change without compromising development.Â
But what if there was a strategy that would be both eco-friendly and economy-friendly?
It may sound too good to be true but such a strategy does exist and one European nation is trying to capitalise on this strategy. It is called the circular economy.
What is a Circular Economy?
A circular economy is one in which raw materials are used to their full potential, meaning very little waste is produced. The waste of one becomes the raw material of another. The model depends a lot on renewable energy sources (here's our in-depth piece on the topic). In short, the motto of this kind of economy is "Take-Make-Remake."
Our current production and manufacturing system leads to a lot of waste. And this waste is not an accident, it comes from design flaws.Â
So, a circular economy focuses on eliminating these flaws and re-using materials as much as possible.Â
For instance, every time you buy soft drinks, you are left with the plastic bottle, which essentially goes to landfills and accumulates there for centuries.Â
Now, us Indians have sort of solved this issue by hoarding these plastic bottles and using them to store water. This is somewhat similar to what a circular economy aims to do. Seems like a promising model, right?
Luxembourg's Efforts
Luxembourg feels the same. It has realised the potential of this model and is fully committed to becoming one of the world's first circular economies. The country even launched a national circular economy strategy in 2021 and has launched several programmes and initiatives to make this vision a reality.
Before we look at what its strategies and policies are, let us understand why Luxembourg is doubling down on this economic model.
Sure, it's good for the environment. But that's not the only reason why the country has made it a priority.
You see, Luxembourg is a tiny nation that doesn't have many natural resources of its own. It usually has to import raw materials for production. Import costs are often fluctuating and end up costing a lot. Imports are also unreliable at times, as the current pandemic situation has highlighted.
By switching to a circular economy, Luxembourg can ensure that its imports last longer and are fully utilised. This will eventually end up saving a lot of money.
Plus, the innovations required to build a whole new economic system will also create more jobs in the country.Â
If you're not happy with these vague answers about the benefits of the circular economy, here are some cold hard numbers: the implementation of the circular economy has created 7,000-15,000 jobs for Luxembourg (total population = ~6.26 lakhs) and brought in €1 billion.
So, how is Luxembourg planning on becoming one of the world's first circular nations?
It has launched several initiatives and programmes for the purpose, including the Luxembourg CleanTech Cluster, managed by the country's national innovation agency Luxinnovation.Â
Yeah, you read that right. Luxembourg has its own innovation agency. This is probably why it is the EU leader in eco-innovation.
The CleanTech Cluster provides resources to businesses regarding how they can innovate and build new technologies to better achieve a circular business model.Â
Plus, it is educating the general population about the circular economy and green technologies, because without public awareness, achieving a goal of this scale is not possible.
It is also involved in building a deconstruction platform. Umm, what?
One of the biggest waste generating sectors is the construction industry. It accounts for over a third of all waste produced in the EU. The digital deconstruction platform wants to do away with this waste and make the industry circular by using digital tools like 3D scanning.Â
And that's not all. Luxembourg is also currently running a pilot project in Wiltz, trying to first make the small town a completely circular economy.Â
This project will not just benefit Luxembourg but serve as a model that the whole of Europe and even the world can learn from.
In fact, Luxembourg's interest in the circular economy stands to benefit us immensely. You see, the small size of the country and its entrepreneurial tradition make it the perfect laboratory to conduct circular economy experiments in.
Once it perfects the system, the rest of the world can follow in its footsteps to achieve success without undertaking massive risks.
But will Luxembourg be successful in its endeavours? Is a completely circular economy even possible in this age where most things are created to be easily disposable?
Only time will tell...
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Reduce... Reuse... Recycle... 3R