Circular Economy Business Models and Sustainable Prosperity

Seminar with Geraldine Brennan
Wednesday, 26 April 2017

The circular economy concept has risen to prominence over the last decade, with some authors arguing that it could be a new paradigm for sustainability. This seminar will explore the contribution of circular economy business models to sustainable prosperity.

ABSTRACT

Circular economy emphasises creating environmental and economic value from turning waste into productive resources. However, beyond recognition of potential job creation from a shift in the economy to more circular production systems (Stahel, 1984), social ideals and their relationship to value creation tend not to be explicitly addressed. This raises the question of how the broader ideals of equity, morality, and flourishing (Ehrenfeld, 2000) associated with sustainable prosperity (Jackson 2009, Moore 2015) can be operationalized in the context of the circular economy discourse? In this seminar, Dr Brennan presents ongoing work exploring how to operationalize these ideas in circular economy business models such that they contribute to the generation of economic, environmental, and multiple forms of social value in practice.

ABOUT

Geraldine Brennan is a CUSP Research Fellow based in CEEDR, Middlesex University Business School. She is working on the P-Theme of CUSP’s MAPSS Framework which explores the politics and organizational dimensions of sustainable prosperity. Her research interests include sustainable business model innovation, the conceptual development of the circular economy, and the role of alternative organizational forms and investment strategies in sustainable prosperity.