Is your waste a waste?

• Main Authors: Kar Way TAN, ONG, Marcus Jiong Kai, HO, Sijie, KAN, Michelle
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Institutional Knowledge at Singapore Management University 2016
• Subjects: Sustainability; circular economy; Business; Technology and Innovation
• Online Access: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/sis_research/3385; https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/context/sis_research/article/4386/viewcontent/IsYourWasteWaste.pdf
• Institution: Singapore Management University

The concept of circular economies drives optimal resource efficiency. This means that resources should be fully utilised throughout the product’s lifecycle. To achieve this, businesses have to plan through the entire product life cycle, beginning from design to end-of-life. Designing products for a circular economy is not as simple as it sounds. The move will require take-back schemes and products designed for easy upgrade or reuse. Businesses typically focus on the manufacturing, packaging, marketing and point of sale of a product. Now they must rethink how to ensure their products will not eventually end up in a landfill or an incinerator. This will require innovative business models as well as new policies and regulations to change the rules of the game. This article discusses three challenges to circular economy: cost, legislation and logistics; and showed examples of how the challenges are addressed.