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Worldwide, cities are implementing circular economy (CE) strategies to reduce the resources they consume and their environmental impact. To understand the CE strategies and sectors cities have been focusing on, the authors have conducted an evidence map describing the literature published in the past 10 years.
The main outputs are a searchable database comprising 178 publications showing which cities have been discussed, what CE strategy they are focusing on, and the sectors under review. The results show that most research has focused on European countries. Those efforts mainly concentrate on waste and wastewater management, and recycling and recovery strategies are considered the “lower-level” strategies in the CE taxonomy.
The mapping highlights the potential for further research in other cities and regions, looking across sectors and analyzing strategies that tackle the “higher-level” CE strategies. Higher-level strategies include reducing, repurposing, remanufacturing and reusing opportunities to achieve the potential attributed to a CE model by governments across the world.
Project / This project provides cities with an adjustable framework to assess their level and potential for circularity.
SEI brief / A growing majority of the world's population lives in cities. That's why they're an ideal testing ground for circular economy policies, SEI researchers say.
SEI report / This report provides a coherent picture of SEI-wide engagement on the circular economy and offers future directions for the research agenda.
Feature / SEI Africa conducts the third and final session of a comprehensive training series on SEI tools in Nyeri County, Kenya.
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