ABSTRACT. The circular economy (CE) has attracted considerable focus in recent years for its potential to address sustainability challenges (Stahel, 2016; Korhonen et al., 2018). The idea is to replace the traditional linear economic model of production-consumption-disposal with a circular model of production-use-reuse-recycling (Mhatre et al. 2021). According to Knäble et al. (2022), CE hat the potential to foster sustainable development from a macroeconomic perspective by generating higher GDP, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and lowering unemployment rates at the country level. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has identified the following key CE business models: (1) circular supply models, using renewable energy instead of raw materials; (2) resource recovery models, recycling waste into secondary raw materials; (3) product life extension, repairing and remanufacturing products instead of throwing them away; and (4) sharing models, reducing the demand for new products and raw materials through sharing and second-hand principles (OECD, 2018). Findings by Knäble et al. (2022) highlight the potential of renewable energies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and the unemployment rate, as well as possible spill-over effects that the use of renewable energies can have on other CE value sources. A renewable energy source that has received comparatively little attention is geothermal energy. Geothermal energy is a form of renewable energy that harnesses the heat from the Earth's core to generate electricity. The source is a promising solution to achieving sustainable development goals, including reducing greenhouse gas emissions and increasing access to reliable and affordable energy. The aim of this review is to include all articles and reviews on the topics of CE and geothermal energy and to present a comprehensive analysis of their relation. Therefore, we examine the scientific relevance of geothermal energy in the context of the circular economy. We follow the PRISMA guidelines (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) by systematically reviewing and analysing existing scientific articles on the bibliographic database Scopus. First, we filtered our search in Scopus for the keywords “Geothermal” and “Circular AND Economy” in the “Article title-Abstract-Keywords” field. This search resulted in 30 publications. These are checked for duplicates and then screened. In the next step, a total of 9 papers were excluded due to type eligibility. These papers were excluded because they were either conference papers, conference reviews or editorials and we only consider articles, reviews and book chapters in this review. In a further step, 7 documents had to be excluded, as they did not fall inside the scope of Circular Economy and Geothermal. The remaining 14 documents were considered and analysed accordingly in the review. All the documents were published between the years 2020 and 2023, which illustrates the increasing relevance of the two topics in recent years. In the following Figure 1. the implementation is again graphically clarified on the basis of the PRISMA guidelines.

Figure 1: Application of PRISMA Guidelines To obtain a sense of the quantitative number of scientific articles related to renewable energies, we have also carried out this analysis for other sources of renewable energies such as biomass with 1757 articles and reviews, solar (310), wind (169), hydro (28), tidal (4). Here it becomes clear how few scientific articles exist between geothermal energy and CE. This work offers a significant contribution to the existing CE literature related to geothermal energy. We provide insight into existing literature and identify differences with other renewable energies.

ABSTRACT. The building under study is the Highschool of Agios Myronas village in the Municipality of Heraklion, Crete. The area belongs to the climate zone “A” which corresponds for the hottest one among the four climate zones (A-D) in Greece. The climate is classified as warm and temperate. The building is two floor building and has no insulation on the building envelope. With regards to transportation, there are two routes with conventional buses but usually students and inhabitants prefer to use their own car or taxi for their movement due to the limited frequency of the buses.Firstly, the energy demand should be reduced using bioclimatic features and passive measures. Secondly, the energy efficiency of active systems should be improved and maximized and smart systems could be used for the optimization of the building operation. Thirdly, the installation of renewable energy will minimize energy consumption and convert the building into zero energy building. The aim of this research is to present the adaptation retrofitting measures to transform a school building of Heraklion, Crete into Intelligent Nearly Zero Energy Building accompanied with sustainable mobility.

ABSTRACT. Global warming and consequently climate change have risen to an alarming level, rendering it mandatory to take action and specific measures. These environmental issues have attracted the attention of the scientific and industrial community, as well as that of policy makers and citizens. It is well known that fossil fuels combustion and human activities are responsible for the emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG), with carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions accounting for ca. 76% of the world's GHG emissions. In this regard, it is imperative for the CO2 concentration in the atmosphere to be effectively mitigated. According to the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report on the effects on global warming, global temperature is predicted to rise by 1.5 oC by the year 2040 as compared to the pre-industrial levels. The aforementioned environmental issues closely linked to CO2 emissions could be ameliorated through the following strategic approaches: (i) complete and/or partial replacement of carbon-based fuels with renewable energy sources (RES), (ii) carbon dioxide capture and storage (CCS) and (iii) chemical conversion/utilization of CO2 toward value-added chemicals and fuels. Among the carbon capture and utilization (CCU) technologies, the hydrogenation of CO2 to value-added products (such as methane, methanol, olefins) by means of green hydrogen has gained particular attention since it can concurrently utilize the surplus electricity of RES and the CO2. However, this particular process suffers from kinetic limitations, thus requiring the use of appropriate catalytic materials. Among the various catalysts, noble metals (NMs) are amongst the most active, with their high cost and scarcity, however, limiting their widespread application. In this regard, our research efforts have been lately focused on the rational design and development of non-precious metal catalysts which are characterized by low cost, earth abundance and high efficiency. This can be realized by following a holistic fine-tuning approach towards the optimization of the catalysts intrinsic and interfacial features and consequently their catalytic performance in terms of activity, selectivity and stability. Towards this direction, the co-adjustment of key engineering parameters, such as the composition, size and shape of the catalyst's counterparts, can exert a profound influence not only on the inherent properties of the individual constituents but also on their interfacial reactivity, thus resulting in extremely active and stable catalytic materials for real-life energy and environmental applications through the lens of circular economy and sustainability. Herein, we report on the rational design of NMs-free, transition metal catalysts (TMCs) supported on ceria (CeO2). Several parameters related to metal loading, support morphology have been thoroughly examined towards optimizing the catalytic efficiency during the CO2 methanation process. It was clearly disclosed that by co-adjusting the composition, size and shape of individual constituents extremely active and selective composites can be obtained. Among the various catalytic systems examined, the 8.0 wt.% Ni/CeO2 sample of nanorod-like morphology exhibited an excellent methanation performance, offering ca. 90% CH4 yield at 275 oC, being of the highest ever reported. In an attempt to scale-up the proposed process, the as-prepared samples were wash-coated on structured ceramic substrates – as they were used in practical applications – and tested in a fixed bed reactor under a scaling-factor of ca. 65. Remarkably, the structured catalyst attained a methane formation rate of 277 NL gNi‒1 h‒1, being superior to numerous values reported in relevant works. Finally, a techno-economic assessment study of an industrially (cement) captured CO2 upgrade to SNG (synthetic natural gas) was carried out, revealing an annual capacity of ca. 500 ktn/yr of SNG by capturing 1350 ktn/yr CO2 through the parallel utilization of 32 tn/yr of RES-powered electrolytic H2. A break-even price of ca. 1500 €/tn of SNG was estimated upon on strict market values. This value however can be easily reduced (up to 500€/tn) if we consider options such as: a) the SNG recycling to the cement industry, b) the CO2 penalty costs and c) the cost of RES-H2 production. Evidently, such scenarios aim towards a carbon neutral future as recently announced by the EU Green Deal strategy, while the proposed processes clearly follow the needs for carbon emissions mitigation through the implementation of renewables under the circular economy demands.

ABSTRACT. The adverse impact of fossil fuels on the environment and the increasing concerns regarding climate change, have intensified research efforts towards the exploitation of renewable energy sources (RES). Biomass is a cheap and widely distributed resource that can be utilized as a CO2-neutral feedstock in the economy of circularity. Towards this direction, the scope of the present study is the simulation of an integrated process that exploits olive kernel for the combined production of electrical power and bio-oil (crude feedstock for bio-fuel production). Olive kernel is fed to a slow-pyrolysis reactor and is converted to bio-oil (a marketable crude product), syngas and bio-char. The bio-char (along with the aqueous phase extracted from bio-oil) are fed to a gasifier in order to generate syngas. The latter is mixed with the pyrolysis syngas, cleaned and fed to the anode (air is the cathode inlet) of a solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC). The depleted air from the SOFC cathode and the unreacted fuel are supplied to an after-burner/boiler, which generates steam for the surplus power production in a series of steam-turbines. The operation of SOFC is adjusted so that its residual heat can be sufficient for meeting the thermal requirements of the gasification and the pyrolysis processes. As was found, the economic viability of this process strongly depends upon the reduction of the technology costs regarding primarily those of SOFCs and of the gas clean-up to SOFC specifications.

ABSTRACT. The current ever-growing tech- and resource- savvy society has led to the rapid expansion and need for industrial development, which generates unprecedented waste amounts on a daily basis. On a circular economy perspective, waste should be as much as possible prevented, following a hierarchy of strategies to avoid the end-of-life stage. Nevertheless, when no other option is available, waste-to-energy (WtE) techniques constitute a possible approach to convert residues into energy, within more energy-efficient processes to emit less or no CO2. These entail an alternative to landfilling (last option in the waste hierarchy), aiming to recover the energy present in the debris in order for them to be seen as resources again, contributing to a more sustainable and resilient society. Despite this, waste management has always been seen as an issue for the neighboring populations due to many aspects such as potential health problems, smell, noise, aesthetic of the treatment sites, landscape barriers and general social discomfort. This work proposes a literature review on the social assessments conducted for the thermal conversion of wastes so far, in order to display the knowledge gaps in this thematic, enabling a proper evaluation of the actual context for such a controversial topic. Also, a sensitivity analysis for the most concerning variables, comparing different scenarios and set of conditions, would potentially contribute to decision-making and policy-support to promote an approach more focused on the social perspective, as an integration with other aspects, namely environmental, economic and technical features.

ABSTRACT. The load capacity factor (LCF) is a valuable tool for assessing the sustainability of a given region or country by comparing the ecological footprint (EF) of its population with the biocapacity (BC) of its natural resources. The primary aim of this study is to evaluate the load capacity factor (LCF) concerning critical macroeconomic indicators such as economic growth, energy intensity, environmental taxes, and trade openness for a selected group of OECD countries. With this, we hope to provide insights into the complex interplay between environmental quality and macroeconomic development and to inform policy interventions that can enhance the sustainability of EU countries. Rees (1992) introduced the EF as a measure of global hectares of air, water, and soil pollution. However, the EF only accounts for human demand for natural resources and environmental damage, neglecting the response of ecosystems to this demand and the availability of natural resources. While the EF provides a demand-side indicator for ecological footprint, a comprehensive indicator incorporating regenerative biocapacity is necessarily better for assessing sustainability (Altintas and Kassouri, 2020). Biocapacity represents the supply side of natural resources available to humans (Pata and Balsalobre-Lorente, 2022). Siche et al. (2010) proposed the LCF, calculated as biocapacity divided by EF, to conduct a more accurate environmental assessment. Considering the OECD countries is essential for evaluating the load capacity curve hypothesis because these countries are among the world's most economically developed and environmentally conscious. In addition, as OECD countries follow relatively homogenous institutional and regulatory frameworks, our analysis can help identify common patterns and trends, allowing for generalizable findings regarding the relationships between LCF and macroeconomic indicators. Finally, since OECD countries are significant contributors to global environmental impacts, our analysis can inform policy makers about interventions and strategies to promote sustainable development and reduce environmental degradation in developed and developing countries. To analyze the relationships between the load capacity factor and the macroeconomic indicators, we employ panel data analysis techniques that account for the cross-correlated and heterogeneous nature of the data. Our findings show that LCF varies widely among OECD countries, with most countries having an ecological deficit. Overall, the LCF hypothesis seems to be confirmed by our sample. Also, countries with higher energy intensity tend to have lower LCF, suggesting that the amount of energy used to produce a given output or activity exacerbates environmental challenges. Interestingly, we observe a positive relationship between environmental taxes and LCF, indicating that higher taxes levied on activities considered harmful to the environment lead to improved environmental quality, but nonlinearly. Finally, more open economies tend to have higher LCF, suggesting that trade openness could significantly improve environmental sustainability. Our results have important implications for policymakers and stakeholders concerned with environmental quality and sustainability. Highlighting the complex interplay between economic growth, energy use, environmental taxes, trade openness, and environmental sustainability provides insights into potential policy interventions that could enhance the sustainability of OECD countries.

ABSTRACT. The finiteness of natural resources inevitably brings into question the linear production system adopted by the vast majority of organisations. Considering that the scarcity of raw materials is already a reality faced by companies, the observed trend is a gradual transition to a circular production system, where business models encompass, from their conception, premises for waste elimination and reduction of wastage (Julianelli, Caiado, Scavarda & Cruz, 2020). Circular business models have enabled the creation of new markets. In this context, ecological product manufacturing companies are being established to facilitate and enable innovative methods of production, marketing, and consumption. Global agendas emphasise that economic development must also take social and environmental aspects into account (SDG, 2015). The circular economy emerges as an alternative for regenerating ecosystems, and innovations must be capable of supporting systemic change in companies, industries, and economies. There is also a need for radical shifts in values, norms, behaviours, and attitudes of individuals. Thus, the study presented here was developed with the intention of contributing to filling the theoretical gap of how innovation can support and implement the circular economy and resource circularity (Suchek et al, 2021) in ecological product manufacturing companies. The research question that motivates this study is directly related to the scarcity of some types of natural resources and climate change as strategic elements for rethinking businesses: What is the level of innovation and adherence to sustainable business models in ecological product manufacturing companies? Companies adopting sustainable business models generate significant impacts on societal development, as they aim for environmental and social outcomes in addition to economic results. In this sense, the proposed study is pertinent, as it will enable an understanding of how innovation and circularity have been approached in the context of Brazilian ecological product manufacturing companies. Moreover, the research results provide important contributions in terms of reinforcing that it is possible to achieve economic profit while considering the preservation of natural resources and human development, thus favouring the attainment of the 12th SDG – Responsible Consumption and Production. Accordingly, the general objective of the study was to analyse the level of innovation and adherence to sustainable business models in ecological product manufacturing companies. This study adopts a qualitative and descriptive approach, utilising the construction of a database through the use of the Google Maps tool. Successive searches were conducted, incorporating terms such as city, state, and "ecological products." The criterion for assembling the database involved researching all Brazilian cities, encompassing 5,570 cities in total. The database was constructed using an Excel spreadsheet, containing company names, cities, states, phone numbers, emails, and websites. Subsequently, interview invitations were sent to a sample of companies, 15 of which agreed to participate. The semi-structured interviews adhered to the guidelines set forth by Corbin and Strauss (1990). Interviews were conducted using the Zoom tool, with the content recorded and later transcribed in its entirety. Data analysis will involve the creation of a posteriori categories and will follow Glaser and Strauss's (1967) criteria for theoretical saturation. Evidence from the surveyed ecological product manufacturers demonstrates a close alignment between interviewee statements and secondary data findings. The diverse sources of data collection yield a comprehensive and complementary overview of circularity practices, sustainable initiatives, and technological innovations listed in this research. The circular economy has the potential to generate practicality (E2), socio-environmental responsibility (E3), integrity, teamwork, commitment, austerity, resilience, predictability (E1, E4, E8), operational efficiency (E4, E5, E15), the construction of better cooperative and contributory relationships, matching supply and demand, and efficient resource utilisation for a more balanced and sustainable value chain (E4). Additionally, compliance (E2, E4), the constant pursuit of excellence, dynamism, and adaptability (E4), the creation of sustainable connections and relationships (E4), cradle-to-cradle engagement in the productive chain (E5), cost reduction (E5, E10, E15), increased traceability and compliance (E5, E10, E15), prioritisation of freshness and practicality (E1, E6, E9, E12, E13), short cycles (E1, E12, E13), process optimisation (E4, E6, E12, E13), commitment (E6), human appreciation (E1, E3, E8), engagement generation (E10), fair pricing acquisition (E1, E9, E11), water conservation (E12), customisation (E12, E13, E15), encouragement of self-production logic (E13), reduction of intermediaries (E01, E13), more durable products (E13), incentive for collaborative processes (E15), identification of process bottlenecks (E15), and evidence of compliance and non-compliance (E15). Likewise, excellent initiatives were found, such as sustainable delivery services that position a client's brand as environmentally friendly (E2), collective purchases that reduce customer costs and increase producer profits (E1), supporting small businesses through crises during the pandemic (E2), reverse logistics for returnable packaging in delivery (E2), cashback incentives via discount coupons for future food purchases (E2), waste reduction (E2), risk management (E3), meeting the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (E3), and waste treatment with high organic content, transforming it into fuel with high calorific value and low moisture, used to generate renewable energy through boilers and steam turbines (E3). Furthermore, proactive attitudes (E3), waste-to-biomass transformation (E3), elimination of environmental liabilities (E3), local income generation through the development of regional partners and suppliers (E3), implementation and restructuring of waste-picker cooperatives (E3), and the possibility of purchasing clean energy at more attractive prices (E3), artificial intelligence for connecting supermarkets and greengrocers with idle surpluses (E4), adding value to products that would be discarded or destined for NGOs that can receive donations (E4), generating value for what was previously considered a loss (E4), enabling traceability practices throughout the process (E1, E4), creating parameters for identifying products with potential for loss (E4), implementing a managerial dashboard encompassing all levels of impact – financial, operational, social, and environmental (E4), and automating processes (E4). This demonstrates the potential for resource utilisation, waste reduction (E4, E6, E13), intelligent use of waste, and the generation of sustainable solutions for society, creating a socio-environmental impact by giving products a second chance. Assisting those in need and minimising waste generation. Additionally, reducing disposal costs (E4). Furthermore, dynamic, conscious, and contributory solutions are generated, supported by sophisticated technological artefacts that often make use of artificial intelligence and blockchain. Moreover, perspectives of action are supported by the premises of the solidarity and contributory economy. The commitment to sustainable development. It was found that adherence to circular economy premises is a strategic element for the surveyed companies, as a generator of differentiation, occupying a niche, and capable of providing a sustainable competitive advantage for ecological product manufacturers. It was noted that E6 and E10 are the two ecological product manufacturers that use the highest number of circular economy premises, and these two companies are the ones that best manage pollution prevention and control, associated with E3, E5, and E10, whose business models are centred on pollution prevention and control. On the other hand, ecological product manufacturers with the lowest number of internalised circular economy premises also have a proactive strategy in pollution prevention and control, where Hart (1995) emphasises the need for tacit resources, casually ambiguous, such as transparency and public scrutiny, to maintain legitimacy and build a reputation. Whereas product management demands socially complex resources, that is, those based on processes and privileging product lifecycle analysis integrated into the product development process. As for the technological innovation artefacts mapped in the study, they support networks, synergies, cooperation, integration, and stakeholder connectivity. All ecological product manufacturers contribute to various initiatives aligned with the SDGs and sustainable development, as previously described. They align with Hart's (1995) premises that advocate that the resources required for sustainable development are scarce and firm-specific, demand shared vision, collaboration, and technological cooperation. It is essential to emphasise that institutional factors motivating adherence to circularity and technological innovation, the regulatory aspect, sectoral pressure, and the global climate and health crisis, also play a crucial role because there is a synergistic effect regarding circular economy premises, technological innovations as strategic resources for sustainable development, and the perpetuity of nations' natural resources. Above all, resource management strategies depend on the trajectory of ecological product manufacturers and are incorporated and overlapped in the organisational dynamics (Hart, 1995). They require the development of pollution prevention capabilities, product management from a planning and design perspective, and strategies and capacities embedded with sustainable development. These are strategies focused on dynamic capabilities (Teece, Pisano, and Schuen, 1997), particularly focused on competencies and people.

ABSTRACT. The concept of circular economy (CE), a sustainability paradigm based on the creation of closed material loops hinges on the ability of stakeholders within the CE ecosystem to exchange accurate information concerning products and materials throughout their life-cycle. However, literature has attributed one of the main reasons for the low adoption of CE by organizations to the lack of product-related information exchange between them. This paper aims to examine which factors contribute adversely to information exchange between stakeholders in the CE and categorize them from the point-of-view of an entity participating in a CE.

ABSTRACT. This study aimed to identify the interfaces between Industry 4.0 technologies and circular supply chains in startups, through the main stakeholders of the sector. The research was conducted in eight Brazilian food startups, through interviews and content analysis. 16 circular supply chain practices were identified in the startups surveyed, along with three different Industry 4.0 technologies already practiced in the startups, and the adherence of the startups to the issues raised by the stakeholders theory was verified. The results indicate that Industry 4.0 technologies generate efficiency in circular production chains of startups, despite being incipient in the surveyed startups. The engagement of strategic stakeholders optimizes circular production chains of startups in the Brazilian context. Resource circularity creates value for startups when supported by Industry 4.0 technologies and stakeholder engagement is critical to resource circularity in startups. The practical contributions of this study include the finding that stakeholder engagement in circular practices is possible, both in the supply chain and within organizations. The study also highlights the need for government support, both in regulatory issues and in the exemption of certain taxes for investment in new Industry 4.0 technologies. As suggestions for future studies, research can be conducted with a larger number of companies, verifying the interfaces between circular economy and Industry 4.0 technologies in Brazilian startups, and the elaboration of studies on the current reality of the food sector, focusing on startups, in relation to the interfaces between circular economy and Industry 4.0 technologies.

ABSTRACT. A successful transition to the circular plastics economy (CPE) demands systemic changes that will require innovation at all levels. Despite significant innovative efforts to drive the circular plastics economy in Africa, most of this is disjointed with no unified approach. This paper uses the sectoral systems of innovation framework to examine the actors and networks, knowledge and technological domains, and institutions and their roles for the circular plastic economy in Africa. This provides a practical understanding of the systematic interactions among a wide variety of actors to drive progress, activities, and the generation of knowledge relevant to innovation for the circular plastic economy. The Sectoral Systems of Innovation (SSI) framework has demonstrated efficacy in the appreciation of industrial dynamics of various sectors, making it an ideal tool for analysing the plastics value network within Africa to expedite a positive and seamless shift from current linear plastics lock-ins towards a digitally enhanced circular plastics economy within Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Hence, this study employs a systemic approach by adapting the core features of the SSI framework to the circular plastics value chain within SSA with a view to propose a strategy for establishing synergies and optimising collaboration between these identified CPE players.

ABSTRACT. Going circular with what we wear and how we build: Parallelisms between the Dutch and French Catwalks of Fashion and Construction

Dr. Norman Dytianquin1, Simon Paindavoine2 1Center of Sustainable International Business, International Business School Maastricht, The Netherlands Corresponding author email: norman.dytianquin@zuyd.nl; norman.dytianquin@gmail.com 2IAE University School of Management, Lille, France email: simonpaindavoine079@gmail.com; simon.paindavoine.etu@univ-lille.fr

In fashion, a catwalk is a raised platform along which models walk to display clothes in fashion shows. In construction, a catwalk is a raised narrow walkway or bridge built for construction workers to walk on a building that is being built or repaired. The catwalk is not the only thing though that binds the fashion and construction industries as both sectors have lately been at the spotlight of the circular economy. The Ellen MacArthur Foundation, which has trail-blazed the transition to the circular economy over the past decades, identified ten key sectors that are to be significantly impacted or disrupted by the circular economy in the near term (EMF a, 2020). Among these ten sectors that will be driven by regulation, innovation and evolving customer preferences are fashion and textiles, and engineering and construction industries . In response to the call for circular transition, the Dutch government aims to achieve a fully circular economy by 2050. To accelerate this transition to circularity, it has launched the Circular Economy Implementation Program in collaboration with local governments, industry representatives and civil society organizations (Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management, Oct. 2021). The program contains five transitional agenda in the following sectors: biomass and food, plastics, manufacturing industry, construction, and consumer goods, under which falls clothes (National Agreement on the Circular Economy, 2017). The French government, in turn, developed a Circular Economy roadmap to become 100% circular in various sectors at different timelines. The roadmap contains 50 circular economy measures aimed at a 30% reduction in natural resource use related to French consumption by 2030; a 50% reduction in the amount of non-hazardous waste landfilled by 2025 compared to 2010; a 100% recycling of plastics by 2025 and a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions of 8 million additional tons of CO2 per year (Ministry for an Ecological and Solidary Transition and Ministry for the Economy and Finance, 2018).

In previous studies , comparison was made between circular projects in the construction and demolition industry (CDI) across selected EU countries. In this study, comparison between circularity in two sectors in the Netherlands and France will be conducted to determine if circularity principles are common or specific to an industry and to a country. The two sectors to be compared are the clothing/fashion industry and the construction/building industry in the Netherlands and France which provide interesting parallelisms in the manner by which circularity principles have evolved. In 2020, the two countries were among the top 10 waste generators in the EU: France is the second after Germany while the Netherlands ranked seventh following Italy, Poland, Sweden and Romania (Figure 1). The two sectors are also the biggest polluters in the EU. Fashion ranked second among industrial polluters contributing 8%-10% of carbon emissions as shown in Figure 2 [Quantis (2018); Kerr and Landry (2017); Filho et al. (2022); EU Parliament (2022); Niimaki et al. (2020)] which is higher than what is produced by aviation and shipping combined; and also water usage and water pollution of about 20% of global clean water pollution [EU Parliament, 2022; Niimaki et al (2020)]. In terms of per tonnage of textile waste in 2020, France ranks 3rd after Italy and Germany, while the Netherlands ranked fifth following Belgium (Figure 4). Construction, in turn, ranked first in terms of waste generation as shown in Figure 3 at 36% (Eurostat, n.d.) with the Netherlands ranking 3rd and France ranking 2nd in per tonnage waste generation (Figure 5).

Figure 2. Carbon Emissions of Apparel and Footwear Industry Source: Quantis (2017).

Figure 4. EU Textile Waste by Member State, 2020 (in tons)

Source: Eurostat (online data code: env_wasgen).

Figure 3. Waste Generation by Economic Activity, EU-27

Source: Eurostat (online data code: env_wasgen).

Figure 5. EU Construction Waste by Member State, 2020 (in tons)

Source: Eurostat (online data code: env_wasgen).

The overall aim of the comparison of the two sectors in the two countries is to determine if circularity principles are common or exclusive to an industry or even a country. It purports to determine the extent design-driven circular principles contribute to the balance of the sustainability triptych and the attainment of the UN SDGs. Using circular design principles [Tanttu et al. (2016); Cheshire (2016)], the study uses case studies of enterprises involved in each design principle used in the two sectors . In comparing the way circularity is applied in these two industries, focus is not only placed on the environmental dimensions of conserving resources, but also on the sectoral projects’ social perspective (e.g., stakeholder involvement, job creation), economic feasibility (search for new business models), and financial viability (e.g., possibilities for green or sustainable financing). The study evaluates the environmental impact and life cycle assessments of the case companies, incorporating as well social impact assessment. On the one hand, the environmental impact assessment simply looks at the pollution and extractive effects of the production processes of these sectors [Singh et al. (2016); Yijun et al. (2011); Global Footprint Network; Haupt & Hellweg (2019)]. Life cycle assessment, on the other hand, goes a step further by investigating both upstream and downstream activities throughout the life span of the products produced in these sectors (OECD, 2019). Finally, social impact assessment integrates social issues in project planning and execution covering stakeholder engagement, and value chain support as well as impact on local communities [Padilla-Rivera et al. (2020); Persson et al. (2004); Bal et al. (2013); UNEP (2009). The balance between environmental, social and economic dimensions of sustainability using the case companies will be compared using the materiality indicators as shown in Tables 1, 2 and 3 to argue the case for strong or balanced sustainability (Dytianquin et al., 2023). Finally, the sectors will also be matched up in terms of performance in achieving the targets of the UN Sustainability Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030.

Overall, the results reveal that the catwalks of fashion and construction traversed the same routes in transiting to circularity using approximate design principles from material selection, designing for waste or material recovery, designing for re-use and disassembly and designing for adaptability and longevity. In terms of the SDGs, both sectors primarily target SDG 12 ― responsible consumption and production, secondarily SDG 13 ― climate change, and as a tertiary SDG, diverged with construction focusing on SDG 15 ― life on land and fashion focusing on SDG 14 ― life on water. For responsible consumption and production, the main obstacle is the lack of demand or consumer acceptance for wearing recycled clothes or using recycled building materials in their homes. This lack of demand constrains producer’s financing and scaling up possibilities for circular production systems. What also came out was the need to build collaboration in the value creation, value delivery and value capture ecosystem of these sectors. This involves the coordination of innovative activities that develops new materials from recycled waste and the sourcing of investments for the circular technologies created in the sector. As far as the balance on the sustainability triptych is concerned, both sectors skew towards the environmental dimension although possibilities for the social and economic dimensions are emerging once a critical mass of consumer acceptance is reached, and for as long as the upstream value chain is involved such as selection of materials or designing for regenerative materials. Finally, common sustainable business models are also developing aside from closed loop production systems, but more on product as a service model such as resale and rental for both clothes and household furniture and utilities but also a materials bank or collection depot of discarded products and materials for textile and construction waste to climb up the circularity ladder.

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Dytianquin, N., Kalogeras, N., van Oorschot, J. & Abujidi, N. (2023). Circularity in the Construction & Demolition Industry: Comparing Weighting Methods for Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis. Frontiers in Sustainability. Frontiers in Sustainability 4:1115865.doi: 10.3389/frsus.2023.1115865.

ABSTRACT. As a key driver of the circular economy, product-service systems (PSS) have regained attention in sustainable design research after a period of decline (Koide et al., 2022). The unique characteristics of PSS challenge the conventional belief that economic growth and resource consumption are inseparable, providing an opportunity to reconcile this contradiction (Kjaer et al., 2019). Manufacturing companies play a crucial role in the implementation of PSS but face numerous barriers such as a limited understanding of the sustainability implications of PSS and the lack of suitable approaches for PSS design. To overcome these obstacles and achieve the sustainability benefits of PSS, a systematic framework is necessary to guide the design process and aid decision-making (Vasantha et al., 2015). Currently, such support is lacking in academic literature and industry practices (Sakao & Neramballi, 2020). To fill this gap, three cycles of the design research methodology (DRM) (Blessing & Chakrabarti, 2009) were employed to develop a systematic framework for early-stage sustainable PSS design. The methodology involved a combination of methods such as systematic literature review (SLR), action research, and case studies, intending to provide comprehensive and effective support for capital goods manufacturing companies. The systematic framework is focused on the early-stage PSS design in capital goods manufacturing companies (Figure 1). The focus was placed on the early stages of design due to its most significant potential for the performance and success of PSS offerings in all three dimensions of sustainability (Sousa-Zomer & Miguel, 2017). The support is targeted towards the capital goods manufacturing companies due to the industrial pull (Sarancic et al., 2021) and the opportunity to mitigate the major contribution manufacturers have to climate change (Zhang et al., 2018). The framework, which has been developed theoretically and empirically, consists of four elements that contribute to an all-encompassing and systematic approach to early-stage sustainable PSS design. As demarked in Figure 1, element A regarding drivers and barriers (Sarancic et al., 2021), element B describing a generic PSS process model (Sarancic, Pigosso, Pezzotta, et al., 2023), element C regarding instantiation guidelines (Sarancic, Pigosso, & McAloone, 2023, forthcoming), and element D presenting a PSS sustainability screening tool (Sarancic et al., 2022), respectively form the framework. Manufacturers may have different motives to pursue PSS, hence different challenges accompany the development of such offerings. It is crucial to determine the motivation in early-stage design to strategically steer such projects, as elaborated in the contribution related to element A. Regardless of the motivation, PSS offering design necessitates a structured process which is pivotal to designing new offerings quickly and repeatedly. One such generic process model (GPM) based on an SLR was proposed in the contribution tied to element B. The comprehensive model prescribes a stage-gate process with temporal (three phases) and content dimensions (seven clusters of entities to consider), as well as necessary sustainability considerations connected to each of them. To increase the chances of successful industrial adoption and the impact of the GPM contribution related to element C thoroughly evaluates the model and proposes comprehensive instantiation guidelines to support the creation of company-specific process models. Finally, to align PSS concepts conceived by the manufacturing companies using the GPM with the triple-bottom-line (TBL) corporate strategies, which is the most common framework to implement sustainability in businesses, a concept screening tool has been proposed in the contribution tied to the element D. The four-dimensional Business, Environmental, and Social Screening Tool (BESST) enables PSS concept dissection with respect to the TBL, life cycle stages, the main elements of PSS (product, service, network, and infrastructure), and the concept’s value. Thereby, key contributions are made to both the academic and industrial practice of PSS design, including the potential to mitigate uncertainties related to the sustainable performance of PSS.

ABSTRACT. Agro-industries produce large amounts of by-products rich of bioactive molecules that can represent a good new source of promising products. In a sustainability context, supporting Circular Economy plan and Agenda 2030, such materials can be reused and find application in many fields, including active packaging development and functional foods production. In Italy, tomatoes and artichokes are widely cultivated thanks to the favorable climate, and they are industrially processed especially in Emilia-Romagna region, which is considered the “food” and “packaging valley” of the country. Tomatoes and artichokes byproducts are rich of bioactive compounds such as polyphenols, carotenoids, antocyanins, cutin, fibers (Grimaldi et al., 2022), whose consumption can provide benefits for human health (Leichtweis et al., 2021). The aim of this work is to reuse such material, usually discarded, for new applications, such as novel active packaging formulations as edible films, and ingredients for functional foods. Tomato and artichoke by-products have been dried at 40 °C, then milled to obtain a powder in order to preserve them from fermentation processes. A green extraction method has been chosen for the bioactive compounds extraction, such as ultrasound assisted extraction employing ethanol as solvent. Analytical assays have been performed for the analytical characterization of the extracts: Folin-Ciocalteau method, based on a spectrophotometric assay, was used to quantify the total phenolic content (TPC), and DPPH assay to measure the total antioxidant capacity (TAC). These extracts can be used as ingredients in active edible packaging formulation to be proposed for food products. The oxidative stability of a product enriched with the extracts can be measured by Oxitest reactor. Preparation of edible films was based on the sol-gel method using alginate (Grimaldi et al., 2022) enriched with antioxidant extracts from tomato and artichoke byproducts. Films were tested to evaluate their ability to improve shelf-life of foods. To this aim, edible films were applied on meat, like hamburger, veal fillet and horse fillet. Shelf-life was monitored during 72 h by measuring color indexes as parameter of deterioration. The treated hamburger showed an improvement of shelf-life of about 30% (Figure 1).

Figure 1: color variation of treated samples vs untreated samples over time

One of the main components of tomato peels is cutin, an insoluble substance with hydrophobic properties. Cutin is a polyester polymer which consists of omega hydroxy acids and their derivatives, mainly formed from two monomer, the 16-hydroxy palmitic acid and the 18-hydroxy oleic acid (Xu et al., 2021). Cutin has been extracted as hydrolyzed monomers using NaOH at reflux, with the aim of isolating a molecule useful for the preparation of hydrophobic coatings for paper and wood. Artichoke by-products are rich of fructo-oligosaccharides (FOS) and inulin, which are a class of soluble fibers with prebiotic activity (Cummings and Stephen, 2007). The extraction of FOS/inulin from artichoke has been performed in hot water at reflux. Their characterization was performed by HPAEC-PAD, a selective analytical tool for carbohydrate analysis. Extracts enriched with inulin can be used in the field of functional food, such as pasta production. Indeed, a nutraceutical pasta has been produced with wheat flour enriched with artichoke flours derived from by-products. The residues of tomato and artichoke after extraction represent a final waste of the described processes. However, those materials have been proposed as source for secondary packaging production, or even to prepare biodegradable pots for plants able to nourish the plant and which can be directly buried with it. In conclusion, this work is focused on the recovery of agro-industrial by-products reusing them as source of new compounds useful for active packaging formulations and functional food application. In addition, the final wastes produced can be used to develop secondary packaging, according to “Zero Waste” principle.

ABSTRACT. Agricultural activities are highly water dependent and energy intensive. Mykonos Island, Greece, is an area heavily affected with water scarcity. The HYDROUSA project suggests an alternative business model for decentralized water scarce areas to provide economic benefits to water scarce areas with high value products, while closing the water loops and boosting agricultural and energy profiles. The aim of this study was to assess the carbon footprint and water consumption with life cycle assessment, and the water circularity performance with circularity indicators of oregano essential oil production by applying a nature inspired rainwater harvesting system for rainwater collection and a dehumidifier for demineralized water production (HYDRO system) as an alternative solution of conventional farming and industrial water production (baseline system). Both systems were modelled cradle-to-gate, considering manufacturing of capital goods, with a bottle of oregano essential oil as the functional unit. The Recipe midpoint impact model was used to calculate the carbon footprint and water consumption, and the Water Circularity Metric was used to calculate water circularity indicators: %Circular water inflow, %Circular water outflow, and X-times on-site circulation. The results show that the carbon footprint and water consumption are reduced by 48% and 96% when the HYDRO system is replacing the baseline system, respectively. The main contributors of the carbon footprint of the HYDRO system are the capital goods: infrastructure and dehumidifier, while for the reference system fertilizers and electricity used to pump irrigation water contribute approx. 84%. The HYDRO system results in a large reduction in water consumption due to accounting for indirect water consumption by the Recipe model. The water circularity indicators support the water consumption results and provide additional insights in terms of water source origin and water output destination. The circular water inflow of the HYDRO system is 99.85% due to harvested rainwater and water produced by the dehumidifier as circular water sources, in contrast to 0% in the baseline system. Similarly, the circular water outflow of the HYDRO system is 99.74%, while the baseline system results in 3.98%. The only circular water discharge contributing to the %circular water outflow of the baseline system is the percentage of the irrigation losses that become a return flow, eventually contributing to groundwater recharge. The value of the X-times on-site circulation indicator is the same in both systems (i.e. 1.07) indicating internal water reuse within the facility (i.e. reused water for cooling). To conclude, applying a nature inspired rainwater harvesting system to collect rainwater and a dehumidifier provide environmental benefits regarding carbon emissions and water consumption when compared with conventional farming and industrial water production, respectively. However, the RECIPE impact model fails to highlight water benefits due to use of renewable water sources, and the water circularity indicators need to cover indirect water use to fully capture circular benefits. These benefits provide added value to a water scarce island.

ABSTRACT. The sustainability of agricultural productivity and the security of global food supplies are two of the most urgent issues of the new millennium. To solve these concerns, agro-ecosystems' ability to adapt to a rapidly changing climate and improve global food supply while avoiding inadvertent environmental damage is crucial. By the creation of cutting-edge and smart technologies, cleaner production projects support sustainable development. Among these technologies are smart nanocarriers that can encapsulate and deliver active pesticide ingredients (AIs) in a responsive manner (e.g., controlled, targeted, and synchronized) open up new avenues for improving the efficacy and efficiency of traditional pesticides. Among the novel technologies proposed in agriculture, Metal-Organic Frameworks (MOFs) have gained a significant role as carriers for the controlled release of agrochemicals The use of safe and stable MOFs in agroindustry (mostly for environmental cleanup and agrochemical-controlled release) is required. In this study we will seek to answer the question of how the use of green bio-MOFs-based pesticide nano-formulations can lead to improved sustainable cleaner production.

ABSTRACT. Nowadays a sustainable production and consumption should be circular in micro, meso and macro level (Nikolaou & Tsagarakis, 2021). Among other sectors, circular economy principles have been recently practice in the valorization of olive by-products during olive oil production process (Radic et al., 2021; Donner et al., 2022). Contemporary olive oil extraction results to environmental impacts due to the many and dispersed low scale facilities (Kapellakis and Tsagarakis, 2008). Despite its adoption as a term in recent years, circular economy as a concept has been practiced since ancient times. The aim of this study is to provide the diachronic development of olive oil management tracing back elements of sustainable and circular practices we are reinventing today. For the purposes of this work, the island of Crete has been selected as reference, as its history is parallel to the history of the olive tree and the olive oil. The examined period is the most important and characteristic in the history of the island, starting from ca. 2800-2100, where A. Evans (archaeologist known for his excavations at Knossos) believed that olive cultivation began in Crete (Lidakis, 1954), until the present day, following the main cornerstones in olive oil production. Examination of the Minoan civilization shows that the changes that occurred in the agricultural economy and crops compared to today are not significant (Allbaugh, 1953). Relatively small changes have also been observed in the olive oil production method, so-called today as traditional, which included three stages of processing: crushing of the olive fruit-pressing the olive pulp-separating the oil from the other components of the fruit (Hadjisavvas, 2008). In fact, the main changes throughout this period from the Bronze Age to industrialization improved the process and included, in addition to the mass olive oil production for palatial needs and exports that contributed to the flourishing of the Minoan civilization, the pressing of the olive pulp with a lever for the second of the three stages of olive oil production that has started during the Late Bronze Age (ca. 1600-1100 BC), the crushing of the olive fruit for the first of the three stages of production, with the introduction of the rotary mill (Fig. 1a) and the uninterrupted one-way movement during the Hellenistic period (ca. 336 - 30 BC), which allowed, for the first time in the history of production, the use of animal power (Hadjisavvas, 2008), the final predominance of the use of screw in the second stage (Fig. 1b) during the Early Byzantine period (ca. 330-843), the introduction of the hydraulic pressing systems invented by Joseph Graham in 1795 (Balatsouras 1986) and disseminated in Crete during the early years of the 20th century, the gradual predominance of diesel engines, tractors, pumps, etc. over human and animal power, and windmills until the 1960s, and the gradual predominance of centrifuge type olive mills over the traditional olive mills over the last fifty years.

ABSTRACT. The agricultural sector relies heavily on the use of plastics and yet it has received less attention than the packaging sector. In agricultural activities, plastics are widely used for mulch, silage, and greenhouse protection in the form of films, as well as for irrigation purposes such as plastic tubes and drip lines. The lightweight nature, durability and elasticity lend plastics to many uses in the sector, all of which present their own challenges when they reach their end-of-life stage. This study will employ the Complex Value Optimisation for Resource Recovery (CVORR), a step-wise systems approach, to unravel the opportunities and barriers to using plastics in the agricultural sector (Iacovidou et al., 2020). It will look at the types and flows of agricultural plastics and the way these are used and managed in the system. The purpose of this work is to identify where changes are needed to enable the agricultural sector to transition to a circular plastics economy.

ABSTRACT. The idea of sustainability is loosely applied to all livestock production systems subject to a variety of factors. As in other sectors of economic activities, the importance of sustainability in livestock systems is that it is a dominant parameter for resource efficiency in production and consumption of livestock products determining both the feasibility and performance of those systems. The potential for sustainability tends to vary considerably according to animal species and the cumulative managerial pressure applied to each farm towards circular economy and use of local resources. However, this potential is influenced by many factors including but not limited to nutrition, reproduction, and animal health. In this study, well-established methodologies using a designated questionnaire for farm surveys, milk recordings protocols and artificial insemination techniques were applied into sheep farms that were selected based on their characteristics and performance. Farm surveys yielded important socioeconomic data that were combined with milk recordings to form a basis of valuable information. Individual milk recording was performed monthly (n=5), after weaning of lambs in intensive Lacaune sheep farms in central Greece. Following each milk recording and based on the average total milk production, ewes were allocated into a high or a low milk production group. Both groups were fed according to INRA recommendations to meet nutritional requirements. Feeding costs of two scenarios were calculated; ewes allocated to high or low groups compared to ewes kept in a single group. Using individual milk records in relation to flock average, about 30% of ewes with the highest yields were selected for Artificial Insemination (AI). Feeding cost was reduced by 0.037€/L of produced milk when ewes were allocated to high and low groups; the highest reduction was observed after the 4th (0.046 €/L) and 5th (0.047 €/L) milk recording. Moreover, 9.5% of ewes in the flock were culled due to low productivity. Milk production of ewes that were subjected to AI was higher by 27% (65L) compared to the flock’s average. In conclusion, the analysis of recording data enabled decision-making for planning effective nutritional and reproductive management practices in intensive dairy sheep farms ensuring sustainable economic growth and use of farm resources. The results have also shown that the advent of new technologies to accurately measure performance and manipulated reproduction in dairy sheep could solve most of performance problems and contribute towards the economic viability of farms.

ABSTRACT. Climate changes awareness has gained more visibility over the past years and new ways of dealing with them are on demand. Lithium-ion batteries research is one of contributors to this technological innovation to overcome carbon-based source of energy, due to their excellent performance and long cycle life. In this study, a quantitative analysis of research output is applied to the global scientific advances concerning Li-on batteries. The goal is to provide a thorough and systematic assessment of the dynamics and characteristics of knowledge production in this expansive field. After search, cleaning and validation a total 65154 records were obtained from WoS. This evidence was analysed regarding geographical distribution, host institutions, impact, subject categories and textual content

ABSTRACT. Nowadays, bioenergy represents a negative emission technology and an efficient option and flexible form of energy, produced from cheaper and renewable sources in order to replace fossil energy. It plays a key role to achieve the EU 2030 Climate and Energy Policy. Biomass, as the largest source of renewable energy in the EU, can be treated by anaerobic digestion, which is capable to supply energy in the form of heat, electricity and fuel. The remaining fraction in the digester can be further processed or used directly as a fertilizer. Agricultural crop residues present one of the main biomass sources. A total of 139 M tones of crop residues are annually generated in cultivation fields in EU, with their average theoretical biomass potential being equal to 291 Mt DM/yr. Moreover, cotton cultivation land in Europe covers an area of 3.2 M acres, with approximately 2.7 M acres being cultivated in Greece. The cotton output in Greece accounts for 80% of the total Europe’s cotton production, being Greece one of the main cotton producers in Europe with 292,250 tn/yr (Cotton and Products Annual, April 2022). The leftover cotton stalk biomass, which weight 3 to 5 times of the produced cotton, calculated 744,093 tn/yr. However, common practice after harvesting is to leave cotton stalk in the field, which has as drawbacks, obstacles in soil drying, the poor soil seed contact and slow soil warming in spring as well as higher pest and plant pathogen infections. In the context of circular economy, cotton stalk constitutes an important agricultural residue, due to its high lignocellulosic, nitrogen, and phosphorus content, considering as valuable feedstock for various applications. Especially, it might serve as a favorable resource for renewable energy production via anaerobic digestion of its organic content. Such bioprocessing is considered as an environmentally-friendly approach, which recovers up to 90% of the energy content of resources, so that it is one of the most efficient ways to produce bioenergy. Anaerobic digestion consists of valuable method of valorizing biomass by converting organic residue to biogas, generating a digestate containing high phosphorus and nitrogen content. Lignified organic substances, such as wood, are not appropriate for anaerobic digestion, due to the complex structure of the lignocellulose and the low cellulolytic activity of the microbial community. Accordingly, hydrolysis is considered as the rate limiting step during anaerobic digestion of cotton stalk residues, which needs further optimization. Hydrolysis of lignocellulose could be achieved by biomass pretreatment, implementing various approaches, including physicochemical, mechanical, and biological methods. In this study, a new biological pretreatment process was applied as an effective solution, in order to disrupt the lignocellulosic structure and enhance methane production during anaerobic digestion of cotton residues. Based on our data, methane production from the lignocellulosic biomass of cotton residues during this innovative biological pretreatment approach was estimated to be equal to 0.57 L CH4/g VS.d Taking into consideration that cotton stalk residues in Greece and in the EU are equal to 744,093 and 863,600 tones/year, their renewable energy potential is of high interest. The methane potential for energy and heating was measured by following the assumption that 1 m3 methane can yield 10 kWh during this innovative pretreatment method of cotton stalk. Based on the aforementioned yield, the exploitation of all quantities of cotton residues will result in the production of 347,607,737 and 403,436,185 Nm3 CH4/year in Greece and Europe respectively, which correspond to 3.4 million MWh/year in Greece and 4.0 million MWh/year in Europe. Assuming a nominal electrical efficiency of 35%, the generated electricity accounts for 12,166 MWhe/year in Greece and 14,120 MWhe/year in Europe. This represents a vital resource for renewable energy production in Europe, but also worldwide.

ABSTRACT. CCS can become an important element of sustainability and circular economy, as it can reduce emissions that cannot be avoided in key industrial sectors, also remove CO2 directly from the atmosphere, and then geologically store it for potential future use, such as production of synthetic fuels, fertilizers and other useful commodities. This paper, in its first part summarizes past pilot plant and CCS plans in Germany, ongoing CCS development in The Netherlands, CCS plants in operation offshore of Norway including the first commercial CCS project “Northern Lights”, and CCS plans in Greece. In its second part it provides an overview of the DigiMon project on geophysical monitoring of CO2 geological storage fields, and the monitoring technologies developed or improved during the project. They include distributed acoustic sensing (DAS) fiber optics, gravity field and sea bottom pressure monitoring and distributed CO2 concentration measuring (DCS). The paper ends with a comprehensive evaluation of critical seismic and other geophysical monitoring technologies of CO2 geological storage fields.

ABSTRACT. Renewable energy sources gained a highlight in the past years. The United Nations launched the Sustainable Development Goals to push governments towards circularity and green initiatives and the International Energy Agency launched a roadmap to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050. Also, the EU launched the European Green Deal, striving to be the first climate-neutral region, setting the goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% by 2030, compared to 1990 levels. The global energy crisis also turned governments to look for alternative energy sources. Although hydrogen is not an energy source by itself, it is a very effective way to store, transport and use energy, and has the potential to accelerate the transition from an energy paradigm based on the use of fossil fuels to a new landscape where the use of low-carbon energy sources like photovoltaic and wind energy is the norm (Ishaq et al., 2022). But, presently hydrogen production relies mainly on the use of fossil fuels (IEA, 2022). There is a colour categorization for hydrogen, based on the method used to produce it (Figure 1).

This article focuses on “green hydrogen”, since it uses renewable sources, like solar and wind, for its production. Thus, having a greater potential to contribute to a more sustainable and circular economy. We implement a quantitative analysis of all the green hydrogen scientific production until the end of 2022 and its progress over time. We also check new developments in water electrolysis, which aim to tackle problems such as scalability and cost efficiency (Osman et al., 2022). The article also explores different ways to produce hydrogen and its challenges. The aim is to understand which are the most promising technological trajectories in the field, what are their major challenges, and to identify the leading players and geographies. We find that after 2020 Green Hydrogen had a notorious growth in terms of article production (Figure 2). Such growth is accompanied by a similar upward trend for the publications on water electrolysis, which confirms the significance of the take-off on the green hydrogen publications. Also, the number of countries contributing to the knowledge base in the field increased significantly: China, Japan, and South Korea are now the most prolific. These trends come along with the approval of several countries’ roadmaps and national hydrogen strategies.(Wappler et al., 2022).

Keywords: green hydrogen; circular economy; renewable energy; hydrogen production

References:

IEA (2022), Global Hydrogen Review 2022, IEA, Paris https://www.iea.org/reports/global-hydrogen-review-2022 Ishaq, H., Dincer, I., & Crawford, C. (2022). A review on hydrogen production and utilization: Challenges and opportunities. International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, 47(62), 26238–26264. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2021.11.149 Osman, A. I., Mehta, N., Elgarahy, A. M., Hefny, M., Al-Hinai, A., Al-Muhtaseb, A. H., & Rooney, D. W. (2022). Hydrogen production, storage, utilisation and environmental impacts: A review. Environmental Chemistry Letters, 20(1), 153–188. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10311-021-01322-8 Wappler, M., Unguder, D., Lu, X., Ohlmeyer, H., Teschke, H., & Lueke, W. (2022). Building the green hydrogen market – Current state and outlook on green hydrogen demand and electrolyzer manufacturing. International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, 47(79), 33551–33570. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2022.07.253

ABSTRACT. The transition to a renewable electricity system implies a larger share of power production from wind and solar energy, and this share is increasing. The intermittent nature of these energy sources stresses a challenge when sustaining the balance between power supply and demand. Solutions to balance the electricity system are to introducing flexible supply of renewable electricity, different energy storages, and demand-side flexibility. Anaerobic digestion (AD) of organic waste in biogas plants serves as a circular waste handling technique that converts waste into biomethane (energy recovery) and biofertilizers (nutrient recycling). Commonly in Europe, the biomethane is used as a fuel to produce electricity and heat in combined heat and power (CHP) systems or as a biofuel in the transport sector, while the biofertilizers replace artificial fertilizers in agriculture. Flexible operation of biogas plants is a promising option to produce electricity on demand and compensate for the fluctuations in wind and solar energy. This strategy combines two important components of sustainable development: circularity related to biogas and biofertilizers produced from organic waste and increased flexibility in the electricity network which facilitate an increased share of renewable electricity production. This paper reviews earlier research about flexible operations of biogas plants to support the electricity system. The study aims to provide an overview of different options for demand-oriented power production from biogas that could enable an increased share of wind and solar energy in the electricity system. This could guide directions for further research and policy recommendations. The research questions (RQ) are: 1. What are the options for demand-oriented power production from biogas? 2. What problems and barriers have been identified in previous research? 3. What enablers, drivers and incentives have been identified in previous research? The study was based on a structured literature review using the database Scopus and the words were search for in the title, abstract or keywords. Searches were done for articles published up until 7 February 2023 and only original articles in English and available in full text through the Linköping University were included. The search string that was used in the database search is TITLE-ABS-KEY ((biogas OR "anaerobic digestion") AND (electricity OR power) AND ("on demand" OR "demand response" OR flexibil*)). The search generated 158 articles and after reading the abstracts, the search was further limited to articles explicitly studying biogas production through AD in a demand-oriented mode to provide biogas to flexible electricity production. Thematic analysis with an inductive approach was used for analysing the remaining 57 articles, where themes were developed departing from the three RQ in this study. The software NVivo was used to code the text and organise the data. The review identified four main options for flexible supply of biogas from anaerobic digestion: 1.Technical flexibility by increasing the biogas storage and electricity production capacities. Stored biogas can be used to produce electricity on demand. 2.Technical flexibility by combining biogas upgrading to biomethane with CHP production, where there is a flexibility in choosing to produce electricity and heat (on demand) or send the biogas to upgrading facility. 3.Bio-technical flexibility by combining AD and power-to-hydrogen (through electrolysis). In a methanation reaction, carbon dioxide from the AD and hydrogen from the electrolysis forms methane. This solution requires gas storage capacity. 4.Biological flexibility by introducing flexible feeding of the AD to increase or decrease the biogas production on demand. The biogas is used as fuel to produce electricity. Many of the articles focused on technical flexibility, i.e., investments in more electricity production capacity and larger gas storage volumes. Barriers to this solution are costs related to investments in gas storages and CHP units. Another technical flexibility option is to produce both electricity and biomethane (in an upgrading unit) to exploiting the full potential of biogas production. Here, the owner has income from selling both electricity and fuel. For studying technical flexibility, mathematical modelling was the main method used. Combining AD and power-to-hydrogen to produce methane shows two benefits: 1) excess wind power production is converted into a storable energy carrier, and 2) carbon dioxide is valorised into a high-quality product. This alternative presupposes a gas storage volume that can hold the biogas. Utilising excess wind power production and using biogas to producing electricity on demand offers a balancing capacity to the electrical grid. However, some barriers that were reported are difficulties maintaining a stable operation and situations where biogas must be flared. This concept was mainly studied through mathematical modelling. Flexible feeding of the digester has been studied in experimental settings for different feeding regimes and substrates. In some cases, the experiments were combined with mathematical modelling. Increasing the feeding rate can increase the production of biogas, but caution must be taken to avoid imbalances in the digester that can inhibit the microorganisms. On the other hand, more efficient substrate conversion has been observed in flexibly fed digesters because of higher diversity in the microbial community and greater adaptive capacity. An economic driver of having a feeding strategy optimised to electricity production is the reduced gas storage requirement. Incentives for flexible biogas plants are higher income due to selling electricity at high prices, income from participating in balancing markets, intraday and day-ahead markets, lower investment costs, and policy instruments such as flexibility premiums and subsidies. Biogas plants with electricity production can contribute with dispatchable power production and balance the electricity system on a local and regional level. Moreover, the technology could be an important electricity supplier in a renewable electricity system on an island or remote area disconnected from larger transmission networks.

ABSTRACT. As a renewable gas injected into the Natural Gas (NG) grid, biomethane (bioCH4) is anticipated to play a significant role in the EU's effort to decarbonize its energy system. However, the pace of such expansion is greatly influenced by the prevailing political, economic, and social conditions. It may reduce dependency on NG imports and, since it is a flexible energy carrier, it can help raise the percentage of renewable energy in the transportation, power generating, and tertiary sectors. In addition, unsustainable shifts to electricity distribution networks can be avoided by keeping gas in the energy mix rather than just relying on electricity. Since bioCH4 may be utilized just where it is needed, injecting it into the grid is more energy efficient than utilizing the gas to produce heat and power. Regardless of how the energy system changes over the next decades, bioCH4 usage will continue to expand exponentially. Today, nearly all EU countries have gas infrastructure and storage, a natural gas infrastructure for transport, and gas quality regulations in place; all of these are necessary conditions for the deployment and expansion of bioCH4. However, the number of EU countries that facilitate biogas upgrading into bioCH4 and input into the grid is rather small. The availability, consistency, and reliability of targeted policy and financial assistance are seen as the top enablers in all countries, regardless of whether they currently have a mature biogas market in place or not, when analyzing the primary drivers for biogas developments across the EU. The availability of acceptable feedstocks throughout the year is also noted as a significant motivator for the sector, along with dedicated national targets. New opportunities to expand the deployment of bioCH4 in Europe are presented by the EU Green Deal and the "Fit for 55" package. At the moment, the European Committee for Standardization (CEN) is striving to enhance bioCH4 standards. However, the national level policies are not always well adapted to the real capacity of industrial infrastructure and market specifics as well as raw material supply. The ongoing development will be accelerated and investment will be encouraged by a customized, supportive, consistent, and integrated legal framework spanning energy, transport, agriculture, environment, and waste management. Considering the above, the primary goal of the GreenMeUp: "Green biomethane market uptake" European Horizon project (2022–2025) is to promote the increased market uptake of biomethane in the European energy and transport sectors by enhancing the market in countries with less efficient market development policies, through stakeholder engagement involving relevant actors representing all stages of the bioCH4 value chain, and tools for dealing with citizen misconception issues. This will be accomplished by bringing together the European Biogas Association, which will present best practices and lessons learned; a group of advanced nations (Germany and Italy), which have improved market uptake of biomethane and developed institutional and policy frameworks; a group of target nations (Greece, Spain, Poland, Latvia, Estonia, and Czechia), which have lower rates of development in the relevant areas and would benefit from stronger bioCH4 market and policy measures; the Danube Region, which includes parts of Hungary, Romania, and Serbia, used as an example of cross-border opportunities in a bottom-up approach; and a group of Mission Innovation Countries (the United States, Canada, China, Brazil, and India), to ensure an additional flow of information on lessons-learned, enablers, and barriers in bioCH4 production. This interaction will direct the creation of more informed and focused policies in the target countries, and support them in developing a robust, incentive-compatible bioCH4 market, to achieve an increased share of renewable gaseous fuels in their final energy consumption by 2030 and beyond. In this context, the project includes the exploration of social perspectives on the socio-political, community, and market dimensions in all target countries. The activity starts with a literature analysis of existing research, to identify research gaps and potentials in each of the three dimensions. Following, a conceptual model is elaborated, presenting all the identified determinants and their interconnections. Based on the conceptual model, a qualitative study (through interviews/focus groups) will be performed on the socio-political and market level, focusing on targeted policy (e.g. government representatives, policy & decision-makers) and market (e.g. project developers, distributors) stakeholders. The study’s scope will be to discover their different interpretations and perspectives on bioCH4 for energy and transportation purposes. In parallel, these levels of societal perspectives will be explored in all participating countries through a quantitative survey using informed questionnaires, involving at least 200 participants per country. The questionnaire will address issues affecting socio-political (i.e., general acceptance) and market perspectives (willingness to use, willingness to pay), including awareness, perceived benefits & risks, biofuel types, feedstock types, biofuel prices, environmental and energy safety concerns, sustainability certification and biofuel availability. On the community level, semi-structured interviews/ informed questionnaires will be applied to explore social perspectives and their determinants, including a) knowledge, b) risks and benefit perceptions, c) trust in institutions, d) procedural & distributional justice, proximity to inhabited areas and f) personal beliefs concerning bioCH4 and relevant value chains aspects (feedstock, technologies, market) that affect the local society. The survey participants will include authorities, industries, citizen & environmental organizations. The outcomes of the above quantitative and qualitative studies will enable the development of policies targeted on the market uptake of bioCH4, and the creation of tools addressing citizen misconception issues.

ABSTRACT. The circular economy (CE) is a well-covered framework by many scholars and practitioners globally. With the rise of plastic production and consumption, the implementation of a circular plastic economy data exchange platform within Africa which contributes to the theory of planned behaviour in testing gender similarities has become even more imperative for the management of plastics. However, academic research on gender in the circular plastic economy is limited especially in Africa which is a strong motivation for this paper. Data was collected from five African countries (Nigeria, Kenya, Zambia, Namibia, and Rwanda) to investigate the gender similarities in the circular plastic economy. The paper draws from the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) to explicate the gender dimensions as mediators of circular economy intentions and behaviours. The results of the Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) showed that attitudes, perceived behavioural control (PBC) and sentiments influence the action of gender towards plastic waste management. Against this backdrop, this paper presents an analysis of the effects of gender on the final action. Gender is significantly associated with action at a 1% level of significance and a coefficient of -0.0471. The results highlight the positive, significance of gender and the influential role women play within the CPE

ABSTRACT. Despite widespread recognition that a ground-level, holistic implementation of environmental policies is crucial, the research literature suggests that relatively slow diffusion of knowledge and other behavioural challenges limit policy outcomes. Whereas consensus has been achieved at the international and institutional levels, national policies for sustainable development often remain partially realized. Integrating the sub-stratum of circular economy in education is a priority, which may prove to be a robust facilitator in promoting and furthering the socio-economic and environmental aspects of sustainable development and better policy performance. Even though the circular economy is extensively discussed and acknowledged in tertiary education and at the research level, remains nearly absent in primary education curriculums, while its introduction has been the subject of relevant research only recently. The present study seeks to prove further the need for circular economy inclusion in primary education, illuminate the reasons for the current disparity, and offer solutions for a more inclusive overview of environmental education. On the principle of cognitive foundations, it is understood that the attitudes and environmental posture attained during the first formative years of education are at the core of increased public awareness; similarly, the attitudes and knowledge of schoolteachers remain two of the most critical agencies of influence. This study investigates the issue of introducing circular economy and sustainable development in primary education curriculums and the possibility of instituting an applicable course of study in the setting of Greek State primary schools. To this end, primary quantitative research was conducted with the use of the 1KA electronic research tool, and an online questionnaire of close-ended questions was put to assess schoolteacher awareness.

Participating teachers were found to be both aware of environmental issues and positive towards circular economy inclusion in their curriculum. Some small and predictable demographic divergences were also noted between age and gender groups, whereas the necessity for continuing and further support, education, and training of primary education professionals was deduced as a discernible derivative outcome.

ABSTRACT. This preliminary study sheds light on adolescents' knowledge, attitudes, and behaviours towards the concepts and practices of circularity and sustainability. Considering adolescents as the future key players in combating climate change, sustainable development of economy and society, and relevant policy implementation, we try to locate the students' educational needs, consequently, the strengths and weaknesses of education policy on the issues studied in the elementary and secondary levels of formal education in Greece. We draw on students’ responses to a structured questionnaire, ages from 14 to 18, from four schools, two in rural and two in urban areas (indicative questions in Tables 1, 2, and 3). Given the limited existing literature on approaches to promoting the values and principles of circularity and sustainability at these education levels, firstly, we aim to indicate appropriate interventions and innovative teaching methods at schools according to the results the collected data analysis revealed, and secondly, to recommend effective policy-making of integration these concepts in school curricula.

ABSTRACT. Although the circular plastic economy has become popular and widespread due to its sustainable practices, there is limited research on the knowledge and capacity of Nigerian universities to play a major role in managing the transition through the use of technology. The study draws from an investigation on the relationship between knowledge of the plastic waste problem, 3D printing and 3D printing sub-technology on the plastic waste management action amongst 151 Nigerian university students. A model was built to investigate the relationship and the Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) was employed for the analysis. The results accentuated the importance of knowledge in accelerating plastic waste management actions in the circular economy while technology was found to be statistically insignificant. The findings raised some questions and recommendations for the future.

ABSTRACT. A systems-based approach that looks into mapping upstream, midstream and downstream processes, structures and values (i.e., positive and negative impacts) from a multidimensional perspective that spans environmental, economic, social and technical domains can provide a holistic understanding of the plastic pollution problem in different contexts. An in-depth analysis and interpretation of the entire system can highlight points of interventions and illuminate ways to implement them. Presently there are very few system-based approaches developed, the Complex Value Optimisation for Resource Recovery (CVORR) is one of them. CVORR is a step-wise approach, presented in Figure 1, which makes explicit where, and how, inefficiencies occur, barriers exist and changes ought to be implemented to transition to a sustainable circular plastics economy (baseline analysis); and aids appropriate metrics selection for the evaluation of such transitions (via a streamlined multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) analysis) (Iacovidou et al., 2020).

CVORR is developed to support resource recovery from waste, and has been used to assess the potential of promoting circularity in the materials, components and products value chains. Different elements of CVORR approach can be used as stand-alone elements to aid an understanding of a system. Therefore, using CVORR this study attempts to map all key stakeholders operating in the plastics value chain, using Indonesia as a case study. Stakeholder mapping is a meaningful exercise via which to understand the plastic waste and pollution problem in Indonesia, which in turn enables unpacking of the complexities in the value chain and making sense of the impending structural barriers needed to overcome to address the plastic pollution problem. Looking at upstream, midstream and downstream stakeholders operating in the plastics value chain can shed light on the power dynamics between them and the way these influence the movement of plastic materials, components and products along the value chain (Gerassimidou et al., 2022). Looking into the extent to which one stakeholder can influence other stakeholders and their activities, using positional, epistemic, normative and coordination power, and the way varying attributes, roles, perceptions and intentions of stakeholders involved in the system can lead to cause and effect relationships that evolve and change over time (Gerassimidou et al., 2022).

The study reveals that the administrative hierarchies in Indonesia make it challenging to implement policies for plastic pollution prevention and provide services for the collection of household waste, including plastic packaging waste, when there are other important issues to tackle, such as clean water and sanitation, public health and education provision. Moreover, power is often misused and funds collected via retribution fees are mishandled. At the upstream part of the plastic packaging value chain, the petrochemical industry has a monopoly supported by the national government, whereas plastic manufacturers appear to have a strong hold on what is placed on the market due to consumer demand. The appearance of start-ups focusing on biobased, biodegradable plastic alternatives, and reusable/refillable solutions have steered some progress towards moving away from conventional plastic packaging and spurring competition in the market. Midstream there is an upsurge of problematic plastic packaging demand due to consumers’ perception of value. Operating based on a daily income, Indonesian consumers are constrained by affordability aspects, showing a preference for small proportions of goods contained in sachets, a habit that is now strongly embedded into social norms. Manufacturers use that as an impetus to continue placing sachet-based goods on the market, using the impetus that if not, it would disrupt livelihoods, and create risks of crime and violence and opposition to the current regime. In the downstream part of the value chain, the dynamics become rather complex due to an amalgam of formal and informal stakeholders that collect and sell plastic packaging waste. It suffices to say that the movement of plastic packaging waste in the downstream part of the system, involves several points of contact – from the small to the big handlers creating an exciting tapestry of dynamics that control the plastics packaging waste recycling potential. Recycling performance is largely driven by the activities of the informal sector. Hence, gaining a deep understanding of the informal recycling sector networks and their modus operandi is key to integrating informal activities into formal structures whilst maintaining the livelihoods and security of waste pickers.

ABSTRACT. The purpose of this paper has been to examine the linkages between financial development, microfinance and poverty reduction. More precisely, the paper has sought to generate empirical evidence to help answer the policy question of whether financial sector development and microfinance sector are substitutes or complements in a poverty-minimizing strategy in African countries. Using a sample of 37 African countries over the period 1999-2018 and dealing with the problem of endogeneity by applying the instrumental variables approach, namely the fixed-effects two-stage least squares, we show that the conventional financial sector and microfinance are substitutes and not complements. These results are robust to a change in the poverty indicator and the method employed.

ABSTRACT. FAO estimates that one-third of the globally produced food goes to waste every year: this significant amount of food waste has negative impacts at environmental, social, and economic levels, so finding solutions to mitigate the generation of food waste appears crucial. Circular economy is a promising approach to reducing food waste generation since it aims at closing the loop of materials by replacing end-of-life with alternative solutions. Food waste is generated in all stages of food supply chains, and the adoption of circular economy principles can lead to the development of circular supply chains, where companies engage with other stakeholders to create circular flows. The need to collaborate with external organisations can hinder the development of circular supply chains, but the establishment of such arrangements can be facilitated by the presence of an external actor. The work by Ciulli, Kolk and Boe-Lillegraven (2020), based on social network theory, introduces the “circularity broker”, who connects actors producing waste with other actors able to use such materials, to bring together disconnected parties and aid the creation of circular material flows. This contribution provides a general framing of these actors, but a more in-depth analysis of their activities and related benefits on circular economy is missing. This study aims at exploring the facilitating role intermediaries can have in the development of circular supply chains by highlighting common functions performed and comparing them with the role of traditional supply chain intermediaries. This comparison will better define how circularity brokers can perform their facilitating role by exemplifying how traditional intermediary functions are transposed in circular settings. A further level of analysis is provided by the theoretical lens of social network theory, employed to understand how the network structure changes when circular intermediaries are introduced and highlight the most commonly recurring arrangements. A systematic literature review has been conducted to identify circular economy projects involving intermediaries, and the analysis of the retrieved papers has allowed the identification of nine common functions performed by circular intermediaries. These results can offer insights on the nature of circular intermediaries, which significantly contribute to developing functioning circular supply chains, thanks to the several facilitating functions performed. A preliminary comparison with traditional supply chain intermediaries has shown how circularity brokers perform all the typical roles of such actors but with a stronger focus on collaboration development and facilitation, and less attention devoted to providing economic support and incentives. With respect to traditional intermediaries, various actors can cover this role in circular economy settings: e.g., associations, public institutions, platforms, and single individuals. Considering the network structure, a first emerging difference is the involvement in circular activities, since the intermediary can be an actor whose activities are an integral part of the circular economy project, or that is not directly involved in the circular operations and only oversees their deployment. These preliminary results can suggest future empirical research on existing circular economy projects with intermediaries to provide evidence of the benefits, and understand which actors are most suitable to play the role of the circularity broker.

ABSTRACT. The study is aimed at analysing the sustainability performance of the Archimedean Drum Screen (ADS) clean-up technology used in biomass and plastic waste cleaning in seas. To do so, a specifically tailored theoretical framework is developed and a deductive research approach, relying on a mix of qualitative and quantitative data collection methods, is embraced. More specifically, the research goal of this study is “To evaluate the sustainability performance of the Archimedean Drum Screen biomass and plastic waste clean-up technology by performing a supply chain analysis”. Followed by a systemic literature review, the study sets up comprehensive criteria of 12 key performance indicators aimed to collectively encompass supply chain sustainability. Next, to ensure sufficient scope of analysis, three different supply chain scenarios for handling the biomass and plastic waste collected by the ADS are constructed. These scenarios are based on separation, palletisation, and liquefaction of collected plastic waste and biomass. Scenarios are evaluated by input-output modelling and comparative sustainability indicators are assessed to draw a propose sustainable operational route for the company operating the ADS. Findings show that the most promising scenario is waste palletisation, characterized by comparatively lower CO2 emissions, complete (100%) waste reuse, significant expected increase in annual demand of finished products, and a strong commercial competitiveness on the economic front. A common finding between all scenarios is that implementation of industrial symbiosis between the power plant processing the collected waste and the ADS is the most suitable technology integration strategy. This study establishes that the post-collection handling of the waste plays only a marginal role in the achieved level of sustainability and further technological improvements are needed to ensure high ADS sustainability performance.

ABSTRACT. The plastics industry is widely acknowledged as being among the most environmentally damaging industries in contemporary society. As environmental concerns continue to grow, public authorities in Europe have implemented regulations aimed at reducing pollution resulting from the production and disposal of plastics [1]. These regulations seek to promote a circular economy by reusing material and energy flows to reduce waste and energy consumption [2]. As a result, the petrochemical sector is exploring new pathways to create a more circular value chain that meets these objectives. Bio-based plastics represent an innovative way to produce polymers by replacing (fully or partially) fossil feedstocks with biological resources [3]. These plastics can be classified into two distinct technologies: "drop-in" plastics, which have a similar chemical structure to petroleum-based plastics, and 100% bio-based biodegradable plastics, which have a novel chemical structure [4]. Despite their potential environmental benefits, bio-based plastics remain a niche innovation in the plastics industry. In 2021, they accounted for 1.5% of the total global plastics production and 2.3% of the European plastics production [5], with the majority of their usage concentrated in the packaging sector [6]. This study aims to identify challenges related to transitioning to a circular model of the plastic value chain in France, as well as the economic and organizational obstacles that must be overcome to fully realize the potential of bio-based plastics. Our research approach was qualitative and involved an embedded case study [7] of nine diverse actors from both upstream and downstream of the plastic value chain as well as semi-public and public actors (Figure 1). Our empirical findings led us to conclude that the plastic industry is currently facing a lock-in situation. The decision-making and behavioural patterns of value chain actors have been developed and conditioned to meet the requirements of fossil-based plastics, resulting in a loss of flexibility for industry actors and the emergence of a lock-in in favor of these plastics. This poses a significant challenge to the widespread adoption of bio-based plastics, as their adoption requires significant adaptations along the value chain. On the one hand, biodegradable bio-based plastics have a chemical structure that differs from traditional petro-sourced plastics, making them incompatible with existing recycling streams. In fact, their presence in these streams can hinder the recycling process of other plastics. For this reason, the proper disposal of biodegradable bio-based plastics requires the establishment of specific recycling infrastructures. On the other hand, “drop-in” plastics can be recycled in existing streams, but their environmental potential is limited due to their partial dependence on oil and their non-biodegradability which can be problematic when released into the natural environment. Additionally, the high cost of both biodegradable and “drop-in” plastics currently restricts their use. However, the economies of scale associated with mass production could lead to reduced production costs, making the exploitation of these materials more viable. The uncertainty surrounding bio-based plastics is a significant barrier to potential investments in this sector. Since the success of bio-based plastics depends on various factors throughout the value chain, investing in a specific type of bio-based plastics carries the risk that it may not be adopted by other market players. To overcome these challenges, incentive-based regulations encouraging the use of bio-based plastics can stimulate their adoption and promote the transition to a more circular version of the value chain. Such regulations have already proven successful in the field of recycled plastics, making the market for this type of plastics viable. However, it is crucial to note that promoting a specific type of bio-based plastic through regulation may impede the emergence of potentially superior alternatives.

ABSTRACT. The transition towards Circular Economy, while slowly progressing, is a necessary one for solving environmental issues but ensuring that the needs of societies are met. Numerous barriers to Circular Economy have been identified, including lack of knowledge and available technologies (Jesus et al., 2021). The different barriers to circular economy also vary, as there is no universal solution to circular economy, especially when considering geography (Przywojska et al., 2019). Yet in the same breath these two barriers are often solved by co-creation and collaboration (Jesus et al., 2021). Collaboration alone will not solve the issues faced, as it will require a fundamental shift in supply chain operations and how the parties within the supply chain view their goals. A supply chain within the Circular Economy must shift its focus from cost to value creation. With this logic in mind, this paper aims to investigate the opportunities that lie within a Circular supply chain and how they create value. To achieve this goal, this paper will answer the research question of “How does a circular supply chain operate?”. The question will uncover specific traits of a circular value-focused supply chain. The research combines methods of desk top research and qualitative research and will include two case studies. The data is collected in the form of semi-structured interviews, desk top research and laboratory experiments. The results of the research show that collaboration within the remote areas of Finland, while hindered by long transportation distances, can be tackled with effective and well-planned collaboration. The findings together with the reviewed literature acted as a starting point to build a framework of circular value-focused supply chains. These findings contribute to the literature of circular economy, specifically offering a framework upon which other supply chain management theories can be built. In turn, this study yields managerial contributions in giving a practical and detailed framework that could act as a road map into achieving a circular value-focused supply chain.

ABSTRACT. An integral part of our times are words such as material reuse, recycling, waste minimization, remanufacturing, redesign and recovery. The above are included in the "9R principle" of the circular economy (Lee, Pei-Hsuan, et al), a management model that aims to eliminate waste from industries and businesses, without requiring a parallel reduction in profits. On the contrary, it aims to increase profits, through the reuse and exploitation of their waste, energy reduction and recycling. In the literature there is an abundance of publications and researches, dealing with the circular economy, as more and more people worldwide are involved in this sector. In this study, a first attempt is made to record the people who deal with the circular economy in 4 European countries (Greece, Germany, Austria and Cyprus), as there are no corresponding data in the literature to date. Furthermore, the present study is based on the study of Tsironis et al (2022), who collected data by LinkedIn registered companies and extracted a lot of interesting findings about them. Their results offered significant perspectives for country-based in depth-analysis on circular economy. Thus, the database from which the individuals' details were drawn is LinkedIn, which is the flagship social media for professionals. On LinkedIn, registered users share a lot of information on their profile about their education level, job title, company/business they are active in, as well as previous years of education or experience. In a few words, we can say with confidence that each user profile is also his personal CV. Taking advantage of LinkedIn's wealth of data, we focused on profiles of people active in the 4 research countries that contain the phrase circular economy at least once. Specifically, primary data mining was carried out from the profiles of LinkedIn users dealing with the circular economy in the four reference countries and then the classification of the user data and the statistical analysis of the results took place. From the quantitative analysis, interesting findings emerged, regarding the number, gender and number of followers for the specific users, which allow us to have a first picture of the professionals involved in the circular economy in some European countries. Finally, through the statistical analysis, important correlations emerged which led us to very useful conclusions concerning the interaction between the processed data.

Figure 1: “Plot of the average words for each profile in all countries, as a function of the number of followers”

The primary data mined, formed the basis for drawing useful conclusions regarding the professionals who are registered on this particular social networking platform and are active in the circular economy sector. Thus, for the first time we are able to distribute circular economy professionals by region, gender and profession, highlight the percentage of users who exert more influence on their audience, the percentage of inactive users or even the reason that one gender has more followers than the other.

ABSTRACT. Due to increasingly augmented environmental impacts that the road engineering industry is imposing in the natural sinks of the planet, researchers, engineers and stakeholders have been researching ways to develop an utilize alternatives that can help them towards their minimization. An approach that seems to comply with the principles of sustainability and circular economy implementation is the recycling and/or reuse of end-of-waste materials for the production of road pavement components. This refers to not only the bituminous bind top layers of an asphalt pavement but also to the lower unbound layers of it, or even the earthworks necessary for the structural integrity of a pavement designed to carry predefined traffic loads. Construction & Demolition wastes (C&Dw) and Reclaimed Asphalt (RA) are considered End-of-waste materials whose use on road engineering projects has been on the rise and have been proven to be mechanically and structurally suitable. However, there is a lack of studies in literature relevant to the environmental performance of such circular initiatives. In other words, even if the recycling of C&Dw to be used in road infrastructure sis widely considered a sustainable and circular practice, the levels of its environmental appropriateness has not yet been established. In terms of environmental assessment through means of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), a complex bi-component system has to be investigated in this case. From the one hand it would have to include the impacts occurring during the end-of-life of a building, and from the other hand the production of road components incorporating the end-of-waste originating from this. Moreover, another scenario could theorize both C&Dw and RA to be incorporated as building materials within a pavement component, which would make the final product system even more complicated in terms of environmental assessment. For this reason, the development and proposal of a cross-boundary loop is being presented that can merge the system boundaries of the demolition of a building and the utilisation of the produced C&Dw in road engineering applications by considering also all the phases required for the production of a pavement component, starting from the extraction of raw materials -even if these include RA- to the its final production and installation in a cradle-to-laid approach. In Figure 1, the proposed system boundaries that unite the two sectors can be found.

Figure 1. Proposed cross-boundary loops system boundaries

Acknowledgments: The research presented has been produced with the financial assistance of the European Union under the ENI CBC Mediterranean Sea Basin Program, for Education, Research, technological development, and Innovation, under the grant number n°28/1682.

ABSTRACT. Ongoing investigations on steel recycling systems point to the importance of recovering not only the anthropogenic resource (scrap) but also the accompanying compositional information on it. When this information is incomplete, downcycling is prevalent. Institutionalized reverse flows for scrap rely on standards that convey allowed ranges in terms of scrap chemistry. This can be restrictive in the feasibility of scrap as a replacement for primary-sourced iron units in production.

Steel recycling can contribute to the decarbonization of this high carbon-emitting industry. To increase the share of scrap-based production, one way is for the level of preparation of scrap to become equally thorough as that of ores. A relevant direction to take is to accurately recover the compositional information of scrap; more than what is used in existing scrap specifications. These two possibilities were investigated in this study. First, current practices on scrap preparation that can be considered comparable to producing high quality feed for steelmaking were noted through interviews with industry practitioners. Then, with the help of a simulated production model, the effect of more accurate information was found to have a positive effect on scrap use and minimizing production costs. The proxy for improved sorting and characterization that results in an increase in accuracy was implemented by a stepwise narrowing of the published ranges for Cr and Ni. These elements are key components in stainless steels but are at risk of being downcycled under current recycling conditions. Thus, this study views scrap, and all its constituents, as a resource.

ABSTRACT. In this work, we undertake a life cycle costing analysis to estimate the self-energy production cost per kWh. The average cost for the energy production units during the first 3 years of operation is estimated at about 0.34 €/kWh. Considering that the purchasing of the generators was fully subsidized, the real cost to the water company was 0.12€/ kWh. This is an ongoing work assessing alternative operating technical and policy scenarios for the cost of energy production.

ABSTRACT. Following its departure from the European Union, and with supply chains (SCs) spanning beyond its borders, the United Kingdom (UK) is at a crucial turning point in its commitment towards a more sustainable future. Its ambitious goals to ban new petrol and diesel cars by 2030 and achieve net zero by 2050 hinge on the extensive deployment of battery energy storage systems, which serve as the primary power source for electric vehicles. However, there is a stark contrast between the elevated climate aspirations and the readiness of critical materials needed for actualising these objectives. The Circular Economy (CE) presents a potential solution to tackle this disconnect, addressing resource scarcity, waste reduction, and environmental sustainability issues. Unfortunately, the dominant SC management model, with its focus on production, inadvertently places manufacturers at the heart of SC systems. This orientation also seeps into the design and implementation of CE business models, where strategies focus primarily on addressing the inefficiencies of the nodes in linear value chains. This approach tends to overlook the valuable roles and opportunities of logistics service providers (LSPs) not only as SC operators, but also as potential architects and orchestrators of value creation systems. Logistic value creation is understood in terms of two essential functions: forward logistics, supporting the procurement, production, and distribution of new components and products; and waste disposal logistics, focusing on end-of-life product handling. The intermediate use stage marks a shift in ownership and disrupts information flows within the product’s lifecycle. As a result, recovery of inherent value from discarded products becomes less effective, emphasising the need for a more integrated approach to logistics management. Likewise, an analysis of European Union publications on the CE revealed a disproportionate emphasis on recycling strategies (Baldassarre and Saveyn, 2023), while strategies focusing on reduction, including product-service systems and eco-design, are considerably less prevalent. This indicates a discourse that overlooks the importance of industrial clusters and value chains at the meso level, focusing predominantly on the nano level. Correspondingly, despite operating within an industry that relies on multi-actor logistical cooperation, LSPs often lack the knowledge to unlock circular value and sustain a competitive edge. The Resource-Based View theory (Barney, 1991) offers a substantial theoretical base for LSPs in linear SCs, suggesting that a sustainable advantage can be obtained by appropriately accessing and bundling resources. Yet, to fully optimise these advantages, a more explicit understanding of the interdependence between businesses, markets, and ecosystems is crucial. This understanding is captured by the Natural Resource-Based View theory (Hart, 1995), which illuminates how firms can build and maintain a competitive advantage by developing capabilities that support ecosystems. Integrating both perspectives enable LSPs to adopt a more holistic approach to crafting competitive advantages in circular SCs. This study delineates distinct roles for LSPs and puts forward three circular visions, furnishing the essential knowledge required for a CE. These roles, each demanding different levels of integration, complexity, and customisation, possess unique capabilities. Whether facilitating or enhancing specific value chain functions, these capabilities range from material efficiency (minimising material use while preserving functionality) to resource sufficiency (meeting societal needs while respecting planetary boundaries). As part of this project, open and exploratory co-creation sessions were conducted, using the case of CEVA Logistics, a leading automotive logistics expert. Informed by the circular roles, participants worked collaboratively to identify potential avenues for future growth. This research yielded ten leverage points (i.e., powerful means to increase battery SC circularity) and eleven strategic levers (i.e., interventions driving technological and behavioural change in the national economy system). Notably, a shift in mindset is paramount, especially when business environments are perceived as unpredictable and the impacts of such uncertainty are difficult to comprehend. Fostering a proactive, adaptive, and resilient mindset can help stakeholders navigate uncertainties more effectively and thrive in a rapidly changing landscape. This mindset shift is particularly relevant in the context of sustainability initiatives, where environmental targets are often viewed as unreachable. Lastly, the Three Horizons Framework (Sharpe, 2019), a strategic planning tool conceived to tap into future consciousness, can act as a catalyst for driving circularity within electric vehicle battery value chains. By adopting this model, LSPs can balance addressing immediate priorities while laying the groundwork for long-term sustainability goals. The strategies identified in this study not only endow the LSP with a competitive edge by enabling superior, sustainable, and innovative services tailored to the unique needs of the automotive market, but they also set the stage for potential new business ventures, partnerships, and markets. This reinforces CEVA Logistics’ reputation as a sustainable and responsible service provider and exemplifies how companies can embed sustainability into their core operations, thereby sparking systemic change towards a CE.

ABSTRACT. Circular economy (CE) is a priority of many international and national organisations, as well as regions, cities and sector. In the last years, an increasing attention is being paid to awareness of stakeholder attitudes, in terms of implementing CE solutions in in businesses and in people's lives. This applies to many sectors, including the fertiliser production sector. One example of the application of CE solutions in the fertiliser sector is the production of bio-based fertilisers (BBFs). They are increasingly popular in agriculture as they are considered greener and safer for the environment compared to chemical fertilisers. They can also help improve soil quality and crop yields. One of the most important driving forces behind the use of BBFs is market demand for agricultural products from crops that use organic farming methods. An increasing number of consumers are interested in buying healthier and greener agricultural products, which is increasing the demand for crops using BBFs. Another important factor is the rising cost of chemical fertilisers, causing farmers to look for alternatives, including BBFs. In addition, farmers' awareness of the impact of agricultural chemicals on human health and the environment is increasing, prompting them to seek more natural solutions.

This paper presents the results of a nationwide survey of a group of farmers engaged in crop production from all 16 voivodeships in Poland. The size of the survey group was set at 50 farmers from each of the Polish provinces, for a total of 800 farmers from across the country. Since farmers in Poland are a specific social group, often with limited access to technological solutions, the survey was conducted in the form of interviews using the PAPI method. Due to the type of information to be obtained, the questions were divided and the metrics separately listed (Table 1).

Unfortunately, the use of BBFs also comes with some barriers. One of the main problems is their price, which is often higher than chemical fertilisers. In addition, BBFs require time and labor to produce or purchase, which also increases costs. Another problem is the lack of sufficient knowledge and skills among farmers in using BBFs. Farmers often lack adequate knowledge on how to properly apply BBFs, which can lead to low effectiveness and increased risk of crop damage. Finally, the use of BBFs may require a change in cultivation methods and technologies used, which can also be difficult for farmers and require time and investment.

Based on survey results, barriers and driving forces ascendant among Polish farmers were identified. The use of BBFs has many potential benefits, but also comes with some barriers. Farmers need to find ways to deal with these problems in order to realise the potential of BBFs to improve crop quality and the environment. For this reason, the attitudes of end-users, a group that includes farmers, should be further analysed.

ABSTRACT. Nowadays, there is an extended effort to reduce the amount of chemical pesticides and introduce new natural biopesticides for sustainable use in agriculture. A wide range of natural fungicides have been employed in both traditional and sustainable agriculture to suppress soil-borne pathogens. Such shift in agricultural practice can assist the transition from linear to circular economy regarding plant production. In this work, the phytoprotective properties of Lavandula dentata extracts against a major fungal pathogen of tomato were examined in vitro and in planta. In particular, the beneficial effects of lavender extract against the soil-borne pathogen Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. radicis-lycopersici were uncovered.

ABSTRACT. There has been an increasing trend in awareness and adoption of circular economy principles in various sectors of our economy. Closing the material cycles has been at the center of circular systems. This study, using primary and secondary data from observations and literature, examined the sustainability of the current approach to management of materials in the agrifood sector. It also examined various circularity opportunities as well as challenges that abound, and how the challenges could be overcome. Preliminary data analysis revealed immense opportunities that are yet to be explored. It also showed a trend towards near zero wastes in some subsectors, improving quality and market structure for secondary materials, as well as continuous improvement in profitability of such ventures. Policy and infrastructure issues are the main challenges that have to be overcome for improved efficiency in the circular management of agrifood materials value chain, especially in some developing economies. Results of this study are expected to benefit policy makers in formulating regulations that could encourage application of circular economy principles in sectors that are yet to explore the concept and boost the effectiveness of the circularity management of materials in sectors that are currently in operation. Outcomes of the research would serve as a good resource for value chain actors in agrifood and manufacturing sectors for more in-depth studies on the circularity of some specific materials, thereby helping them to improve their operational effectiveness and maximize the profitability of their endeavors

ABSTRACT. Freshwater samples were physicochemicaly characterized to preliminary assess the ecological status of various aquatic habitats located in the region of Thrace. A range of physicochemical traits, such as pH, electrical conductivity (EC), cations like sodium, potassium, ammonium, lithium, magnesium and calcium, anions like nitrate, nitrite, fluoride, chloride, bromide, sulphate and phosphate, were determined. The organic content as estimated by COD measurements and the concentrations of certain heavy metals were also determined. The pH of the analyzed freshwater samples ranged within 7.54 to 7.97, which is typical for freshwater ecosystems. The EC was below 1 mS/cm in the majority of the analyzed samples, apart from those influenced by seawater, whose EC was determined as high as 23 mS/cm. In the freshwater samples with relatively high salinity, as expected, the anions and cations listed above were determined in increased concentrations. No ammonium and nitrite ions were detected in any sample examined, whereas, in the majority of the analyzed samples, PO43--P and NO3--N concentrations were below 0.2 and 1.5 mg/L, respectively. Heavy metals analyzed were either absent or detected at limited concentrations. Based on COD measurements, the organic content was low in most of the samples analyzed. Moreover, no phenolics were detected in the examined freshwater samples.