These methods were developed by Louise Nash (the founder of Circularity), as the key artefact for her Masters of Technological Futures. Drawn from over 250 interviews with leading circular experts around the world and over 1000 case studies of circular innovations, these methods guide and inspire businesses, governments and entrepreneurs to unlock the value potential of the circular economy. At Circularity these methods have been used to unlock collaborative business models, design product stewardship programs, inspire enviro-schools to reimagine plastic and design out one million pieces of polystyrene from the transportation of aluminium windows and doors by radically reimagining manufacturing. They can be used as a toolkit to inspire change, empower action and generate extraordinary ideas.
If you are looking to explore circular thinking and unlock solutions alongside experts, communities and partners in a fast-paced, design sprint style - join us at XLabs. This is our annual collaborative workshop series.
Register your interestIn nature there is no waste. The waste of one becomes the food of another. How can everything we make be unmade? How can we mirror nature and keep materials in flow to optimise their value by collecting, delivering, cleaning, grinding and disassembling technical materials to be restored, reused, while growing, feeding, extracting and composting our biological materials? How might we keep these flows separate and in closed loops?
Explore Haka Tourism Group’s closed loop system hereSmart materials are the raw materials/feedstock that products and packaging are created from – substrates that cause no harm to human health or the environments they operate in. Smart biomaterials can be grown for purpose, sequester carbon, return to the Earth as food or be used infinitely. If we are to ensure that we practice Kaitiakitanga - guardianship of our lands and protection of all living creatures, we need to explore how we might radically redesign with new materials that cause no harm.
Explore the Advanced Floating Platforms case study link hereThese are human behaviours required to continually care for and sustain living systems. Including composting food waste to regenerate soils, planting trees to sequester carbon, collecting litter from beaches, travelling in low carbon transport vehicles and purchasing products that offer regenerative benefits. For many businesses this is their aha moment when they align the values of their customers to their purpose.
Explore EV Maritime's case study link hereFive circular business models can unlock new value in the circular economy that allows for economic development to operate within natural resource limits and enable customers to do more with less. New value includes the creation of circular supplies, products as services, sharing of assets, product life extension and resource recovery.
Explore the Bobux case study link hereExplore the Fletcher case study link hereThrough the network effects of digital platforms, we are seeing authentic connection scaling up impact. It's an approach that can connect communities with a challenge, to other groups that can solve it. This is where grassroots meets big business and where the start-up scales their impact.
Explore The ReCreators case study link hereEmerging disruptive technologies like Blockchain, Internet of Things, Artificial Intelligence, Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality can help provide the necessary 'infrastructure' required to authenticate performance, protect resources and improve customer satisfaction.
Explore the Arrive case study link hereEach moment at XLabs is an immersive experience around the
circular-by-design methods, expert presentations, workshop exercises for teams to expand and shift mindsets, and incredible local food in a creating space conducive to redesigning the future to be circular..
XLabs teams develop storyboards for their ideas, prototyped solutions and hosted a pitch day where they shared their solutions in front of their stakeholders and potential funders.