BIOEC360 Sircular Economy in Biobased Industries

The circular economy creates significant opportunities for sustainable development and value creation in the face of the turbulent context of the 21st century. Global challenges such as environmental changes, population growth, and resource scarcity force us to rethink society’s production and consumption patterns. The circular economy offers a sustainable alternative to the linear model based on "take-make-use-waste" and represents an economic paradigm shift.

The course emphasizes the role of systems thinking and collaboration in light of the complexity and interdisciplinary nature of the circular economy. It provides an overview of the scope of the circular economy, with concrete examples and cases from various industries and companies. Through group work with case assignments, students gain experience with real-world challenges and practical tools. The course aims to inspire, motivate, and empower students to take on the role of proactive change agents for the green transition toward a circular economy.

The course is structured around three main parts:

Circular Economy: Historical background and drivers. Connection to global challenges, sustainable development, and the green transition. The shift from a linear to a circular economy. Principles and strategies for a circular economy. Introduction to systems thinking, system innovation, and system-oriented design (SOD) as a toolbox.

Circular Systems: Circular value chains, closed-loop systems, and waste reduction. Material flows, metabolism, and environmental impact in the circular economy. Introduction to material flow analysis (MFA) and life cycle analysis (LCA). Mapping stakeholders and key actors.

Circular Strategy: The role of innovation, design, business models, and strategy. Barriers, enablers, and framework conditions for circular business operations. Political, economic, technological, and social factors in the transition toward circular societies.

Knowledge:

The student:

• has in-depth knowledge of what a circular economy entails, how it differs from a linear economy, and the relevance of systems thinking for an economic paradigm shift.
• has in-depth knowledge of the barriers and enablers for realizing circular products, value chains, and societies.
• has a good understanding of the role of innovation in the development of circular systems, as well as principles for circular design.
• is familiar with methods and tools for mapping, assessing, and developing circular solutions (including MFA and LCA).
• is familiar with circular business models, as well as the role of business model innovation and circular economy in practice across different industries and sectors.

Skills:

The student:

• can apply relevant tools and methods (e.g., SOD, MFA, LCA) to map, analyze, and assess value chains, life cycles, and sustainability footprints.
• can design and develop circular solutions in practice, including sustainable value chains, business models, and strategies.
• can collaborate in interdisciplinary teams to develop creative solutions to complex challenges related to the circular economy.
• can communicate and present their ideas and projects both orally and in writing.

General Competence:

The student:

• has collaboration skills and communication abilities in interdisciplinary contexts.
• demonstrates critical and analytical thinking.
• has reflective capacity and normative competence.
• possesses sustainability awareness and action competence for sustainability.