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Understanding how a circular economy (CE) can reduce environmental pressures from economic activities is crucial for policy and practice. Science provides a range of indicators to monitor and assess CE activities. However, common CE activities, such as recycling and eco‐design, are contested in terms of their contribution to environmental sustainability. This article assesses whether and to what extent current approaches to assess CE activities sufficiently capture environmental pressures to monitor progress toward environmental sustainability. Based on a material flow perspective, we show that most indicators do not capture environmental pressures related to the CE activities they address. Many focus on a single CE activity or process, which does not necessarily contribute to increased environmental sustainability overall. Based on these results, we suggest complementing CE management indicators with indicators capturing basic environmental pressures related to the respective CE activity. Given the conceptual linkage between CE activities, resource extraction, and waste flows, we suggest that a resource‐based footprint approach accounting for major environmental inputs and outputs is necessary—while not sufficient—to assess the environmental sustainability of CE activities. As footprint approaches can be used across scales, they could aid the challenging process of developing indicators for monitoring progress toward an environmentally sustainable CE at the European, national, and company levels.

The current enthusiasm for circular economy (CE) offers a unique opportunity to advance the impact of research on sustainability transitions. Diverse interpretations of CE by scholars, however, produce partly opposing assessments of its potential bene ts, which can hinder progress. Here, we synthesize policyrelevant lessons and research directions for a sustainable CE and identify three narratives -optimist, reformist and skeptical -that underpin the ambiguity in CE assessments. Based on 54 key CE scholars' insights, we identify three research needs: the articulation and discussion of ontologically distinct CE narratives; bridging of technical, managerial, socio-economic, environmental and political CE perspectives; and critical assessment of opportunities and limits of CE science-policy interactions. Our ndings offer practical guidance for scholars to engage re exively with the rapid expansion of CE knowledge, identify and pursue high-impact research directions, and communicate more effectively with practitioners and policymakers.

To feed future populations on ever-scarcer natural resources, policy initiatives aim to decrease resource footprints of food consumption. While adopting healthier diets has shown great potential to reduce footprints, current political initiatives primarily address strategies to reduce food waste, with the target of halving food waste at retail and consumption levels by 2030. Using Germany as a case study, we compare the resource-saving potential of this political target with three scenarios of nutritionally viable, plant-based dietary patterns and investigate interactions and trade-offs. By using the Food and Agriculture Biomass Input–Output model, we capture biomass, cropland, and blue water footprints of global supply chains. The results show that dietary changes are particularly effective in reducing biomass and cropland footprints, showing a decrease of up to 61% and 48%, respectively, whereas halving food waste decreases biomass and cropland footprints by 11% and 15%, respectively. For blue water savings, halving food waste is more effective: water use decreases by 14% compared to an increase of 6% for dietary change with the highest water consumption. Subsequently, a combination of the scenarios shows the highest total reduction potential. However, our findings reveal that despite reduced footprints, a dietary shift can lead to an increased amount of food waste due to the rising consumption of products associated with higher food waste shares. Therefore, policy strategies addressing both targets might be contradicting. We conclude that international and national policies can be most effective in achieving higher resource efficiency by exploiting the reduction potentials of all available strategies while simultaneously considering strategy interactions.

The current enthusiasm for circular economy (CE) offers a unique opportunity to advance the impact of research on sustainability transitions. Diverse interpretations of CE by scholars, however, produce partly opposing assessments of its potential benefits, which can hinder progress. Here, we synthesize policy-relevant lessons and research directions for a sustainable CE and identify three narratives – optimist, reformist and skeptical – that underpin the ambiguity in CE assessments. Based on 54 key CE scholars’ insights, we identify three research needs: the articulation and discussion of ontologically distinct CE narratives; bridging of technical, managerial, socio-economic, environmental and political CE perspectives; and critical assessment of opportunities and limits of CE science-policy interactions. Our findings offer practical guidance for scholars to engage reflexively with the rapid expansion of CE knowledge, identify and pursue high-impact research directions, and communicate more effectively with practitioners and policymakers.

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Saami languages are spoken across wide areas, from Mid-Scandinavia to Kola Peninsula, Russia, but they are all threatened Indigenous languages. Altogether, there are 10 Saami languages, of which three are represented in Finland: Northern, Inari and Skolt Saami. After centuries of assimilation policies, through broader inclusive thinking from the 1980s and the 1990s onwards, the teaching of Saami languages has begun to receive governmental support. In Finland, until the 1970s, the Finnish language was the main medium of instruction for Saami children. This has led to a language shift and assimilation over many generations. Currently, the main education task is to avoid continuing the loss of language. This chapter showcases how Saami languages are retaking their status via maintenance and revitalisation measures and displays Saami online language education as a solution for those children and young people living outside the Saami homeland. This solution is especially important because most Saami people now live outside this area. We therefore urge a swift decision on Saami education, as stipulated in the Basic Education Act about the availability of Saami language classes and support for pedagogical development in the endangered language situation. Starting to recognise Saami language education as an opportunity and a resource rather than a problem would be a key shift in language attitudes to build a path for comprehensive education based on social justice for Saami children and young people in Finland.

Siiri Magga-Miettunen kuvaa teoksessaan Siirin kirja (2002) saamelaiskulttuurin murrosvaiheita sotavuosista 1960-luvulle. Teos on esimerkki saamelaisesta muisteluskirjallisuudesta, joka mukailee suullista kerrontaa. Saamenkielinen termi muittašangirjjálašvuohta on johdettu pohjoissaamen verbistä muittašit, joka viittaa jonkin miellyttävän asian muistelemiseen. Saamelaiskulttuurin murroksista huolimatta teoksen pohjavire on positiivinen. Millaisia mahdollisuuksia muisteluskirjallisuus tarjoaa omasta elämästä kertomiseen ja löytyykö muisteluskirjallisuudesta narratiivisia malleja, jotka ohjaavat kokemusta tiettyyn suuntaan? Teoksesta piirtyy esiin kasvutarina, joka kuvaa ajanjaksoa Siirin syntymästä 21 vuoteen. Teos ei kuitenkaan keskity Siirin kasvun kuvaamiseen, vaan kerrontaan sekoittuu suvun kollektiivinen tarinavaranto. Keskeiseksi teemaksi nousevat pärjäämisen kokemukset ja yhdessä selviäminen suurten muutosten keskellä. Teos suuntautuu kertojan sisäisen maailman reflektoinnin sijaan kollektiivisen muistamisen kuvaamiseen. Muutosten reflektointi tapahtuu toisiinsa limittyvien muistojen ja tarinoiden kautta. Huumori toimii teoksessa selviytymiskeinona, jolla suunnataan tulevaisuuteen.