City level circular transitions: Barriers and limits in Amsterdam, Utrecht and The Hague

Campbell‐Johnston, Kieran; Cate, Joey ten; Elfering-Petrovic, Maja; Gupta, Joyeeta

doi:10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.06.106

Cited by 112 publications

(82 citation statements)

References 57 publications

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“…Regularly, solutions were combined with new business models. These results differ from the few other studies on CE that address CE implementation at local level, particularly in the Netherlands (viz., Fellner et al, 2017;Campbell-Johnston et al 2019;Savini, 2019). These authors argue that the cities they studied (among which Amsterdam) prioritise lower value CE options, namely, recycling, and end up with relatively low recycling rates.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This issue has not been studied before (Gleidt et al2018). Admittedly, the AMEC strategy did hardly manage to influence the increasing waste stock (Campbell Johnston et al, 2019; Savini, 2019). This was also concluded at the evaluative roast session in 2019.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The circular procurement initiatives are a case in point of building up the CE system, whereas refusal of plastic packaging is a sign of phasing old elements out. However, these initiatives are just nuclei of a new, more circular world, representing a great variety of industrial sectors and product chains (Campbell‐Johnston et al, 2019). As Loorbach et al (2017) also acknowledge, the sustainability transition is an iterative, often chaotic process which covers a period of decades.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This is remarkable, as cities are expected to host 66% of the world's population by 2050. They can be seen as 'hotspots' of material consumption, waste generation and disconnected pollution (Campbell-Johnston et al, 2019).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…On the basis of a study on CE implementation in six European cities, Prendeville et al (2018) concluded that many of the initiatives identified could be seen as incremental, without any clear evidence of major investments to transform incumbent unsustainable industries. Even in three pioneering Dutch cases analysed by Campbell-Johnston et al (2019), CE is commonly presented as a 'transformative' and paradigm-altering new approach to sustainability, yet this element appears not to have manifested in reality. This raises the question of how the implementation of CE at local level can lead to the transformative change that CE entails.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Implementing the circular economy in the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area: The interplay between market actors mediated by transition brokers

Cramer

2020

Bus Strat Env

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This paper analyses the interplay between regime and niche actors in implementing the circular economy through mediation by transition brokers. The study is based on ‘action research’ carried out in the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area. Innovation science is adopted as theoretical approach. First, the analysis shows that more ambitious initiatives could be taken than by individual market actors. Whether these circular initiatives represent just incremental change—as other studies suggest—cannot be concluded. Rather, it is plausible to conceptualise the transition process as a continuous transformational change. Second, in creating circular initiatives, the interplay between regime and niche actors was evident but varied. Actors could team up more easily where their interests aligned. This conclusion corresponds with recent innovation literature, which emphasises the importance of linkages between processes at niche, regime and landscape levels. Before generalising the results, similar studies in other regional contexts would be valuable. Short informative In moving to a circular economy, the willingness of market actors to innovate is crucial. Real‐life experiments on the implementation of circular initiatives built by market actors at local level through the mediation of independent intermediaries (here called ‘transition brokers’) are scarce. This study aims to bridge this knowledge gap by focussing on the interplay between niche and regime actors. Action research on implementing the circular economy programme in the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area (2015–2020) represents an example. Innovation science is adopted as leading theoretical approach. The case shows that more advanced ambitions could be achieved than through individual market actors by themselves. Whether the circular initiatives built represent just incremental change—as suggested in the few other studies—is considered too simplistic. It is concluded to conceptualise the CE transition rather as a continuous, transformational change which takes time. The interplay between niche and regime actors was evident in the case but varied. Niche actors could team up more easily with regime actors where their interests coincided. Niche CE innovations did not necessarily develop in protected environments, as suggested by early MLP studies. They could diffuse more widely if they link up with ongoing processes at regime and landscape level. This conclusion corresponds with the more recent innovation literature.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%