Ecologically Embedded Design in Manufacturing: Legitimation within Circular Economy

Abstract

Circular economy has gained momentum since the 1970s as a regenerative alternative to the traditional linear economy. However, as the circular economy has gone mainstream, circularity claims have become fragmented and remote, consisting of indirect contributions, such as the life extension of other products and the use of waste as feedstock, without addressing the actual cause of waste. The present study aims to identify the strategic motivations of manufacturers participating in the circular economy and the corresponding relationship to ecological embeddedness. This paper explores the circular economy in manufacturing through existing products on the market and their relationship to eco-design by considering the product, packaging, and its production. Legitimacy is found to be a decisive factor in whether the type of circular economy strategy manufacturers adopt yields ecological benefits. The results from the case study of products clearly indicate the superiority of ecological embeddedness, as a form of circularity supporting strong sustainability. Finally, a novel template is proposed to support the implementation of ecological embeddedness in manufacturing.

A Circularity Indicator Tool for Measuring the Ecological Embeddedness of Manufacturing

“…The schematic diagram depicting the theoretical framework consists of five dimensions: understanding, realising, utilising, negotiating, and reclaiming [25] (see Appendix A). Initially, the classification of best practices was undertaken based on manufacturer selfidentification as selling sustainable, green, or circular products in the UK in the period from August to November 2019 [9]. The products were located through Sainsbury's online shopping website feature for the selection of eco-friendly products, the Ellen MacArthur Foundation website, and Circular Economy Club member organizations in the UK.…”

“…Since an ecocentric strategy is ecologically embedded, it merits five points. On the other hand, market leadership (option E) reflects the legitimacy issue of design [9] in that it may be a public relations tool not accompanied by any positive impact.…”

“…Although manufacturer engagement with circularity on any level may demonstrate some awareness of environmental issues, an ecocentric approach founded on ecological embeddedness will help ensure the full consideration of natural and social aspects for mature corporate sustainability worldviews associated with strong sustainability [8]. Ecological embeddedness is an ecocentric subset of a CE intended to benefit both the economic actors and the environment [9].…”

“…This research builds on previous investigations into ecological embeddedness for manufacturing [9,25] to propose a circularity indicator tool to assess the ecological relationships of manufacturing in support of a CE in a holistic manner based on the best practices in the industry. In [9], a template is proposed that highlights the importance of considering the product, production, and packaging as part of an ecologically embedded CE, and the authors of [25] developed a framework that manufacturers may use to formulate an ecologically embedded strategy. This research is an extension of [9,25], in which a CE indicator tool is proposed.…”

“…In [9], a template is proposed that highlights the importance of considering the product, production, and packaging as part of an ecologically embedded CE, and the authors of [25] developed a framework that manufacturers may use to formulate an ecologically embedded strategy. This research is an extension of [9,25], in which a CE indicator tool is proposed.…”