We investigate entrepreneurial ecosystems that support circular start-ups and innovation. We argue that entrepreneurial ecosystems for circularity are constellations of existing entrepreneurial and innovation ecosystems that extend across geographies and sectors. Our research question centres on understanding ecosystem intermediation that facilitates the embedding of circular start-ups in different ecosystems and addresses a pertinent gap in the literature about ecosystem intermediation for circular transitions and circular start-ups Focusing on the emerging circular transition in the textiles and apparel industry, we gathered data from in-depth interviews, field observations, and archival documentation over a seven-year period. Our findings show that entrepreneurial ecosystems for circular start-ups are purposefully intermediated at a meta level, combining elements of extant ecosystems to focus on circularity. Drawing on these insights, we conceptualize ecosystem intermediation as connecting diverse ecosystems across geographic and sectoral boundaries. Our study contributes to the literatures on circular entrepreneurship, circular ecosystems, and ecologies of system intermediation as well as provides practical implications for practitioners and policy makers.
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In this paper, we conceptualize circular economy ecosystem emergence as the intersection of extant innovation, entrepreneurial, and industrial ecosystems. From our rich qualitative data in the circular textiles and apparel industry, we identify drivers behind emergence and uncover the pivotal role ecosystem orchestrators play in governing the interdependencies between actors and activities across the different intersecting ecosystems. From our findings, we theorize circular economy ecosystem emergence as a transitional phase or “real utopia” that, with purposeful orchestration, can potentially become a future desired state. In doing so, we make novel contributions to the literature on economic ecosystems, circular economy, and prospective theorizing, a nascent future-oriented perspective on theory building. Our research offers valuable insights for practitioners and policymakers aiming to accelerate circular economy transformation.
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We investigate circular entrepreneurial ecosystems that support circular startups and innovation. We argue that circular entrepreneurial ecosystems are constellations of existing entrepreneurial ecosystems that extend across geographies and sectors, requiring ecosystem intermediaries to bridge institutional environments and provide access to actors and resources. Focusing on the emerging circular transition in the textiles and apparel industry, we gathered data from in-depth interviews, field observations, and archival documentation over a seven--year period. Our findings show that circular entrepreneurial ecosystems are purposefully intermediated at a meta level, generating nested and distributed ecosystems. To elucidate circular ecosystem intermediation, we devised a model of system level 5 intermediation that extends the conceptualization of ecologies of system intermediation across geographic and sector boundaries. Our study contributes to the literatures on circular entrepreneurship, circular ecosystems, and ecosystem intermediation as well as provides practical implications for practitioners and policy makers.
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This article investigates the phenomenon of rebound effects in relation to a transition to a Circular Economy (CE) through qualitative inquiry. The aim is to gain insights in manifestations of rebound effects by studying the Dutch textile industry as it transitions to a circular system, and to develop appropriate mitigation strategies that can be applied to ensure an effective transition. The rebound effect, known originally from the energy efficiency literature, occurs when improvements in efficiency or other technological innovations fail to deliver on their environmental promise due to (behavioral) economic mechanisms. The presence of rebound in CE contexts can therefore lead to the structural overstatement of environmental benefits of certain innovations, which can influence reaching emission targets and the preference order of recycling. In this research, the CE rebound effect is investigated in the Dutch textile industry, which is identified as being vulnerable to rebound, yet with a positive potential to avoid it. The main findings include the very low awareness of this effect amongst key stakeholders, and the identification of specific and general instances of rebound effects in the investigated industry. In addition, the relation of these effects to Circular Business Models and CE strategies are investigated, and placed in a larger context in order to gain a more comprehensive understanding about the place and role of this effect in the transition. This concerns the necessity for a new approach to how design has been practiced traditionally, and the need to place transitional developments in a systems perspective. Propositions that serve as theory-building blocks are put forward and include suggestions for further research and recommendations about dealing with rebound effects and shaping an eco-effective transition. Thomas Siderius, Kim Poldner, Reconsidering the Circular Economy Rebound effect: Propositions from a case study of the Dutch Circular Textile Valley, Journal of Cleaner Production, Volume 293, 2021, 125996, ISSN 0959-6526, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2021.125996.
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This article seeks to contribute to the literature on circular business model innovation in fashion retail. Our research question is which ‘model’—or combination of models—would be ideal as a business case crafting multiple value creation in small fashion retail. We focus on a qualitative, single in-depth case study—pop-up store KLEER—that we operated for a duration of three months in the Autumn of 2020. The shop served as a ‘testlab’ for action research to experiment with different business models around buying, swapping, and borrowing second-hand clothing. Adopting the Business Model Template (BMT) as a conceptual lens, we undertook a sensory ethnography which led to disclose three key strategies for circular business model innovation in fashion retail: Fashion-as-a-Service (F-a-a-S) instead of Product-as-a-Service (P-a-a-S) (1), Place-based value proposition (2) and Community as co-creator (3). Drawing on these findings, we reflect on ethnography in the context of a real pop-up store as methodological approach for business model experimentation. As a practical implication, we propose a tailor-made BMT for sustainable SME fashion retailers. Poldner K, Overdiek A, Evangelista A. Fashion-as-a-Service: Circular Business Model Innovation in Retail. Sustainability. 2022; 14(20):13273. https://doi.org/10.3390/su142013273
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Wood is an increasingly demanded renewable resource and an important raw material for construction and materials. Demands are rising, with a growing attention for re-use and upcycling, opening up opportunities for new business models, empowered by the use of digital design and technologies. A KPI framework was developed to evaluate the environmental, social, and economic aspects of using recycled wood in robotic manufacturing. This paper explores the use of this framework, focusing on a case study: the "One Plank" Challenge. The study reveals that environmental gains from using waste wood are comparable to production burdens, with significant variation depending on wood type. Production time, encompassing both human and robotic aspects, significantly impacts cost-effectiveness. The findings underscore the importance of considering lifecycle impacts in promoting sustainable robotic manufacturing practices.
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Inter-organizational arrangements that aim to address social and environmental “grand challenges” often take the form of multi-stakeholder initiatives (MSIs) (also cross-sector partnerships or collaborations). Grand challenges -- problems characterized by knowledge uncertainty, dynamic complexity and value conflict -- require diverse organizations to join forces to resolve them. MSIs are complex and dynamic arrangements due to the constant change occurring in the external environment and in the dynamics of the collaboration, as each participating organization may have very different frames of reference and interests that impede action and continuity. Scholars have long recognized the tensions of conflicting logics that are inherent in MSIs and the challenges that MSIs face in reconciling incongruent organizational identities, goals or shared visions. Accordingly, MSIs need facilitators (i.e., ‘orchestrators’) to navigate the persistent and pervasive challenges of both reconciling conflicting logics and using complementary logics in such a way that the collaboration achieves collective goals. Our study examines how MSI orchestrators work to meet this challenge by shaping and shifting cognitive frames in the context of a mature organizational field. We investigate the mechanisms used to enable cognitive shifts in logic and highlight the role of orchestration in enacting frame shifts. Empirically, we examine an MSI in the apparel industry that aims to guide retailers and fashion brands in the implementation of recommerce and rental business models, thereby pushing the textile and apparel industry from linear to regenerative and circular use of textile resources. We identify several frames from the perspective of diverse stakeholders and uncover the four mechanisms that orchestrators use to influence frame shifts. We also see from our findings that orchestrators efforts to influence and navigate frame shifting is both emergent and planned as they attempt to navigate and manage the tensions and complexity that arise in multi-stakeholder initiatives focused on sustainability challenges.
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Inter-organizational arrangements that aim to address social and environmental “grand challenges” often take the form of multi-stakeholder initiatives (MSIs) (also cross-sector partnerships or collaborations). Grand challenges -- problems characterized by knowledge uncertainty, dynamic complexity and value conflict -- require diverse organizations to join forces to resolve them. MSIs are complex and dynamic arrangements due to the constant change occurring in the external environment and in the dynamics of the collaboration, as each participating organization may have very different frames of reference and interests that impede action and continuity. Scholars have long recognized the tensions of conflicting logics that are inherent in MSIs and the challenges that MSIs face in reconciling incongruent organizational identities, goals or shared visions. Accordingly, MSIs need facilitators (i.e., ‘orchestrators’) to navigate the persistent and pervasive challenges of both reconciling conflicting logics and using complementary logics in such a way that the collaboration achieves collective goals. Our study examines how MSI orchestrators work to meet this challenge by shaping and shifting cognitive frames in the context of a mature organizational field. We investigate the mechanisms used to enable cognitive shifts in logic and highlight the role of orchestration in enacting frame shifts. Empirically, we examine an MSI in the apparel industry that aims to guide retailers and fashion brands in the implementation of recommerce and rental business models, thereby pushing the textile and apparel industry from linear to regenerative and circular use of textile resources. We identify several frames from the perspective of diverse stakeholders and uncover the four mechanisms that orchestrators use to influence frame shifts. We also see from our findings that orchestrators efforts to influence and navigate frame shifting is both emergent and planned as they attempt to navigate and manage the tensions and complexity that arise in multi-stakeholder initiatives focused on sustainability challenges.
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Met Situatiegericht inzamelen de kledingafvalberg te lijf. Voor u ligt het adviesrapport, dat is ontstaan door het uitvoeren van onderzoek door studenten aan drie verschillende hogescholen in Nederland: Utrecht, Rotterdam en Zuyd. De uitkomsten van het onderzoek dat de studenten verrichtten, is met resultaten van eerdere onderzoeken vergeleken door onderzoekers van het lectoraat Procesinnovatie en Informatiesystemen aan de Hogeschool Utrecht. Hieruit is dit adviesrapport opgesteld. De resultaten uit de onderzoeken van de studenten en van al bestaande rapporten komen in dit verslag samen tot een advies aan de Vereniging Nederlandse Gemeenten. Hoewel voor dit resultaat met name een inspanningsverplichting gold, brengt het resultaat een belangrijke eerste inzicht en daarmee een boodschap aan de (Vereniging) Nederlandse Gemeenten. Het advies is slechts een richtlijn, omdat de resultaten voortgekomen zijn uit zeer beperkte casus-bestudering.
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Making food packaging more sustainable is a complex process. Research has shown that specific knowledge is needed to support packaging developers to holistically improve the sustainability of packaging. Within this study we aim to provide insights in the various tradeoffs designers face with the aim to provide insights for future sustainable food packaging (re)design endeavors. The study consists of analyzing and coding 19 reports in which bachelor students worked on assignments ranging from (1) analyzing the supply chain of a food product-packaging combination to (2) redesigning a specific food packaging. We identified 6 tradeoffs: (1) Perceived Sustainability vs. Achieved Sustainability, (2) Food Waste vs. Sustainability, (3) Branding vs. Sustainability, (4) Product Visibility vs. Sustainability, (5) Costs vs. Sustainability, and (6) Use Convenience vs Sustainability. We compared the six tradeoffs with literature. Two tradeoffs can be seen as additional to topics mentioned within literature, namely product visibility and use convenience. In addition, while preventing food waste is mentioned as an important functionality of food packaging, this functionality seems to be underexposed within practice.
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