Analysing European Union circular economy policies: words versus actions

Martin Calisto Friant; Walter J.V. Vermeulen; Roberta Salomone

doi:10.1016/j.spc.2020.11.001

Analysing European Union circular economy policies: words versus actions

Martin Calisto Friant^*, Walter J.V. Vermeulen, Roberta Salomone

^*Corresponding author for this work

University of Messina

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Academic › peer-review

Abstract

Since the publication of the European Union's Circular Economy Action Plan in 2015, this new sustainability paradigm has become a guiding force behind the environmental and economic policies of the Junker Commission. The European Union (EU) has taken a particular approach to circularity, with high expectations to increase competitiveness, promote economic growth and create jobs while reducing environmental impacts and resource dependency. However, the circular economy (CE) is a contested paradigm, for which many competing interpretations exist, each seeking varying degrees of social, ecological and political transformation. Considering the emerging and contested state of the academic literature on CE, the EU's embrace of the concept is a remarkable phenomenon, which remains poorly researched. The aim of this paper is thus to address this research gap by analysing the CE discourse and policies of the Junker Commission (2014-2019) in order to critically discuss their sustainability implications and develop key policy recommendations. To do so, this research uses a combination of qualitative and quantitative research methods. The paper first critically analyses the EU's discourse based on a typology of circularity discourses. It then reviews the complex set of concrete CE policies and actions adopted by the EU and compares them to its discourse. Results show a dichotomy between words and actions, with a discourse that is rather holistic, while policies focus on “end of pipe” solutions and do not address the many socio-ecological implications of a circularity transition. Several actions are thus recommended to tackle the systemic challenges of a circular future from a plural perspective.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	337-353
Number of pages	17
Journal	Sustainable Production and Consumption
Volume	27
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.spc.2020.11.001
Publication status	Published - Jul 2021

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
This research was funded by the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement No 765198. Previous versions of this work were presented at the 25 th International Sustainable Development Research Society (ISDRS) Conference in Nanjing, China on the 27 th of June 2019 and in the PubliER conference in Troyes, France on the 30 th of January 2020. We would like to thank Maud Rio, Natacha Klein, Reid Lifset and Tomás Ramos for their thorough review and helpful suggestions for earlier versions of this paper as well as the anonymous reviewers for their constructive comments.

Funding Information:
This research was funded by the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Sk?odowska-Curie grant agreement No 765198. Previous versions of this work were presented at the 25th International Sustainable Development Research Society (ISDRS) Conference in Nanjing, China on the 27th of June 2019 and in the PubliER conference in Troyes, France on the 30th of January 2020. We would like to thank Maud Rio, Natacha Klein, Reid Lifset and Tom?s Ramos for their thorough review and helpful suggestions for earlier versions of this paper as well as the anonymous reviewers for their constructive comments.

Publisher Copyright:
© 2020

Funding

This research was funded by the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement No 765198. Previous versions of this work were presented at the 25 th International Sustainable Development Research Society (ISDRS) Conference in Nanjing, China on the 27 th of June 2019 and in the PubliER conference in Troyes, France on the 30 th of January 2020. We would like to thank Maud Rio, Natacha Klein, Reid Lifset and Tomás Ramos for their thorough review and helpful suggestions for earlier versions of this paper as well as the anonymous reviewers for their constructive comments.

Keywords

Circular economy
circular society
discourse analysis
environmental governance
policy analysis
sustainability

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Access to Document

10.1016/j.spc.2020.11.001Licence: CC BY

1-s2.0-S2352550920313750-mainFinal published version, 2.51 MBLicence: CC BY

Cite this

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abstract = "Since the publication of the European Union's Circular Economy Action Plan in 2015, this new sustainability paradigm has become a guiding force behind the environmental and economic policies of the Junker Commission. The European Union (EU) has taken a particular approach to circularity, with high expectations to increase competitiveness, promote economic growth and create jobs while reducing environmental impacts and resource dependency. However, the circular economy (CE) is a contested paradigm, for which many competing interpretations exist, each seeking varying degrees of social, ecological and political transformation. Considering the emerging and contested state of the academic literature on CE, the EU's embrace of the concept is a remarkable phenomenon, which remains poorly researched. The aim of this paper is thus to address this research gap by analysing the CE discourse and policies of the Junker Commission (2014-2019) in order to critically discuss their sustainability implications and develop key policy recommendations. To do so, this research uses a combination of qualitative and quantitative research methods. The paper first critically analyses the EU's discourse based on a typology of circularity discourses. It then reviews the complex set of concrete CE policies and actions adopted by the EU and compares them to its discourse. Results show a dichotomy between words and actions, with a discourse that is rather holistic, while policies focus on “end of pipe” solutions and do not address the many socio-ecological implications of a circularity transition. Several actions are thus recommended to tackle the systemic challenges of a circular future from a plural perspective.",

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Analysing European Union circular economy policies: words versus actions

Abstract

Bibliographical note

Funding

Keywords

UN SDGs

Access to Document

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The circular economy: transformative vision or oxymoronic illusion?

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