Eh? Circular Economy? How’s that..?
Imagine a world where there is no finish line, but a continuous cycle – much like the seasons or the life of a butterfly.
Ours is a world where waste is not avoided, but a principle we assume is just a byproduct of our desires and needs.
It doesn't have to be this way.
We all have a unique ability to Imagine the world otherwise. It’s hard to imagine something that no one believes is possible when you are born into a world where a way of being and what counts as possible and impossible — or worth working to achieve or not worth working to achieve — is fixed in the consciousness. The renegade who believes the impossible is possible finds the way to Imagine Harder than anyone else, and break a sports record, or achieve what was previously considered with no doubt or hesitation —Impossible.
Can we imagine what a world would be like What if we could reshape our habits, industries, and lifestyles to fit a circulation of materials, where everything has a purpose, and nothing is ever discarded.
Join us for General Seminar Season 04 Episode 04 where we'll dig into Circular Economy principles — by literally going to a possible future in which the guiding principles of economic value creation and circulation and trying to make some sense of what a Circular Economy world would be like.
Understanding Our Current Reality
For much of modern history, we have embraced a linear model: we take, we use, we discard. This "take-make-waste" approach may have once seemed revolutionary, especially when magazines hailed the convenience of "throw-away living." However, as we face being smothered, quite literally, by the broad implications of this model, it becomes evident that this way of living, desiring, “needing”, isn't sustainable.
Championed by visionaries like Dame Ellen MacArthur, Circular Economy is not just a concept – it's a movement, a call to action, a chance to redefine our relationship with our planet.
CIRCULAR ECONOMY RESOURCES TO INGEST
https://www.lantmannen.se/forskning-och-innovation/vaxthuset/
The greenhouse is Lantmännen's program for open innovation, where applicants can get help developing an innovative business model into a profitable business. Since the start in 2014, we have used expertise and knowledge to explore the future of food and agriculture. Each year a new theme is launched and Lantmännen's employees as well as external startups and researchers are welcome to participate.
https://www.beamcircular.org/about
BEAM Circular is building a vibrant regional ecosystem for the circular bioeconomy in California’s agricultural heartland. Anchored in the North San Joaquin Valley, a tri-county region of 1.6 million people consisting of Merced, San Joaquin, and Stanislaus Counties, we are facilitating collaboration through the BioEconomy, Agriculture, & Manufacturing (BEAM) Initiative to scale the most promising innovations in bioindustrial manufacturing and to advance solutions that support economic and environmental outcomes for local communities.
BEAM Circular was catalyzed by Stanislaus 2030, a public-private partnership that advances a shared vision for economic prosperity. Stanislaus 2030 convened civic, business, and government stakeholders for an inclusive economic development planning process from 2021-2022, resulting in an Investment Blueprint for expanding access to opportunity and generating high quality jobs for local residents.
https://www.epa.gov/circulareconomy/what-circular-economy
A circular economy keeps materials, products, and services in circulation for as long possible. The Save Our Seas 2.0 Act refers to an economy that uses a systems-focused approach and involves industrial processes and economic activities that are restorative or regenerative by design, enables resources used in such processes and activities to maintain their highest value for as long as possible, and aims for the elimination of waste through the superior design of materials, products, and systems (including business models). It is a change to the model in which resources are mined, made into products, and then become waste. A circular economy reduces material use, redesigns materials, products, and services to be less resource intensive, and recaptures “waste” as a resource to manufacture new materials and products.
What Is General Seminar?
General Seminar is a platform for Sense-Making developed by Julian Bleecker, Ph.D., Founder of Near Future Laboratory.
The General Seminar platform was created during the pandemic in 2021 to operationalize the practice of Design Fiction, described in detail in The Manual of Design Fiction and used by teams, organizations, and Fortune 50 companies to conduct exercises in Strategic Foresight, Futures Design, Design Thinking, and Innovation.
General Seminar facilitates actively projecting into possible near futures to help teams break back into the innovation cycles that have eluded them.
When an organization as capable as Apple or as large as Google or as knitted into the fabric of society as WalMart gets to where they are, “innovation” becomes perilous as the rails that strategy runs on becomes increasingly fixed. Risk-taking — true risk-taking, not just doing a provocative new color for an existing product — diminishes because returns are good.
Design Fiction has helped these organizations learn how to Imagine Harder, the way they did when they had to take risks. It helps these organizations open up their collective creative consciousness in collaboration with the remarkable structural resources they’ve developed. Design Fiction helps organizations find their spark of possibility, and feel again what it is to be truly creative, and regain the spirit of Imagination and Possibility.
General Seminar is the platform we use to open up the senses and Imagine Harder into things that otherwise feel impossible or, at best, intractable and therefor as hard as imagining that you’re going to get up out of your chair right now and run a double-marathon.
Learn How General Seminar Works!
Tune In To A Past General Seminar on the Future of Fashion on The Near Future Laboratory Podcast!
The Circular Economy: A New Perspective with Design Fiction
Circular economy: a world where we design without waste, maximize the lifespan of products, and embrace systems that regenerate and renew. Here, the word "end" is obsolete. The challenges to achieving this are not small:
We have to design out waste and pollution at the drawing board, as a requirement.
We have to make products that last.
“Durable Goods” is not good enough: think of a hoodie, work wear, or sneakers, that outlives you, or a vehicle designed not for ownership, but for shared experiences.
It’s Time To Imagine Harder: What’s For Breakfast In A Possible Near Future Circular Life
Locally Sourced Ingredients: Most of the ingredients would come from local farms and gardens, minimizing transportation costs and carbon emissions.
Seasonal Fruits and Vegetables: Instead of imported fruits and veggies, you'd eat what's in season. This could be berries in the summer, apples in the fall, citrus in the winter, and leafy greens in the spring.
Packaging-Free or Reusable Packaging: Your cereals, grains, or dairy products might come in reusable containers that you return to the store for a refill, or you might bring your own containers to fill up.
Plant-Based Alternatives: With the rise in popularity of plant-based diets due to their sustainability, you might find almond, oat, or soy milk on your table instead of cow's milk. There might also be plant-based proteins like tofu scramble or tempeh bacon.
Regeneratively Farmed Products: Eggs might come from chickens that are part of a regenerative farming system, where they play a role in pest control and soil health.
Minimal Waste: Leftover food scraps like fruit peels or eggshells could be composted and returned to the soil or fed to animals.
Bread and Pastries: These might be made from ancient grains or sustainably grown wheat, and any unsold items from the previous day could be repurposed into other dishes, like bread pudding, to prevent waste.
Beverages: Coffee or tea would be sourced from sustainable farms, possibly even grown locally in community greenhouses or gardens. They would be sold in bulk, and you'd use a reusable container for purchase.
Homemade Preserves: Instead of store-bought jams or jellies in plastic containers, you might have homemade preserves from locally sourced fruits, stored in reusable glass jars.
Circular Kitchenware: The utensils, plates, and glasses you use might be made from recycled or upcycled materials. If something breaks, it could be easily repaired, recycled, or composted, depending on the material.
