A circular economy is an economic system that reduces waste by keeping resources in use for as long as possible. This includes recycling, reusing, and using renewable materials.
Circular economies are the key to sustainability. They are a system that heals or at least doesn’t actively harm the ecosystem, leading to a longer-lasting society. A circular economy has renewable energy, products free of plastic or other non-renewable materials, and a means of disposal. This disposal method should then generate new resources, like how composting creates new soil for new crops.
This model doesn’t rely on unsustainable practices like deforestation or strip mining. The economy can better avoid the collapses that happen when resources run out.
Like many complex, large-scale solutions, a circular economy requires designers. Circular designs involve the creation of products and services that support and create a circular economy.
It entails designing durable, reusable, repairable, and recyclable products. Designers consider a product's lifecycle, from raw material to distribution, use, and disposal. A circular design product or service aims to create a positive environmental and social impact at every stage.
For UX design, circular designs fit the principles of the circular economy. The product's lifecycle should be sustainable, from manufacturing to disposal.
The circular economy requires circular design. The three principles of circular design are:
Eliminate waste and pollution, including toxic substances that harm the soil and water and reduce emissions. Design plays a key role here. Almost every product generates waste, and so we need to redesign everything.
Circulate products and materials at their highest value for as long as possible. For example, we can build machines to last a long time and be dismantlable so their parts can be repaired easily and reused in new products. They should be recyclable so that no more resources are mined from the earth.
Regenerate natural systems by returning natural resources to the earth. For example, food waste can help regenerate farmlands.
The circular economy butterfly diagram by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation illustrates how we can minimize waste using both renewable and non-renewable materials.
© Ellen MacArthur Foundation, Fair Use
Creating a circular economy is a daunting task and may feel almost impossible. Yet, it’s important to remember that lasting change doesn’t happen in a single day. Designers and professionals from all backgrounds must work together to reform our economy in bits and pieces. Only then can we have a fair and sustainable economy for countless generations.
For more on circular economies, take our course: Design For a Better World with Don Norman.
For more about sustainable design, take our course: Design for the 21st Century with Don Norman.
Norman, Donald A. Design for a Better World: Meaningful, Sustainable, Humanity Centered. Cambridge, MA, MA: The MIT Press, 2023.
For a visual explanation of the circular economy see The butterfly diagram: visualizing the circular economy.
Here’s the entire UX literature on Circular Economies by the Interaction Design Foundation, collated in one place:
