Driven by government support, decarbonisation efforts and technological advancements, electric vehicles – with their lithium-ion batteries – are becoming increasingly common. Electric vehicles produce fewer emissions than combustion engine ones, but fewer is not zero. The emissions they do produce across their lifespan (production, use, recycling) need to be mapped.

Calculating their carbon footprint (the total amount of greenhouse gas emissions that come from the production, use and end-of-life of a product or service) is key and required by the Batteries Regulation (EU) 2023/1542.

This paper looks at the challenges of calculating batteries’ carbon footprint and implementing the relevant obligations for companies introducing batteries into the EU market.

The Sustainable Fashion Academy launched the Scandinavian Textile Initiative for Climate Action (STICA) in collaboration with various apparel and textile companies. STICA aims to ensure that the Nordic region and Europe reduce their climate impacts in line with the 1.5°C global warming pathway, while transforming their businesses and the industry.

Signatories to STICA undertake to set targets on scopes 1 to 3 and report back. The focus of this report is emissions reduction, and circular business models are presented as part of the solution. The information provided by the signatory companies as part of their reporting covers circular business models, breaking down how these contribute to scope 3 reduction and their place in the companies' climate action transition plans.

Berlin began its circular economy transition in 2020 with the adoption of the Waste Management Concept 2020-2030, aiming to implement measures to reduce household, water and construction waste. To advance this transition, it established the Coordination Office for Circular Economy, Energy Efficiency and Climate Protection in Business in 2022 and the Zero Waste Agency in 2023, and commissioned a study to analyse the circular economy’s potential in the industrial sector.

Despite these efforts, the circular economy in Berlin is still often perceived only in terms of sustainable waste management. This paper looks at challenges holding back progress on the circular economy, including policy coherence, and provides recommendations to accelerate the transition.

Multilateral development banks have a key role to play in supporting and financing circular approaches. Recognising this, a group of these banks came together to discuss how to better support the circular economy and promote an exchange of knowledge with the private sector, civil society, and local, regional and national authorities.

This report is a result of their work. It presents 20 case studies from around the world that highlight the kinds of support on offer, such as advisory activities, public-sector lending, private-sector investments and backing for the financial sector. Sharing these experiences is important for identifying and adopting successful approaches that can be replicated and scaled up around the world.

This report is part of a larger, collaborative four-year research project. It analyses the fashion value chain from a global and local perspective with an emphasis on India, Spain and the Netherlands, using a novel framework to assess social impact for circular economy called the SIAF-CE.

The report concludes that the Dutch circular ambition in policy is high and a solid ecosystem is in place. The most established circular strategies are resale and recycling, while promising ones are resale-platform-based, rental and repair. However, the social impact of most circular strategies seems to emulate linear value chain working conditions, where women workers hold the most vulnerable jobs, with low pay, short-term contracts and lower collective bargaining.

Businesses in Spain and around the world are adopting the circular economy as a new production paradigm. However, while the economic and environmental dimensions of the circular economy have been explored, its social impact (decent pay, gender equality, labour conditions) has been overlooked.

By surveying more than 210 workers in three countries and interviewing 90 stakeholders in Spain, the authors developed an inventory of circular jobs. They found that circular jobs in Spain follow the same pattern as the linear value chain, where women in resale, repair and recycling are the most vulnerable. Startups in resale and rental based on internet platform models have the highest earning quality but also high job insecurity, especially for women workers.

This analysis report was prepared in connection with the EU-funded Wood2Wood project and explores opportunities to advance the circular economy and overcome challenges to waste wood utilisation through supportive policy.

It outlines recommendations and policy options for improving waste wood utilisation through harmonised multi-criteria waste wood classification, refined and extended targets and obligations, enabling policy and policy which fundamentally reflects the lifecycle perspective. These recommendations and policy options serve as a point of departure to help shape the regulatory environment in support of improved waste wood valorisation.

Businesses in India and around the world are adopting the circular economy as a new production paradigm. However, while the economic and environmental dimensions of the circular economy have been explored, its social impact (decent pay, gender equality, labour conditions) has been overlooked.

By surveying 100 workers  and interviewing 40 managers in India, the authors developed an inventory of circular jobs with the respective demographic. They found that circular jobs in India are of low quality due to relatively low wage and job security indicators (especially for female workers). Informal migrant women in resale, repair and recycling are most vulnerable. Resale and rental based on internet platform models have the highest earning quality for men and women. 

The apparel value chain is essential for the livelihood of millions of workers around the globe, but working conditions in this sector are far from satisfactory. The circular economy has been used by businesses as a framework for achieving sustainability but there is a lack of knowledge about its social impact.

This paper explores the social impact of the different circular strategies implemented in the Netherlands, Spain and India. It assesses social impacts related to the quality of jobs, workers’ sustainable livelihood and gender equality and inclusion. 

It finds that the social ambition of the circular economy is low, and that current circular strategies follow the same feminisation and precariousness of working conditions found in the linear apparel value chain.

This paper examines the socio-environmental justice aspects of 11 key EU policies guiding the textile industry's journey towards circularity.

It found that action is needed to tackle overproduction and overconsumption in the EU Strategy for Sustainable and Circular Textiles. Steps must be taken to address the impacts of EU circular economy textile policies on the Global South so as to ensure positive social and environmental outcomes. 

The paper also concluded that efforts are needed to make just transition policies globally accountable and alleviation mechanisms integral to the Textile Strategy rather than supplementary corrective measures. Meaningful participatory mechanisms are needed that ensure the democratic inclusion of different views and actors.