Background and Mission

In the department Circular Economy (CE), we explore how societies can accelerate the transition to a circular and sustainable future. We view this shift as a systemic and deeply social process, and we organize our research around three interconnected pillars: behavioural, business, and institutional transitions.

Behavioural transitions focus on how to motivate individuals, households, and communities to adopt circular practices in daily life, in domains such as consumption, mobility, food, tourism, and waste. Drawing on psychology, sociology, marketing, and education, we study how values, norms, incentives, and learning processes drive sustainable lifestyles.

Business transitions examine how companies embed circularity into their core purpose. We examine how firms redesign their business models and value chains to reduce resource use, extend product lifecycles, and come up with disruptive yet impactful innovations. The role of sustainable entrepreneurship and leadership is a particular focus.

Institutional transitions address how policies, governance, and industry norms create the conditions under which circular solutions can emerge and scale, across sectors such as agriculture, health, education, and tourism.