A large number of policies can contribute to the Circular Economy objectives and the number of policies are expanding. However a major concern is that these policies can often be in conflict with each other.
Key messages from the report:
- The realisation of a Circular Economy will require first and foremost new business models
- ‘Circular’ business models will usually require policy support in order to scale up due to the barriers they encounter
- More research is needed to examine what policy interventions ‘circular’ businesses need in order to scale up
- Several policy areas need further research to advance, including eco-design for durability and repairability, waste rules and the effective functioning of waste markets, consumer and intellectual property laws, producer responsibility and take-back systems for repair and remanufacturing, and economic instruments for promoting repair and remanufacturing