Thanks To Young Entrepreneurs, The Circular Economy Is Becoming Reality

The old way of doing business was to prioritize profits over everything else. But a new crop of Millennial and Gen Z entrepreneurs are changing this dynamic. These under-40s want to create a world where the economy is more circular, reusing and recycling everything it makes year after year. 

This process is in its infancy, but it is gaining steam. Numerous innovators and startups are already fitting into various parts of the puzzle, and it only seems like a matter of time before the whole edifice will come together.

Tampon Tribe, which makes 100% certified organic cotton, is one such firm doing its part to slot into this new paradigm. While it doesn’t guarantee complete circularity, it is another piece of the jigsaw that the eco-conscious have been waiting for. 

“Conventional tampons contain numerous plastics and synthetics which make them harmful to the environment,” the company says. “But now it is possible to construct tampons from 100% certified organic cotton, reducing their impact on the environment. Biodegradable smooth-glide cardboard applicators are changing how people view these consumer products.” 

Recently, MIT’s Sloan School also posted a piece on how women are uniquely situated to help tackle the global waste crisis. The higher education-associated outfit believes that they can play a unique role in controlling waste because of their domestic and consumption habits. 

For example, fashion waste is something that women have power over. Women can choose clothing made of natural materials, instead of synthetic compounds, like polyester, nylon and acrylic. Making the switch would stop most clothes waste being harmful and could enable more reuse. 

Similarly, women in many parts of the world have significant control over food waste, something researchers believe is responsible for 50% of global heating. Researchers argue that proper disposal, composting, meal-planning and refrigeration could cut this waste significantly by the end of the decade.

“We need more effort to build an ecosystem of women’s waste entrepreneurs,” Tampon Tribe explains. “Putting women in leadership roles and helping them with accelerators could help transform family consumption habits across the globe and improve outcomes for everyone.”

Innovators In The Circular Economy

However, to transform the global economy to a sustainable future, everyone will need to play some sort of role. Big businesses, governments, legal professionals and technologists must put their heads together to take the globe off a sustainable path. Otherwise, environmental costs could spiral out of control, and the Earth might become less livable. 

This change needs to begin in the most basic industry – food production. Eating needs to return to nature – and fast. 

Katy Perry and Oprah Winfrey are already putting their financial weight behind efforts to reduce plastic usage in the food chain. Upstarts like Apeel are looking for ways to coat fresh produce in safe, edible layers to keep items fresh for three times longer and eliminate the need for packaging. The company believes its products could save around 7,000 metric tons of CO2 emissions annually by reducing waste and avoiding the use of single-use plastic packaging. 

Another pair of startups, Sway and Notpla are trying a different approach. Their vision is to replace plastic packaging with low-impact seaweed that removes CO2 from the atmosphere as it grows. Consumers can rip into the packaging, like plastic, and access whatever produce is inside. 

Other brands, like Open Funk want to rethink conventional household kitchen items, like blenders, making them more disposable. The idea is to make them fully reusable, biodegradable, with modular interchangeable components when parts fail (instead of replacing the whole thing). 

“These projects are ambitious,” Tampon Tribe says. “But it is amazing how quickly everything is coming together. We are building out our capabilities, and so are many companies in other sectors.”

Accessing Finance

While the growth in the circular economy is impressive, it is currently being limited by a lack of access to finance. Companies need capital to get their ideas off the ground, but the VP class and other investors aren’t sure what to make of the new concepts. Most companies follow a linear model, and it is only a few brands, like Patagonia, that decide to do things differently. 

Because of this, the power lies in the hands of policymakers. Governments can create funds to go into scientific breakthroughs that make circular economy businesses more viable. Fundamental advances in energy and materials could solve many of the current problems, but there isn’t a drive to make them a reality. 

In some instances, international institutions are trying to take up the slack. However, these also rely on central government funding and can’t engage in ambitious projects without political backing. 

Therefore, the most obvious option for many people in the space is to raise public awareness. Sharing the idea that we can rescue the world and retain a fairly decent standard of living is a hopeful message and one that many would back without question. 

Benefiting The Economy

Furthermore, introducing the circular economy may actually benefit the economy according to some analyses. 

For example, a study looking at Chile is exploring the effects of consumers bringing reusable containers to stores to fill up essential products, like shampoo, soap, food, and detergent. The idea is to reduce global cities’ production of 2.1 billion tons of solid waste annually. 

The report by UNCTAD’s New Frontier In Entrepreneurship series looks at how the circular economy might change practices and improve the global economy for the better. Their estimates suggest the transition could create 7 million new jobs and increase global output by $4.5 trillion by 2030, a massive gain. 

It also recommends various policy options. One idea is to reduce restrictions on entrepreneurship in developing countries so they can enter the ideas economy currently dominated by the West. Local people dealing with nearby issues are far more likely to solve problems, or so the reasoning goes. 

Another policy idea is to improve financing. Developing countries require external capital to make the circular economy a reality and instill it as a social norm among the population.