Every Friday, Circulate rounds up a collection of interesting circular economy related stories and articles. This Friday, Pew Research finds out what people really think of the sharing economy, NASA are using gecko tech and a chance to catch up on circular economy insight on the BBC and iTunes.
Anything to report?
A new report from Pew Research Center investigates the various and seemingly inescapable ‘economies’ of today: shared, collaborative and on demand. It’s a thorough study of the scale of these trends in North America, with many insights relevant to the circular economy transition. Information is scarce when it comes to the correlation between shared car use and materials throughput, but Pew’s data suggests that ‘frequent ride-hailing users are less likely to own or drive a car, and more likely to use a range of other transit options’, with one-third of this segment not owning a personal vehicle, and more frequent use of bike and car sharing schemes.
The report also looks at home sharing, through services such as AirBnB, and crowdfunding platforms. On top of usage statistics, there’s also data on how much people are aware of or engaging with current debates around the safety, privacy and growth of these services. These insights on public perception could give clues to the future trajectory of these disruptive economic trends.
Another report worth checking out this week came from Professor Haim Mendelson via OpenMind, an initiative from banking group BBVA. ‘Business Models, Information Technology, and the Company of the Future’ looks at the ways in which developments in IT will fundamentally change the way business is conducted in the future, with the subjects of customisation, virtual identities and customer intimacy high on the agenda. With more innovative business models as a key building block of the transition to a circular economy, Mendelson’s article could be read with a circular economy lens to identify opportunities to leverage information technology and unlock even greater benefit for businesses, users and the wider economy.
Space Geckos
Fun fact of the day: in 2014 the Russian space agency sent five geckos into space on a ‘sex mission’. That might have been the first time this particular species actually left Earth’s atmosphere, but lately NASA have been studying geckos for an entirely different purpose.
Employing a biomimicry design approach, researchers have developed a robot that uses ‘tiny artificial hairs’ to grip onto surfaces, in the same way that geckos are able to scale smooth, vertical walls. New Scientist says that the ‘Gecko Gripper’ technology will ‘help astronauts to keep track of objects in zero gravity, and enable robots to crawl around a spacecraft to inspect and repair it’. This is just one example of a nature-inspired solution that could trump our previous alternatives – a gecko’s feet aren’t sticky and don’t use any sort of adhesive substance, but charged van der Waals forces enable the creature to pull of its climbing feats. And it’s not the first time that space exploration has led to experiments that could be relevant to the circular economy. The isolated environments of space stations and hypothetical extraterrestrial bases are the idea microcosm to force experts to consider energy and material flows. And perhaps it’s at this systems level – rather than with individual products – that biomimicry gets really interesting.
Circular economy on the horizon
On Sunday BBC World News aired a half-hour Horizons documentary on the circular economy. Coverage of this model has been increasing in recent months, but this program offers a more in-depth view, featuring conversations with Ellen MacArthur, business case studies such as Braiform, and new technologies on the recovery of rare earth elements.
Don’t wait too long to tune in – you’ve got until 7th June to catch up. Non-UK residents can view the episode on BBC World’s Horizons website, and the Ellen MacArthur Foundation has shared link for UK subscribers.
Tune in to Circulate
Have you been following Circulate’s podcast series featuring interviews with expert authors from the recently released New Dynamic 2? If not, now’s your chance to get up to speed. The Circulate Podcast can now be found in the iTunes store, so subscribe to be notified of the latest episodes and re-visit the New Dynamic 2 series, covering topics such as Germany’s energy transition, regenerative agriculture and ecosystems as business inspiration.
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