Circular economy as crisis response: A primer

The early 2020s have been characterized by multiple convergent crises, including the Covid-19 pandemic and economic fallout of mitigation measures, Russia's invasion of Ukraine, and the ongoing sustainability and climate change crisis. This article discusses how the concept of the circular economy can inform responses to such crises by...

From circular strategies to actions: 65 European circular building cases and their decarbonisation potential

The application of the circular economy (CE) in the building industry is critical for achieving the carbon reduction goals defined in the Paris Agreement and is increasingly promoted through European policies. In recent years, CE strategies have been applied and tested in numerous building projects in practice. However, insights into their...

Making waves in resilience: Drawing lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic for advancing sustainable development

The current COVID-19 pandemic has affected societies across the world while its economic impact has cut deeper than any recession since the Second World War. Climate change is potentially an even more disruptive and complex global challenge. Climate change could cause social and economic damage far larger than that caused by COVID-19. The...

A Life Cycle Assessment of reprocessing face masks during the Covid-19 pandemic

The Covid-19 pandemic led to threatening shortages in healthcare of medical products such as face masks. Due to this major impact on our healthcare society an initiative was conducted between March and July 2020 for reprocessing of face masks from 19 different hospitals. This exceptional opportunity was used to study the costs impact and the...

Domestic water supply vulnerability to climate change and the role of alternative water sources in Kingston, Jamaica

Globally, freshwater resources are threatened, resulting in challenges for urban water supply and management. Climate change, population growth, and urbanization have only exacerbated this crisis. For the Caribbean, climate change through the impact of increasing temperatures and rainfall variability has resulted in more frequent and intense...

The Hassle Factor as a Psychological Barrier to a Green Home

In order to reach climate goals, policymakers stimulate homeowners to invest in sustainable measures in and around their house. Unfortunately, however, the number of green home measures lacks behind. This article introduces perceived hassle as an important reason for this shortfall. It is claimed that homeowners perceive hassle during different...