This report presents the action-based research project process and outcomes of the “Leveraging Empowered Circular Communities in the Galápagos Islands” project, funded by the LDE Global program. Leiden-Delft-Erasmus (LDE) Universities support initiatives that foster research co-creation between LDE institutions and scholars from the Majority-World countries in Africa, South and Southeast Asia, and Latin America. Our project, launched in July 2023 and running through April 2025, aims to embed circular economy (CE) principles in the seafood system of Santa Cruz Island, Galápagos.

This initiative unites the Universidad de Las Américas (UDLA) of Ecuador, the Delft Centre of Entrepreneurship (DCE) at Delft University of Technology (TU Delft), the Circular Community Foundation (CCF), the Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS) at Erasmus University Rotterdam, the Institute of Biology at Leiden University, and the Pelican Bay Fishing Cooperative of the Galápagos Islands.

The LDE Global fund backs initiatives to encourage inclusive research partnerships and innovative community outreach. The financial support for this particular research project has enabled multi-stakeholder workshops, fish waste assessment of several endemic species, the production of a short-documentary and reels snapshots, photos, local multi-stakeholder interviews, training and prototyping activities for fish leather, an outreach booklet, several research outcomes produced by bachelor and master students from TU Delft and Leiden universities, one fully submitted manuscript, and three in progress to be submitted by the end of 2025. By co-creating and co-developing circular and regenerative interventions with local fishers, entrepreneurs, municipal authorities, and chefs, the project aims to transform fish waste into value-added products, reduce environmental harm, and fortify economic opportunities for coastal communities on the island of Santa Cruz in the archipelago.

This report provides a clear and accessible overview of the multi-stakeholder workshop that was held on 28th of March 2025 in Nairobi. The workshop was organized by Nuvoni Centre for Research, Leiden Delft Erasmus universities (Netherlands) and the Circular Community Foundation and funded by LDE Global. This workshop is part of a wider research project called “The Nairobi River as a driver for Circular Communities – an urgent call for climate adaptivity and social resilience.” The aim of the workshop was to:
1. demonstrate the multiple value creation by localcommunity-based initiatives,
2. map the values of circular and regenerative resourcesystems in the Nairobi riparian river landscape,
3. to co-create interventions centred around the 4 initiatives that enhance the circular and regenerative character of the social-ecological riparian river landscape.

The Circular Value Flower method (CVF) has been used to support both the analysis of the initiatives and the collective design of interventions. Illustrated with photos, visuals and testimonials of participants, this booklet aims to inform local, national and international audiences about project ambitions and methodology, initial outcomes and practical next steps to widen the network of circular communities in Nairobi and include them as essential seeds of social, economic and ecological transition in wider policies related to resilience, climate adaptivity, sustainability, poverty reduction and circularity.