TY - JOUR
T1 - Circular economy competencies for design
AU - Sumter, Deborah
AU - de Koning, Jotte
AU - Bakker, Conny
AU - Balkenende, Ruud
PY - 2020
Y1 - 2020
N2 - This study addresses what competencies (knowledge, skills, and attitudes) designers need in order to successfully design products and services for a circular economy. Existing literature, though sparse, has identified a number of circular economy competencies for design. Yet, a coherent overview is lacking. To complement the competencies found in the literature with insights from practice, we conducted 18 semi-structured interviews with design professionals. Our study identifies seven circular economy competencies for design: (1) Circular Impact Assessment, (2) Design for Recovery, (3) Design for Multiple Use Cycles, (4) Circular Business Models, (5) Circular User Engagement, (6) Circular Economy Collaboration, and (7) Circular Economy Communication. We used a general sustainability competencies framework to categorize our findings. Interestingly, we did not find evidence of the Systems Thinking competency in practice, although in the literature it is mentioned as a relevant competency for design for a circular economy. In addition, we found that methods and tools are still largely lacking or in a premature stage of development. We conclude that design for a circular economy can be seen as an upcoming, independent field within the sustainability domain, and that requires a specific set of competencies, methods, and tools. Our overview of circular economy competencies for design can guide the development of relevant methods and tools, circular economy-based design curricula, and training programs in the future.
AB - This study addresses what competencies (knowledge, skills, and attitudes) designers need in order to successfully design products and services for a circular economy. Existing literature, though sparse, has identified a number of circular economy competencies for design. Yet, a coherent overview is lacking. To complement the competencies found in the literature with insights from practice, we conducted 18 semi-structured interviews with design professionals. Our study identifies seven circular economy competencies for design: (1) Circular Impact Assessment, (2) Design for Recovery, (3) Design for Multiple Use Cycles, (4) Circular Business Models, (5) Circular User Engagement, (6) Circular Economy Collaboration, and (7) Circular Economy Communication. We used a general sustainability competencies framework to categorize our findings. Interestingly, we did not find evidence of the Systems Thinking competency in practice, although in the literature it is mentioned as a relevant competency for design for a circular economy. In addition, we found that methods and tools are still largely lacking or in a premature stage of development. We conclude that design for a circular economy can be seen as an upcoming, independent field within the sustainability domain, and that requires a specific set of competencies, methods, and tools. Our overview of circular economy competencies for design can guide the development of relevant methods and tools, circular economy-based design curricula, and training programs in the future.
KW - design education
KW - competencies
KW - circular economy
KW - product design
KW - sustainability
KW - circular consumption
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85081240684&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.3390/su12041561
DO - 10.3390/su12041561
M3 - Article
SN - 2071-1050
VL - 12
SP - 1
EP - 16
JO - Sustainability
JF - Sustainability
IS - 4
ER -