Workshop: Unveiling Circular Economy Economic Modeling

The joint workshop on Circular Economy Economic Modelling, supported by the EAYE and the EU & ANR projects: IAM-Circ, Circomod, CircEUlar and ScarCyclET, will take place on the 1st of July 2024 in Leuven. This workshop will precede the Annual Conference of the European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists (EAERE) and aims to provide a platform for researchers, especially young non-tenured economists, keen on advancing our comprehension of the economic dimensions within circular economies. This event will be particularly important for the CircEUlar project, as it provides a valuable opportunity to compare research outcomes and gain a nuanced understanding of how the circular economy can contribute to achieving climate objectives.

The workshop will delve into a variety of subjects concerning the circular economy and the intricate modeling challenges it entails. Notably, the speakers will shed light on the implications of public policies that are particularly scrutinized in the context of the circular economy. These policies include advanced disposal fees in Extended Producer Responsibility, product standards, regulations on recycled content, and waste disposal taxes.

Researchers are working to detect economic mechanisms specific to raw and secondary material and product markets. The presentations will particularly focus on material flows within the economy: the way materials circulate in terms of both economic value creation and environmental impact are core concerns of the circular economy.

Although the circular economy primarily focuses on materials, expected co-benefits extend to addressing other environmental challenges and crises. Most presentations of the workshop will draw connections between the circular economy and climate change.

This workshop will allow attending researchers to get detailed feedback on their work from senior researchers and show the circular economy research community the latest research advances in the field.

The event will also present a keynote address by Aude Pommeret (Université Savoie Mont Blanc) on the multifaceted challenges of energy transition and how it relates to circular economy, segueing into discussions on circular economy resource management. Additionally, policy insights from the OECD and the EU JRC will be presented, fostering dynamic discussions enriched by input from attendees from the EU Commission and from various institutions dedicated to circular economy studies. This convergence of expertise promises not only to nurture new collaborations but also to consolidate existing research efforts within EU research institutes, facilitating broader dissemination and application of current findings.

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