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The growth in global population has led to an unsustainable use of materials. By 2050, annual waste output is forecast to increase by 70%, requiring the equivalent of three planet Earths to provide adequate resources for our usual take-make-dispose behaviours.
“The circular economy is more than embracing reuse and recycling. It’s leading to a fundamental shift in the way we design, produce and operate the built environment. ”
Martin Pauli Global Circular Economy Leader
The circular economy offers an alternative and more sustainable approach. The theory has matured from a high level materials ethos, to actionable plans that bring new efficiency and opportunity to business and policy sectors alike. It’s become a powerful way to decarbonise an asset, programme, or entity.
Working across all stages of the circular economy journey, Arup’s specialists help clients not only explore circular innovation and strategies, but crucially our deep technical knowledge enables us to help them turn these principles into valuable actions. From delivery of baseline assessments to development of circular strategies and design approaches, provision of regulatory guidance, training programmes, and investment advice, we provide a full range of circular economy services.
Four types of circular economy transformation
Placing the circular economy at the heart of the design process
Circular Buildings Toolkit
Buildings account for 37% of global greenhouse gas emissions, while around 95% of the value of construction materials is lost in demolition. Arup and the Ellen MacArthur Foundation co-developed the Circular Buildings toolkit, to give designers, construction clients and asset owners strategies, case studies and tools for adopting circular economy principles in buildings across the entire lifecycle.
Find out more about the Circular Buildings Toolkit
Circularity Builder
To achieve circularity means more than replacing a material with one of lower environmental impact. It implies a systemic change to building methods to enable modularity, disassembly, flexibility, accessibility; it means disconnecting aesthetic from technical properties. Arup’s Circularity Builder is an intuitive application that guides designers through the process of finding circular design decisions from the early stages of design. The tool contributes to increased material efficiency, reduced use of virgin and non-renewable materials, reduced us of carbon intensive materials, and the ability to design out hazardous or polluting materials.
Partnering with the Ellen MacArthur Foundation
Since 2016, Arup and EMF have been creating practical, tangible resources for the real estate industry to use to unlock value, reduce emissions and eliminate waste.
Since 2016, Arup and EMF have been creating practical, tangible resources for the real estate industry to use to unlock value, reduce emissions and eliminate waste.
Latest projects
Showcasing circular approaches to materials and buildings
See all circular economy projectsLearn more about our net zero journey
In 2020, Arup committed to ensuring net zero across our operations by 2030. Our aim is to reduce emissions by 30%, which is equivalent to 40,800 tCO2e within 5 years of that commitment.
Latest cities perspectives
Explore our thinking on how to apply circular economy in the real world:
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