16 Circular Economy

Question 1

What is linear economy?

Answer 1

It is an economic model that works on the principal of ‘take, make and dispose’

Question 2

What happens during linear economy? Mention resources and products

Answer 2

Resources and energy are often from finite resources

Products are not made to be recycled, reused or re-purposed

Products are simply disposed of at the end of life often in landfill

Question 3

How does nature work as it is different to linear economy?

Answer 3

It instead works in a circular way

Question 4

How does circular happen economy in nature?

Answer 4

• A plant grows from a seed
• Animals feed on foliage or fruit
• Seeds are spread in spreadings
• Predation enables the supply of energy from animal to animal

Question 5

How do you build a circular economy?

Answer 5

To build a circular economy we must re-think the way we make and use products to re-balance our consumption

Question 6

What are ways to rebuild circular economy?

Answer 6

• Designing products that can be maintained and mended
• Manufacturing using renewable or alternative energy
• Using sustainable or recycled materials

Question 7

What are the different stakeholders in design?

Answer 7

Governments, Designers, Manufacturers, Retailers, Consumers

Question 8

What is fairtrade about?

Answer 8

• Fairtrade is about better prices, decent working conditions and fair terms of trade for farmers and workers in less economically developed countries.

Fairtrade foundation also provide a premium to farmers to invest in their communities

Question 9

What is little sun’s objective?

Answer 9

Little sun ‘s objective is to bring solar energy to those who are without electricity

Question 10

What are the benefits of solar energy?

Answer 10

Solar energy reduces energy costs and CO2 emissions.
It also brings social, medical and educational benefits
This one of the United Nation’s sustainable development goals

Question 11

What happens when you build obsolescence into a product?

Answer 11

It makes the product hard or impossible to repair which then leads to consumers to throw away a broken product and replace it rather than repair it.

Question 12

What is the new legislation - June 2021?

Answer 12

Manufacturers will now have to make spare parts available for washing machines, washer-dryers, dishwashers, refrigerators and TVs for the first time. Repairs also need to be possible using everyday tools.

Question 13

What happens to parts of appliances due to the new legislation 2021?

Answer 13

Some parts will have to be available within two years of an appliance going on sale, and up until either seven or 10 years after the product has been discontinued, depending on the part.

Some parts will only be available to professional repairers, while others will be available to everyone, so you can fix it yourself.

Question 14

What is cradle to cradle?

Answer 14

Cradle to cradle or C2C design is a new approach to design and manufacture that fits into the ethos of the circular economy.

Question 15

5 positive things cradle to cradle do?

Answer 15

• Reuse of any waste created
• A holistic approach to design
• Reduction of carbon footprint
• Cleaning any waste water for reuse of it
• Eliminating the use of toxic materials

Question 16

What do recycled plastic waste do?

Answer 16

They use 100% recycled plastic waste to produce new materials

Question 17

What form do smile plastics come in?

Answer 17

They come in sheet form which is ideal for creating a range of products

Question 18

What are features of smile plastic sheets?

Answer 18

• A wide range of patterns and colours are available
• Sheets can be cut and machined

Question 19

What is people power?

Answer 19

This is a group of people in the Welsh coastal village of Aberporth that has launched a crusade against the use of single-use plastic products.

Question 20

What has people power done?

Answer 20

• The village shop is selling milk in glass bottles
• The pub has stopped using throw-away plastic products like straws, condiment sachets and milk containers.
• A café has pledged to use wooden cutlery notepad of plastic and has invited customers to bring their own mugs.

Question 21

What is M&S ‘Plan A’

Answer 21

In 2007, Marks and Spencer introduced an initiative called ‘Plan A’

Question 22

What are the aims in M&S ‘plan A’

Answer 22

• Zero waste to landfill
• Recyclable packaging
• Sustainably sourced products
• Reduced energy consumption
• Reduced greenhouse gas emissions
• In 2012, they announced they were carbon neutral

Question 23

What steps are high street brands taking to step toward sustainability?

Answer 23

• Giving money off vouchers or trade in services for old clothes
• Offering to buy back electronic products, refurbishing and grading them for resale
• Buying used books, CDs or DVDs

Question 24

What must designers consider for the long term sustainability of products?

Answer 24

They must consider the materials and components of a product.

Question 25

What are examples of what designers must do to ensure long-term sustainability?

Answer 25

• Limiting use of materials from finite resources like metal ores and crude oil.
• Designing products with fewer integrated materials
• Processing materials sing sustainable energy

Question 26

What does recharge mean in sustainability?

Answer 26

Battery technology and electronic products are gradually developing in ways that reduce impact on the environment

Question 27

What are examples of recharge?

Answer 27

• There is a drive to use fewer Rare Earth Elements (REEs)in electronics manufacturing
• Rechargeable battery power sources are slowly replacing disposable batteries

Question 28

What is a problem with batteries?

Answer 28

Many batteries still require an enormous amount of energy and REEs to produce and correct battery disposal is still a major issue.

Question 29

What must designers also consider about a product?

Answer 29

They must consider the type and amount of packaging used to contain them.

Question 30

How should products be manufactured?

Answer 30

They should be manufactured in a way that makes them easy to disssemble

Question 31

What is integrated packaging?

Answer 31

It uses mixed materials often combined in a way that cannot easily be separated