Seminar topic
The time has come for fundamental change. To ensure prosperity for humanity in the long term and recovery from the economic and social consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, transformation to sustainability is necessary. Achieving sustainability—i.e., a safe and just operating space for humanity—requires changing the way the business operates.
In this seminar, we seek to combine the two parallel debates on how to achieve a circular economy and how to achieve business that contributes to sustainability (corporate sustainability). While there is some overlap between these two debates, our aim is to integrate them, joined together through the recognition that neither a circular economy nor incremental corporate sustainability initiatives are sufficient if they do not contribute to achieving sustainability.
A circular economy cannot be one that is only more resource-efficient. It must be one that is resource sufficient, one that uses enough resources to facilitate the securing of the social foundation for humanity and does it in a way that ensures that we stay within the limits of our planet. Corporate sustainability initiatives must ensure that patterns of production and selling techniques that foster linear, narrowly focused business models are replaced with circular ones that broadly engage with and promote global sustainability goals. Positioning the corporate sustainability discussion within the discourse of how to achieve a sustainable circular economy highlights that we need to see transformational change in business as a part of a broader transitioning of our economy.
In this seminar, we aim to feature a range of disciplinary and interdisciplinary research contributions that propose solutions, whether for new policies and legislative reforms, for changes within the business, or for channelling other societal, economic, or financial incentives towards achieving sustainable business as an element of the transition towards a sustainable circular economy.
Programme
Monday 10 January 2022
13:00-13:15 Welcome
13:15-14:45 Setting the scene
- Sustainable Circularity by Sarah Cornell (presenting author), Tiina Häyhä, Celinda Palm and Eléonore Maitre-Ekern
- The role of the circular economy in corporate sustainability law by Beate Sjåfjell
- Joint discussion
14:45-15:00 Break
15:00-16:30 Historical perspectives and present challenges
- From market contracts to the circular economy—law and increasingly holistic conceptualizations of production by Jaakko Salminen
- The Economic and Industrial Development in Time of Coronavirus Crisis: What about Circular Economy? by Chiara Feliziani
- Joint discussion
Tuesday 11 January 2022
09:15-09:30 Welcome
09:30-10:30 Regulating the Circular Economy
- Regulation of planned obsolescence in Europe by Taina Pihlajarinne
- The growing regulatory role of industrial alliances in transitioning towards circular plastic value-chains by Amy O'Halloran
10:30-10:45 Break
10:45-11:45 Regulating the Circular Economy, cont’d
- Independent repair and the transition to a regenerative circular economy by Maja van der Velden (presenting author) and Eléonore Maitre-Ekern
- Joint discussion
11:45-12:45 Break
12:45-13:45 Corporate behaviours in a Circular Economy
- The ‘greening’ incumbent: Incumbent-entrant collaborations for achieving sustainable business models by Birthe Soppe (presenting author) and Hannah Schupfer
- Designing Sustainable Business Models: The Case of Mobile Phone Start-ups by Ines Junge (presenting author) and Yangyang Zhao
13:45-14:00 Break
14:00-15:30 Corporate behaviours in a Circular Economy, cont’d
- Tensions in circular business model development - a coopetition perspective by Sigurd Vildåsen (presenting author) and Oda Ellingsen
- Awakening Capitalism: The Promise of the ESG Movement by Alan Palmiter
- Joint discussion
15:30-15:45 Break
15:45-17:15 Corporate sustainability for the Circular Economy in practice
- A safety check on circular economy - the case of recycling centers in Antwerp, Flanders by Wendy Wuyts (presenting author), Ingrid Caeyers and Paul Kengfai Wan
- Designing for the Circular Consumer: A design tool for clothing companies to engage consumers in the circular textiles economy by Ina Obernosterer and Erika Thunstedt (both presenting)
- Joint discussion
Wednesday 12 January 2022
09:00-09:15 Welcome
09:15-10:15 Possible ways forward
- Circular Business Strategies – towards an ecological duty of care by Julia Hoernig
- Can Integrating a Sustainable Business Model and Global Value Chains Revive the Value Chain’s Sustainable Growth? By Yuan Li (presenting author) and Jukka Mähönen
10:15-10:30 Break
10:30-11:30 Possible ways forward, cont’d
- Exploring circular economy criteria of EU's taxonomy for sustainable activities -a case study from the manufacturing sector by Mathias Irgens (presenting author) and Sigurd Vildåsen
- Joint discussion
11:30-11:45 Break
11:45-12:15 Closing session: discussion about publication and possible future collaborations
Registration
Please register your participation.
We will have to make this a fully digital event due to the latest Covid-19 restrictions.
Zoom-link will be sent to all registered participant. (If you have any questions, please contact our administration.)
Organizer
Futuring Sustainable Nordic Business Models
- Dr. Eléonore Maitre-Ekern, Faculty of Law, University of Oslo, Norway
- Prof. Beate Sjåfjell, Faculty of Law, University of Oslo, Norway
- Prof. Jukka Mähönen, Faculty of Law, University of Oslo, Norway