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Circular Economy Practices and Strategies in Public Sector Organizations: An Integrative Review

Author

Listed:
  • Natacha Klein

    (CENSE—Center for Environmental and Sustainability Research, Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering, NOVA School of Science and Technology, NOVA University Lisbon, Campus de Caparica, 2829-516 Caparica, Portugal)

  • Tomás B. Ramos

    (CENSE—Center for Environmental and Sustainability Research, Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering, NOVA School of Science and Technology, NOVA University Lisbon, Campus de Caparica, 2829-516 Caparica, Portugal)

  • Pauline Deutz

    (Department of Geography, Geology and Environment, University of Hull, Cottingham Road, Hull HU6 7RX, UK)

Abstract

The concept of the Circular Economy (CE) is an increasingly attractive approach to tackling current sustainability challenges and facilitating a shift away from the linear “take-make-use-dispose” model of production and consumption. The public sector is a major contributor to the CE transition not only as a policy-maker but also as a significant purchaser, consumer, and user of goods and services. The circularization of the public sector itself, however, has received very little attention in CE research. In order to explore the current state of knowledge on the implementation of CE practices and strategies within Public Sector Organizations (PSOs), this research aims to develop an overview of the existing literature. The literature review was designed combining a systematic search with a complementary purposive sampling. Using organizational sustainability as a theoretical perspective, the main results showed a scattered landscape, indicating that the limited research on CE practices and strategies in PSOs has focused so far on the areas of public procurement, internal operations and processes, and public service delivery. As a result of this literature review, an organizational CE framework of a PSO is proposed providing a holistic view of a PSO as a system with organizational dimensions that are relevant for the examination and analysis of the integration process of CE practices and strategies. This innovative framework aims to help further CE research and practice to move beyond current sustainability efforts, highlighting that public procurement, strategy and management, internal processes and operations, assessment and communication, public service delivery, human resources dimensions, collaboration with other organizations, and various external contexts are important public sector areas where the implementation of CE has the potential to bring sustainability benefits.

Suggested Citation

  • Natacha Klein & Tomás B. Ramos & Pauline Deutz, 2020. "Circular Economy Practices and Strategies in Public Sector Organizations: An Integrative Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(10), pages 1-24, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:12:y:2020:i:10:p:4181-:d:360567
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Korhonen, Jouni & Honkasalo, Antero & Seppälä, Jyri, 2018. "Circular Economy: The Concept and its Limitations," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 143(C), pages 37-46.
    2. Will McDowall & Yong Geng & Beijia Huang & Eva Barteková & Raimund Bleischwitz & Serdar Türkeli & René Kemp & Teresa Doménech, 2017. "Circular Economy Policies in China and Europe," Journal of Industrial Ecology, Yale University, vol. 21(3), pages 651-661, June.
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