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Understanding Public Environmental Awareness and Attitudes toward Circular Economy Transition in Saudi Arabia

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  • Abdulaziz I. Almulhim

    (Department of Urban and Regional Planning, College of Architecture and Planning, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, Dammam 31451, Saudi Arabia)

  • Ismaila Rimi Abubakar

    (College of Architecture and Planning, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, Dammam 31451, Saudi Arabia)

Abstract

Circular economy (CE) has been globally acknowledged as a national sustainable development (SD) strategy to confront resource shortages and environmental contamination challenges. Although public behaviors and lifestyles play an essential role in achieving sustainability, in developing countries, few studies explored the role of public awareness, attitudes, and lifestyles on CE transition. Thus, it is necessary to elicit public opinion to understand their awareness and attitude regarding CE strategy to determine obstacles to CE implementation and approaches of overcoming them. This study thus focuses on understanding public awareness and attitudes to CE transition in Saudi Arabia. Data were collected through a questionnaire survey distributed to 402 residents of the Dammam Metropolitan Area. The results indicated that the respondents had little understanding of the CE concept due to limited awareness of the topic. However, they held an optimistic attitude towards trash separation and classified their trash as “can be sold”, “reused”, and “exchanged for a new one”. Furthermore, the respondents’ level of awareness regarding the CE transition is positively related to their level of education. In contrast, the inclination towards resource conservation and pro-environmental behavior positively correlates to the age demographic. This paper thus contributes to the empirical literature on CE transition by exploring the public awareness and attitudes towards its implementation in Saudi Arabia.

Suggested Citation

  • Abdulaziz I. Almulhim & Ismaila Rimi Abubakar, 2021. "Understanding Public Environmental Awareness and Attitudes toward Circular Economy Transition in Saudi Arabia," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(18), pages 1-15, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:18:p:10157-:d:633131
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    9. Karim Gazzeh & Ismaila Rimi Abubakar & Emad Hammad, 2022. "Impacts of COVID-19 Pandemic on the Global Flows of People and Goods: Implications on the Dynamics of Urban Systems," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(3), pages 1-18, March.
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    11. Alyahya, Mansour & Agag, Gomaa & Aliedan, Meqbel & Abdelmoety, Ziad H., 2023. "Understanding the factors affecting consumers’ behaviour when purchasing refurbished products: A chaordic perspective," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 75(C).
    12. Thảo Việt Trần & Thảo Hương Phan & Anh Thị Trâm Lê & Trang Mai Trần, 2022. "Evaluation of Factors Affecting the Transition to a Circular Economy (CE) in Vietnam by Structural Equation Modeling (SEM)," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(2), pages 1-14, January.
    13. Naji Akbar & Ismaila Rimi Abubakar & Ayesha Agha Shah & Wafa Al-Madani, 2021. "Ecological Embeddedness in the Maya Built Environment: Inspiration for Contemporary Cities," Land, MDPI, vol. 10(12), pages 1-29, December.
    14. Ruisi Gao & Hongfang Han & Xueting Zeng & Xinyu Zhang & Xuejing Yang, 2023. "An Analysis of Legislative Support Effect for Circular Economy Development in the Context of “Double Carbon” Goal in China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(13), pages 1-17, June.
    15. Yu Cao & Honglei Lu & Chunxiao Zhu, 2022. "Consumer Preference for End-of-Life Scenarios and Recycled Products in Circular Economy," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(19), pages 1-19, September.
    16. Almulhim, Abdulaziz I., 2022. "Understanding public awareness and attitudes toward renewable energy resources in Saudi Arabia," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 192(C), pages 572-582.
    17. Shangjie Ge-Zhang & Taoyang Cai & Zhitao Hu & Haotong Zhu & Pingxuan Mu & Jingang Cui, 2023. "Investigation and Suggestions regarding Residents’ Understanding of Waste Classification in Chinese Prefecture-Level Cities—A Case Study of Maanshan City, Anhui Province, China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(14), pages 1-8, July.
    18. Zhou, Runyu & Abbasi, Kashif Raza & Salem, Sultan & Almulhim, Abdulaziz.I. & Alvarado, Rafael, 2022. "Do natural resources, economic growth, human capital, and urbanization affect the ecological footprint? A modified dynamic ARDL and KRLS approach," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).

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