Nine Out Of 10 Adults Don’t Know What The Circular Economy Is, Survey Finds

Sustainability Nine Out Of 10 Adults Don’t Know What The Circular Economy Is, Survey Finds Jamie Hailstone Contributor Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own. I write about air quality and the environment. New! Follow this author to improve your content experience.

Got it! Jul 22, 2022, 05:00am EDT | New! Click on the conversation bubble to join the conversation Got it! Share to Facebook Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin WIERINGERWERF, NETHERLANDS – APRIL 26: Used and new sport shoes wait to be recycled at Fast Feet . . .

[+] Grinded, the world’s first shoe recycling factory processing shoes 100% into raw materials plastics, rubber, textile and foam on April 26, 2022 in Wieringerwerf, Netherlands. Over 23,5 billion shoes are produced each year, while not even 5% will be recycled while the rest ends up in landfills or is incinerated. (Photo by Michel Porro/Getty Images) Getty Images Around 87% of U.

K. adults haven’t heard of the circular economy or don’t know what it means, according to a new survey. The YouGov survey, which was commissioned by the sustainability app YoungPlanet, found more than two thirds (68%) of respondents had never heard of the circular economy before.

Almost one in five (19%) of respondents said they had heard of the circular economy, but don’t know what it is. Only 13% replied they had both heard of the circular economy and knew what it means. More than a third (38%) said they had given or received something through it in the last year.

49% confirmed that, despite understanding what the circular economy is, they hadn’t participated in it in the past 12 months. The circular economy is the practice of sharing, reusing, repairing, refurbishing or recycling existing products, helping to prevent them from going into landfill and reducing the carbon impact of producing new goods. Experts predict that circular economy strategies that reduce our use of resources can cut global greenhouse gas emissions by 39% .

MORE FOR YOU Is Carbon Capture Another Fossil Fuel Industry Con? Sustainable Fashion Wants Brands To Redefine Business Growth Trouble With Predicting Future Of Transportation Is That Today Gets In The Way This is in part due to people being unsure how to give or receive items through the circular economy. More than half (52%) of those surveyed said they were not aware of how they could engage with the circular economy, even if they wanted to. This is despite charity shops, sites like Facebook Marketplace and Gumtree, and a range of apps being available to help people swap or pass on items rather than add them to landfill.

The survey data also revealed that Scotland came out on top for being the most circular-aware, with 23% of respondents stating that they know what the circular economy is. Northern Ireland came in second with 20%, followed by London at 16%. By contrast, the lowest-scoring regions for understanding what the circular economy is was the North East of England, where only 7% of respondents confirmed they knew about it.

Nationally, Wales fared the worst, with 70% of respondents claiming to “never have heard of the circular economy”. This was closely followed by England (69%) Northern Ireland (64%) and Scotland (59%) respectively. The survey did offer some hope.

When given an explanation of what the circular economy is, almost three quarters (73%) of U. K. adults said that they believe the practice would have a positive impact on climate change.

Only 1% believed it would have a negative impact. Jason Ash, co-founder of YoungPlanet, said the results highlight the “urgent need for all of us to participate meaningfully in the circular economy”. “It’s all about moving to a simpler, more sustainable model of giving items no longer of use to us, to others, instead of sending goods directly or indirectly to landfill,” added Ash.

“There’s clearly a huge acknowledgement that this would be good for the planet, as evidenced in the survey results. We now need to break up with our unsustainable habits, amplify awareness of what the circular economy is and how people can quite simply engage with it whilst saving money in order to enable and inspire some meaningful action. ” Follow me on Twitter or LinkedIn .

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