Previous research emphasises the importance of actor engagement in circular business model innovation processes. Both co-design and serious games have been advocated as approaches to engage with end-users. However, there is limited research focused on applying these approaches to circular business model innovation. This paper therefore explores the role users can play in co-design of circular business models and how games could be used to support such co-design. First, roles users can play in co-design of circular business models are identified through company interviews. Several characteristics for games that can support co-design of circular business models are then offered. Finally, four game concepts are presented to illustrate how games could facilitate co-design of circular business models.

The results suggest that by engaging with users in co-design, companies could gain insights which could serve as inputs to circular business model development. This includes learning about users' needs, preferences, and product use patterns. Users can also be invited to take part in ideating, testing, and validating existing and new products and services so that companies can identify opportunities for desirable and attractive offers. Furthermore, the differing directions of the presented game concepts show there are several ways to engage with users through game approaches. As the paper presents possible roles for users in codesign of circular economy and illustrates various ways this could be approached using games, the findings are expected to be relevant to researchers and practitioners who are interested to engage users in circular business model innovation.

It is no longer enough for businesses to strive to reduce their environmental impact. Recent literature argues that business models, and the product and service offerings that are part of them, must aim to improve planetary and societal wellbeing through regeneration. However, how to approach business model experimentation, and in particular the creation of product and service offerings, with a regenerative mindset is still underexplored. This paper therefore explores how designers can move towards creating regenerative products and services. It is based on an analysis of available scientific literature, but also grey literature, product and service examples and other initiatives. The analysis resulted in an initial framework for designers of regenerative products and services. First, seven foundations for regenerative products and services are presented. For each foundation, key shifts for designers are discussed to highlight what it takes to move from a degenerative mindset to a regenerative mindset. In addition, three opportunities for product and service designers are outlined; designing products, services and product-based systems that restore nature, harmonise with nature, and enable humans to co-evolve with nature. Design strategies are devised for each opportunity, drawing inspiration from existing examples. The initial framework presented in this paper can be a starting point for exploring regenerative product and service design as part of regenerative business model experimentation

Circular value propositions enable companies to build business models based on value preservation and circular resource flows. Circular value propositions also allow people to live more sustainably by facilitating increased utilization and resource efficiency. However, despite potential, transitions to circular business models remain low. One reason may be that circular value propositions are less attractive because they are often not developed with a user-centered approach and thus fail to meet people’s everyday needs. Through interviews with 13 companies and a literature study, this paper explores how companies consider user needs and involve users during development of circular value propositions. It also identifies conditions and actions that aid development of attractive circular offers. The findings are synthesized in a framework describing six enabling conditions and a definition of user-centered circular value propositions useful for circular economy practice and research. 

Syftet med förstudien Den cirkulära bilen var att börja bygga konkreta visioner som möjliggör att Sverige har en cirkulärt anpassad bilflotta med fossilfria och klimatneutrala transporter år 2045 och att bygga en solid bas för ett steg 2-projekt, som i sin tur kommer att ge stöd och kapacitet för aktörer att accelerera den cirkulära bilvärdekedjan. Projektet har samlat 13 parter från hela värdekedjan och gemensamt lagt grunden till vidare arbete i ett fortsättningsprojekt – en ansökan som genererat intresse från ett stort antal parter både befintliga och nytillkommande. Inom studien har startmöten och workshops genomförts där parter samlats digitalt och frågeställningar sonderats. Intervjuer har genomförts med parter där möjligheter och utmaningar med omställningen diskuterats. Studiebesök har genomförts där kunskapsdelning skett och samverkan möjliggjorts. Fysisk workshop har genomförts med samtliga parter. Här tittade man gemensamt på trender och möjliga framtidsscenarios genom hela systemet. Detta gav en bra grund för det vidare arbetet med steg 2. Förstudien har genererat stort intresse från aktörer i hela värdekedjan, skapat nya kontakter och möjligheter till samverkan och blivit uppstarten på en gemensam kunskapsresa för verklig förändring. Studien har initierat arbete brett i värdekedjan kopplat till gemensamma frågeställningar samt framtidsspaningar, vilket möjliggör gemensamt arbete för bred omställning och tydliggjort behovet av åtgärder som förflyttar hela systemet. Detta ses som en god grund för ett steg 2 projekt med förutsättningar för att förverkliga den cirkulära bilvärdekedjan.

Effective decrease of water use in households 

This is the final report of a preparatory project which has aimed to identify and characterize methods which can be used to achieve a reduced usage of water for households in Sweden. This is so that the methods that give the most effect can be implemented. The project has also aimed to produce conditions for an implementation project so that methods can be tested and evaluated in a practical manner. The project’s long term goal is to create a system transfer and to reduce the water usage in Swedish households from 140 to 100 liters per person and per day. Getting individuals to change their behavior and reduce their water use is complex as several factors affect their water use today and the conditions for reducing water use. Several studies have reported differences between households with the highest and lowest consumption of water by a factor of four. The individual differences in water use per person can be equally as large. The variations in water use can be explained by several factors, such as the size of household, type of residence and the efficiency of the appliances. Besides these factors, there are also large variations in water related behaviors such as routines for showering and doing dishes. To identify methods with potential to make water use for households in Sweden more efficient, an oversight of projects, initiatives and previous research have been carried out with focus towards: • Decreased water usage on a national level • Decreased water usage on an international level • Decreased energy and water consumption through behavior change • Changes in behavior for citizens with regards to a sustainable usage of resources This analysis has landed in four methods to affect the households water use, which are: • Policy and legislation • Financial incentives • Communication • Technical solutions There is limited experience regarding the water saving potential that the different methods, and combinations of them, have in Sweden. The study shows that the method which is mainly used in Sweden is different forms of communication, even though communication seemingly has a limited effect. International studies show that water saving measures, such as water effective techniques and requirements for measuring water consumption, lead to a good outcome. For future studies we suggest that communication is combined with other methods and that more innovative methods are tested in situations that are as close to realistic situations as possible. This is important to understand what the effects will be in practice, and what the consequences will be for other important implementation parameters such as for example cost of implementation and environmental sustainability. We also see an obstacle in the lack of data that show the water use in households. In this project we have created conditions to test and evaluate solutions by using a digital water gauge with a high level of collection frequency. The water gauge is installed in a chosen villa area in the municipality of Kungsbacka.

Widespread adoption of circular offerings, including those based on products with prolonged lifetimes, depend on offers which are attractive to users. To develop such offers, user needs must be considered in depth during the development process. Co-design is a promising approach to develop user-centered solutions but is yet underexplored when it comes to design of circular offerings. To facilitate co-design of circular offerings, games present one opportunity but have previously primarily been used to support understanding, creation, and learning in relation to circular economy. This paper explores how games can support co-design of user-centred circular offerings by presenting insights from an analysis of existing circularity-related games and summarizing insights from literature. Eight circularity-related games were played to identify benefits and drawbacks. Relevant literature was also reviewed to synthesise recommendations for a game aimed at supporting co-design of user-centred circular offerings. The results show none of the existing circularity-related games include a deep understanding of users’ needs and only a few go beyond mere learning and actually contribute to developing companies’ offerings. Identified recommendations suggest games will have higher potential to support co-design of user-centred circular offerings if they, for example, enable co-design with users and co-creation with multiple stakeholders in the business ecosystem, provide game elements that represent circular challenges and opportunities in a realistic and dynamic way, and create bridges from the game to the real world. Future game development should hence take such recommendations into account, while ensuring the developed games do not become too complicated to play.

Energy transitions are at the top of global agendas in response to the growing challenges of climate change and international conflict, with the EU positioning itself as playing a pivotal role in addressing climate risks and sustainability imperatives. European energy transition policies identify ‘smart consumption’ as a key element of these efforts, which have previously been explored from a predominantly technical perspective thus often failing to identify or address fundamental interlinkages with social systems and consequences. This paper aims to contribute to interdisciplinary energy research by analysing a forward looking ‘Horizon Scan’ research agenda for smart consumption, driven by the Social Sciences and Humanities (SSH). Reflecting on an extensive systematic Delphi Method exercise surveying over 70 SSH scholars from various institutional settings across Europe, we highlight what SSH scholars see as future directions for smart consumption research. Building from seven thematic areas (under which are grouped 100 SSH research questions), the study identifies three key ‘shifts’ this new smart research agenda represents, when compared to previous agendas: (1) From technological inevitability to political choice, highlighting the need for a wider political critique, with the potential to open up discussions of the instrumentalisation of smart research; (2) From narrow representation to diverse inclusion, moving beyond the shortcomings of current discourses for engaging marginalised communities; and (3) From individual consumers to interconnected citizens, reframing smart consumption to offer a broader model of social change and governance. Social Sciences and Humanities scholarship is essential to address these shifts in meaningful (rather than tokenistic) ways. This agenda and the shifts it embodies represent key tools to enable better interdisciplinary working between SSH and teams from the technical and natural sciences. © 2023 The Authors

This book is for anyone interested in designerly ways of creating preconditions for sustainable living, whether you’re a professional designer, a student, or simply curious. Sustainability through Everyday Designs takes a deeper look at the products, services, environments and systems we encounter in our daily lives and shows how they can be designed in a way that helps us live well within the limits of our planet. Sustainability through Everyday Designs presents different ways of creating such everyday designs by

• showcasing interconnected relationships between ways of living, design and sustainability

• introducing different approaches to understanding and intentionally designing for everyday sustainability guiding you on how to approach your particular design case

• deep diving into Activity-Centered Transformation, a way to design that embraces the complexity of the everyday.

Discover how deliberate design decisions can support us towards sustainable living, one design at a time.