A linear economy is one that uses natural resources to produce goods, but finite resources will eventually be exhausted. That’s why there’s a need to transition to a circular economy, where goods at the end of their useful lifecycle are taken and used as primary resources to create new materials.
By Pedro Silvo Costa
Circular Design for a Public Space focused on how the brands on Leidseplein could reinvent themselves in order to change into a circular model of production. Participants were invited to use their creativity to come up with solutions to rethink the relationship between consumers and brands, having in mind the lifecycle of their products.
Dinesh Sonak (ADCN) introduces the workshop
Closing the Loop
The workshop started with a kickoff presentation by Dinesh Sonak (ADCN) to introduce the main goal of the workshop, followed by a short talk by Marc de Wit (Circle Economy) where he explained what a circular economy is and what is needed to close the loop of the production cycle, the main concept to guide the development of ideas during the group session.
Brands around Leidse square mapped
Design Thinking Process
Participants teamed up in groups and together represented brands, entrepreneurs and public stakeholders around the square (e.g. H&M, Heineken, GVB). They had to go out to analyse and understand through observation and interviews how people interact with the brands. Understanding users would be the starting point to think of a circular vision for entrepreneurs and stakeholders. Each team also had an expert in the field of the chosen brand to help with the design thinking process and guide the participants.
Workshop participants
Outcome
After the group sessions, the ideas were presented to everyone in the workshop. From drawings to role play, the participants shared their visions on how they believe circularity can rebrand cities to make sure that future generations will be able to have access to natural resources.