The Circular Economy Show Podcast

From decorations to infrastructure, food and local business connections, there’s a lot to think about when hosting an event the size of the Eurovision Song Contest. There are also lots of opportunities to make a circular impact with it. In today’s episode of the Circular Economy Show, we travel to Malmö, the city hosting the 2024 Eurovision Song Contest. We’re joined by Malmö’s sustainability coordinator, Veronika Hoffmann, to explore how the city has applied circular principles when planning this internationally acclaimed event. Do you want to read about other examples of circular cities? Don’t miss out on our examples of circular economy in cities. Find out more about how the City of Malmö’s plans for Eurovision. .

Welcome back to The Circular Economy Show! In our new season premiere, we’re diving into the crucial intersection of climate change and the circular economy. Join us as we sit down with the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s Climate Lead, Miranda Schnitger, to find out how the circular economy can help meet climate targets, why it needed to be noted in the official COP28 negotiation outcomes text, and why it’s important to stay optimistic while facing huge challenges. For more information about the role of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation at COP28, go to The circular economy at COP section on our website.

Join us for a new season of the Circular Economy Show! New episodes drop every Tuesday, so make sure you subscribe so you never miss an episode. Just search for the Circular Economy Show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts.

In the last episode of our series sharing some of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation's most popular articles, we explore the world of reuse and repair. Travelling to the African continent, we find out how people and businesses have been embracing strategies to maximize material use for a long time Reuse and repair are critical aspects of a circular economy, but despite clear benefits, they've yet to gain a foothold in the Global North. Whilst greater awareness and new legislation are beginning to shift the needle, driving better use of products and materials in the North, African companies have long been applying creative and innovative approaches to maximise material usage. So what can be learnt? Read the full article

In part two of our series sharing some of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation's most popular articles, we dig deep into the psychology behind why we like to own things. We’ll also explore the alternatives that the circular economy offers. Read the article here

In our new three-part series, we’re sharing three of the most popular articles written by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s editorial team. In today’s episode, we explore how a circular economy can keep us stay within the nine planetary boundaries set out by the Stockholm Resilience Centre, such as climate change, novel entities (otherwise known as pollution) and ocean acidification. Read the full article

In this episode, we hear from Rudo Nondo, a creative design practitioner and the acting Managing Director of Fashion Revolution. She tells us how her upbringing in Zimbabwe has shaped her clothing philosophy and explains why she’s passionate about circular design for fashion. Learn more about Rudo Nondo in the Foundation’s Fashion Book Watch our Circular Economy Show episode with Rudo Nondo

Is there a better way to produce our food? Today, we circle back to one episode of our award-nominated Redesigning Food series in this episode. We’ll rediscover what a circular economy for food would look like, meet the people working to make it happen, and we’ll look at how it can be scaled to feed a growing population. Find out more about the Big Food Redesign Challenge, which has now entered its production phase. Successful participants are working hard to turn their product designs into reality and will have the opportunity to bring products to market with supportive Challenge Retail Partners. Did you miss out on our Redesigning Food Series? Listen to the other 4 episodes on our website. Our podcast series 'Redesigning Food' has been shortlisted for Best Limited Series at the Lovie Awards 2023. If you're passionate about the transition to a circular economy, why not give us a review or leave a comment on Spotify? It'll help us reach more people who can make a difference!

How can optimism and creativity help us transition to a circular economy? In this episode, model, actress and activist, Lily Cole joins Ellen MacArthur and Emma Chow to discuss her journey from fashion model to environmental activist. They discuss progress towards a circular economy, emphasising collaborative efforts among businesses, citizens, and policymakers. Join us as we delve into the possibilities and challenges of transitioning to a more circular world. Thanks for tuning in to the Circular Economy Show!

What if we could design our belongings to elongate their useful life? In this episode, we delve into the world of repair, shifting the focus from disposable products to ones that are designed to be repaired. Join us as we explore the potential for third-party repairs to flourish. Hear from Conny Bakker, Professor of Design Methodology for Sustainability and Circular Economy at TU Delft and Sojo’s co-founder Josephine Phillips, who are both calling for repair to play a greater part in our economy. Your support helps us get to more people interested in the circular economy, so please leave us a review, or leave us a comment on Spotify!

How do we shift today’s economic system to one that helps to regenerate nature? In this episode, we’ll meet three companies developing materials that work in harmony with our environment and learn how such innovations can be scaled. Co-founder of Materiom, Liz Corbin, spoke to her fellow co-founders Alysia Garmulewicz, Julia Marsh from Sway and Ehab Sayed from Biohm at the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s Innovation Day in 2022. Your feedback helps us reach more people interested in the circular economy, so please take a moment to leave us a review!

In this week's episode, we circle back to understand the third principle of a circular economy: 'regenerating nature', and its application in the fashion industry. Our guest, Josie Warden, former Head of Regenerative Design at the RSA, joins us as we explore how circular design offers a way to create a fashion industry that can flourish in harmony with nature. Learn more about The RSA and their work to create an impact. If you enjoyed this episode and want to hear more like it, please take a moment to leave us a review on your preferred podcast platform. Your feedback helps us reach more people interested in the circular economy!

In this first episode of our Circling Back season, Christiana Figueres and Ellen MacArthur bring us an inspiring conversation about the role of circular thinking in addressing the causes of climate change and in finding its solutions. Join us as we explore the role of the circular economy in decarbonisation and the need for optimism to fix our climate. If you want to hear from more insightful guests like Christiana Figueres, please leave us a review! Let's spread the word and inspire positive change together. Are you interested in knowing more about the latest COP? Our Climate Lead, Miranda Schnitger, has collected the outcomes of COP28 in one of our latest editorials: COP28: Key takeaways

Welcome back to the Circular Economy Show! In our first series of the year, we're circling back to some of our most exciting conversations with leading thinkers from the world of technology, fashion, material design and climate. Join us every Tuesday for a new episode. Subscribe to the Circular Economy Show so you never miss an episode. If you've been enjoying the show, we would love it if you could take a moment to leave us a review. Your support helps us accelerate the transition to a circular economy.

This year on the Circular Economy Show Podcast we’ve heard from people working across many different industries, from farming to fashion, policy to plastics. In this episode, we explore some of our favourite moments from 2023. Thanks for joining us this year. We’ll be back in 2024 with more stories from the circular economy. If you’d like to get in touch with us, you can email us at podcast@emf.org Have a listen to all episodes mentioned during this episode: Ep 104: Could we grow a building? How Biohm is using biotechnologies to advance the circular economy Ep 105: Creating better packaging from seaweed with Notpla Ep 107: Is there a better way to produce our food? | Redesigning Food series Ep 117: Es Devlin on the power of art to inspire change Ep 126: Changing the way we buy and use technology with Back Market Ep 132: How Troquer became Latin America’s leading preloved fashion start-up

In the final episode of our fashion series, we go to London to meet Patrick McDowell, a pioneering British high-end designer who has been applying circular design for fashion since starting their career. They tell us about their journey and their vision for the future of the fashion industry. Learn more about Patrick McDowell’s brand and journey Have a look at Patrick's collection for Rambert Dance Company

In the second episode of our fashion series, we head to Mexico City to meet Troquer’s co-founders, Lucia and Ytzia. They discuss how they’ve become Latin America’s leading resale marketplace for quality fashion items and the challenges they’ve faced on their journey. Learn more about Troquer

Welcome to our new fashion series, where we'll meet three companies working towards a circular economy for fashion. In this first episode, we visit Europe's largest circular fashion hub, Advanced Clothing Solutions (ACS), to learn how they’re helping businesses to make money without making new clothes. Learn more about ACS

In this episode, we hear from Reuben Chorley, Sustainable Industrial Operations Director at Jaguar Land Rover. Together we will dive deeper into the world of i-Pace Jaguar car batteries, and how these are being given a second life in the renewable energy sector. Back to basics: Circulate products and materials

Time for something a little different in this episode! Join us as we head to Copenhagen to meet Julie Hjort, Director of Sustainable Transformation at the Danish Design Center. From her office in the Danish capital, Julie reflects on how design is key to creating new pathways towards a circular economy, and how she works with her multi-disciplinary team to find solutions to tricky problems. Learn more about the Danish Design Center