Great question! We are talking here about a new paradigm. The world of business has become more and more about efficiency, about cutting costs, and about making profits. But there is much opportunity for design thinking to create value in a circular economy.
The traditional approach to business and business thinking has always been about making the most out of the resources that you have and then throwing them away after you’ve used them. It’s a very linear type of way of thinking about business. The circular economy is about creating closed-loop systems:
- It’s about using the resources that you have and then creating more value out of those resources.
- It’s about taking something that is low value and turning it into something that is high value.
- It’s about creating value out of the resources that you’ve used and then repurposing them into something else that you can use again.
It’s about creating value out of waste.
"WHAT'S GOOD FOR THE CLIMATE IS GOOD FOR BUSINESS AND GOOD FOR US ALL."
Ursula von der Leyen
President of the European Commission
That’s a different way of thinking about business. It’s a different way of thinking about business processes. It’s a different way of looking at the business model.
And so the whole approach to business needs to change. We need to think about how do we create value in the context of a circular economy. We need to think about what is the role of design thinking in the context of the circular economy. And we will say that there is much opportunity for design thinking to create value in a circular economy.
So, yes, it’s a new way of thinking about business. Yes, it’s a new way of thinking about business processes. But, yes, there is much opportunity for design thinking in the context of a circular economy. That’s why we call it a new paradigm for design thinking.
Find out how to get started today in our top 10 questions for the circular economy!
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