The Circular Economy

New strategies such as the Blue Economy (from Gunter Pauli) and Sustainism (from Michael Schwarz and Diana Krabbendam) propose solutions to ecological, economic and social crises. These movements see local materials (waste products, local communities & expertise) as valuable assets, transforming linear processes into circular processes and valuing long-term performance over short-term gain. What are the business models for such reorganisations?

Sub-tropical inventiveness in the urban greenhouse Tropicana

During the past century, most cities have become agglomerations of monofunctional districts which are basically disconnected from each other. Residential neighbourhoods, industrial estates, office complexes, farming districts and recreational areas are spatially delimited by administrative boundaries, making it harder to make good use of their mutual presence. The ever-increasing flow of goods, energy, water, food and even capital is disconnected form the location where these are created, contributing to endless transportation, traffic congestion, waste of energy and pollution.

The former sub-tropical swimming paradise Tropicana is now the temporary location for various businesses including a restaurant and a bar, as well as facilities for roasting coffee and farming oyster mushrooms. The host of this master class is Rotterzwam, the local mushroom farming business which grows mushrooms on coffee grounds. This is a working business case which we will be using as a starting point for transforming Rotterdam’s urban greenhouse into a centre for innovation: sustainable, connecting and regenerative. This Rotterdam landmark is a metaphor for new ways of thinking, sharing, working and relaxing, with an important focus on recycling as well as research into flows of goods, energy, water, food and even capital. Can we make smart connections between local surpluses, shortages and bottlenecks, thus creating new functions and business cases for Tropicana?