Breaking down information silos, one circular economy example at a time

Some of you have already used a beta version when we first opened access to the Knowledge Hub in August 2017.

Back then, we stored the 500-something examples and articles that the Circle Economy team referenced in our daily work in a simple online wiki powered by Confluence.

Those cases fueled and inspired our partners on their journeys to circular businesses and cities and gave us hope that this was something others could benefit and learn from.

If it worked for our team, we wondered, could it work for the rest of the world?

We decided to unveil an unpolished, raw product different from the work our organisation had delivered in the past and continues to deliver thanks to our talented in-house designers, and called on other organisations and people around the world to join us in our ambition to co-create the ultimate, go-to source for knowledge on the circular economy.

Your interest, contributions, and feedback over the last year enabled us to grow and develop a user-friendly version of the Knowledge Hub that’s directly driven and informed by your needs, and we’re very excited to be releasing it today.

With this first official release on Circle Lab, you now can:

• Browse and filter over 1,000 case studies by circular economy strategy, impact area, and industry;
• Learn more about specific strategies that can enable the transition to a circular economy through Circle Economy’s seven key elements framework;
• Enjoy a user-friendly interface that will guide you to the information you’re looking for.

Circle Lab will soon also host another 500 textiles-specific case studies, as well as all 3,000 initiatives identified throughout the Circular Economy Mapping Week.

We are also working on adding textual search; additional filters — including location and policy instruments –, and a way to easily contribute and correct information on the hub.

Missing a feature? Shoot us a message at hello@circle-lab.com or on Twitter @thisiscirclelab.

Why the Knowledge Hub?

Information on the circular economy is currently spread across various organisations and industries or gated behind members-only communities. With the Knowledge Hub, we want to break down these information silos and accelerate knowledge transfers across sectors and borders by bringing all circular economy insights, best practices, and research to one place for everyone to openly explore and learn from.

Join the Circle Lab community and explore the Knowledge Hub at www.circle-lab.com/knowledge-hub.

Circle Lab has been made possible in part by a grant from the eBay Foundation; a corporate advised fund of Silicon Valley Community Foundation.