Linear Economy to Circular Economy

Abstract

The reflections of linear and circular economy models, which are completely separated from each other in the ways of evaluating resources and wastes, also differ completely in the production and consumption processes. The linear economy, which consists of production and consumption mechanisms, converts resources into waste after using one time and is supported by planned obsolescence practices and causes economic and environmental damages. The scarcity of resources and the pressure of environmental pollution have led to an industrial transformation in which production and consumption forms redesigned in a way that does not create waste. Because of this transformation, the circular economy model emerged, and its application direction evolved to cradle-to-cradle practices. In this study, firstly, the linear economy model and planned obsolescence are discussed, and then circular economy and cradle-to-cradle applications are explained with examples.