This glossary is designed as a practical tool to explore and map the key concepts presented in the Observatory. It offers clear and accessible definitions which will help familiarise you with the essential terms in Circular Economy and Sustainability in the business sphere.
Circular Activities are defined as a collection of strategies and focuses designed to maximise the efficient use of resources, minimise their environmental impact and encourage a regenerative economic model.
This concept refers to maximising the usability of a product or resource before it loses the properties that make it useful. In relation to the Circular Economy, lengthening the usable life of a product or resource is a way of reducing the quantity of waste generated as well as reducing the quantity of resources extracted.
This term refers to the combination of activities that a business carries out to design, produce, commercialise and deliver a product or service to a customer. Analysis of a product chain helps to identify areas of improvement and maximise the operative efficiency and value for a customer.
Digital tool designed to compile and share real examples of initiatives, projects and strategies that promote the transition towards a circular and sustainable economic model.
This concept refers to the distinct stages that a product goes through from its conception all the way until its final disposal.
Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) refers to the systematic and exhaustive process of evaluation and documentation of the environmental impacts associated with a product or system, from the extraction of its component raw materials to its final disposal as waste.
This process can be applied to physical products as well as services, giving valuable information about how to optimise design, development and environmental management.
Anaylsis of the stages of a product's life cycle has various phases:
Circularity is a key concept in the Circular Economy which refers to the creation of an economic system in which the resources are used and re-used in an endless cycle which doesn't produce waste. Circularity aims to reduce the consumption of resources and increase the efficiency of their use with the objective of maintaining a balance in the use of resources and preserving the environment for future generations.
Defined as the quantity of energy used by a person, home, business, or country during a determined period of time. The energy is used to heat, light, move objects and carry out other tasks.
The Ellen MacArthur Foundation created a visual diagram, known as the Butterfly Diagram, to represent the continuous flow of materials in a Cicular Economy. This diagram distinguishes between two principle cycles: the technical cycle and the biological cycle.
You can find out more about the Butterfly Diagram in this section of our website.
This is the process of converting information, physical objects, or analogue processes into digital formats, using technology to register, store and manage data.
This consists of the integration of environmental criteria during the products and services' inital phases of design and development. Its principle objective is to implement preventitve actions to minimise the environmental impact throughout the entirety of the product's life cycle.
An economic model that aims to halt increasing over-consumption of finite resources, promoting reuse, recycling and regeneration of materials in a continuous cycle.
According to the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, the Circular Economy is build upon three fundamental principles, all of which begin with design:
Economic model based on the use of digital platforms that facilitates the inter-exchange of goods and services. Using these tools, people can loan, buy, sell, share, or rent resources in an efficient way, promoting an optimisation of costs and generating significant savings for all involved.
In the context of the Circular Economy and Sustainability, this refers to maximisation of the useful life of products, their components, and materials by using strategies that delay their becoming obsolete and reduce the need for new resources.
Changes in the environment, whether they be negative or positive, which result in the total or partial loss of a system's environmental features.
The auxilliary materials, also known as secondary materials or raw materials, which are not incorporated directly into the final product, but that are essential for the production process. Examples include lubricants, chemical cleaning products, packaging etc. Although these elements do not form part of the final product, but they are essential to the production process.
A system composed of devices that are capable of receiving and transmitting data via wireless networks with minimum human intervention. This is possible thanks to the incorporation of IT in a wide variety of objects.
Logistic strategy focused on the recuperation of waste generated during production or consumption. The aim is to manage waste in an efficient way, ensuring it is reused, recycled, or, when necessary, disposed of in an appopriate manner.
Natural resources or materials used to create goods and products. Prime materials are classified depending on their origin or specific characteristics:
SDGs are a collection of 17 global objectives adopted by all UN Members with the goal of erradicating poverty, protecting the planet, and ensuring that everyone on Earth enjoys peace and prosperity. These goals don't only focus on economic development - they also encompass social and environmental sustainability. While businesses and governments work towards these goals, a direct link is developed with the Circular Economy.
The following is a list of the Circular Economy and Sustainable Development Goals that are related -
Initiatives, methods or strategies which have been implemented in an effective way and that are operational within an organisation, sector, or community.
Seven key principles that start with the letter 'R' and represent the fundamental actions to drive change towards a circular economy.
Initiatives in the phase of execution which have been designated as viable according to the initial aims.
The process of extracting materials from waste and treating them to convert them into new products, materials, or substances to be used again for their original purpose or a different purpose. This process includes the treatment of organic materials, although excludes the conversion of waste into energy.
Recovering materials that have already been used to turn them into prime materials in the production process, encouraging their appreciation in value. Includes both the creation of new products from waste and their potential use in energy extraction.
In the circular economy, resources refer to supplies and materials used in the production of goods and services. These resources can be natural or waste and recycled materials. In a circular economy system, the maximisation of existing resources is the ultimate goal via the reduction, reuse and recovery of materials instead of depending on the continued extraction of new natural resources.
Critical resources are also relevant in this context (those which are essential for society and the econmy, but which are rare and/or have an insecure supply chain).
In the context of the circular economy, regenerative resources are materials or supplies which come from natural systems capable of renewing themselves in a continual and sustainable way. The use of regenerative resources minimises our dependence on limited prime materials.
This action refers to the importance of reducing not only the quantity of goods consumed but the industrial waste generated by individuals and businesses, especially in a context marked by excessive consumerism.
Using spare parts or waste to make a new product. This includes making the most of subproducts and products that are no longer considered waste. It also involves reprocessing materials used in landfill operations.
Faced with any damage or fault in a product, it is fundamental to opt for its repair instead of throwing it away, allowing it to recover its original function and prolonging its useful life.
Continuously questioning and revising production and consumption models, considering all stages of a product's life cycle.
In a circular economy, waste is considered to be the materials and/products that have been thrown away and no longer fulfill their original purpose, but that can be reused, recycled or recovered to produce new materials or useful products. Instead of being thought of as a burden on the environment, in the circular economy waste is seen as a source of prime and secondary materials to be included in the production cycle.
A system of production and consumption in which all materials and resources used are retained and reused in an endless cycle without generating any kind of waste or refuse.
Implies treating waste not as the end of a production cycle but rather as materials with the potential to be reused, recycled or transformed into new products or sources of energy. This implies giving them additional value, reducing our dependence on natural resources and reducing the environmental impact associated with their extraction, processing and destruction.
Using a product that is still in a good state and can still fulfill its original function.
The Observatory focuses on business included in the Murcia Region's 'Intelligent Specialisation Strategy' which covers 2021-2027, which has the end goal of encouraging research and innovation, with a clear focus on sustainability and digitalisation.
Agrifood
This sector includes businesses dedicated to the entire food value chain, from production to distribution. The main types of business are: agricultural producers, food processing businesses and producers of food packaging.
Water
This sector covers businesses that develop advances solutions for water management. The main types of businesses are: management and treatment of waste water, irrigation businesses, and desalination businesses.
Fashion
Variety of businesses focusing on the design, manufacture, and commercialisation of clothing and footwear. The main types of businesses are: shoemakers, clothing brands, and textile manufacturers.
Energy
The main businesses in this sector are involved in the development and implementation of efficient and clean energy solutions. Among the types of businesses that make up this sector there are: producers of renewable energy, biogas companies, producers of green hydrogen and energy efficiency enterprises.
Housing
This sector covers the construction industry, interior design and furniture. The main types of business are: furniture manfacturers and construction companies.
Logistics and transport
Key sector for connecting businesses with national and international markets. The types of business are: logistics companies, food distribution firms, multi-modal transport companies and sustainable mobility businesses.
Marine and maritime
The marine and maritime sector includes not only the exploitation of sea resources, but also transport on water. The main businesses include: agriculture businesses, port logistics companies, and water-based energy companies.
Environment
This sector focuses on businesses that work towards the protection of our natural surroundings and sustainability. The main types of businesses are: waste management companies, businesses that manage pollution and contamination, and environmental consultancies.
Chemical
The chemicals sector has a key role to play in the supply of essential products for other industrial sectors. The main types of business are: industrial chemical producers, fertilizer producers, and plastic producers.
Health
Las principales empresas de este sector están involucradas en la mejora de los servicios sanitarios, la innovación en tecnología médica, y la optimización de los procesos de atención y prevención. Dentro de este sector, se destacan los siguientes tipos de empresas: centros de atención sanitaria y empresas de tecnología médica.
ICT providers
The Informations and Communications Technology (ICT) sector is multi-faceted and allows for the digital transition to occur in all sectors. The main businesses are: software companies, cybersecurity companies, hardware producers, and automisation businesses.
Tourism
The tourism sector is one of the motors of Murcia's economy, with companies that include service providers all the way to destination management. The main businesses are: travel agencies, ecotourism, digital tourism companies, hotels, restaurants and bars.
Others
Se incluyen en este sector aquellas entidades que, según la clasificación sectorial aplicada, no pueden ser asignadas a las existentes pero están incidiendo en la transición verde. Las principales empresas son: empresas metal-mecánico.
A business concept which cosists of complementing the offer of a product with associated services. This allows for businesses to generate added value and obtain additional income by monetizing these services on top of the profit generated from the sale of the original product.
Strategy that promotes connection between businesses based on the exchange of materials between production system: waste materials of one system being used as the prime material of the other and vice versa. This way, benefits from synergies and geographic proximity can be maximised.
Principle that calls for the meeting of current needs without compromising the capacity of future generations, balancing economic development, social equity and environmental protection.
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