Lowe, B.H. and Genovese, A. orcid.org/0000-0002-5652-4634 (2022) What theories of value (could) underpin our circular futures? Ecological Economics, 195. 107382. ISSN 0921-8009
Abstract
The transition to a circular economy is often presented as a straightforward, neutral and apolitical process, characterised by an implicit techno-optimistic and eco-modernist stance. However, in their recent paper on ‘circular futures’, Bauwens et al. (2020) illustrate that the circular economy is best understood as an umbrella term that might come to define very contrasting visions of sustainable development. Despite this, there continues to be a lack of discussion about the basic assumptions regarding social and economic structures on which the circular economy should be based, with research predominantly focusing on technical and practical questions. Therefore, in this conceptual paper, we assess the a priori compatibility of different plausible configurations of the circular economy with the principal theories of value found in mainstream and heterodox economics. We argue that these futures are themselves value articulating institutions that implicitly adhere to a theory of value even if this is not recognised. Moreover, given that theories of value go to the heart of how economies and societies function and reproduce themselves, we argue that circular economy research should recognise the importance of value and acknowledge how value theory might enable or contradict the visions of sustainable development articulated.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2022 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). |
Keywords: | Circular economy; Classical political economy; Ecological pricing; Sraffian economics; Subjective preference value; Sustainability transitions |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Social Sciences (Sheffield) > Management School (Sheffield) |
Funding Information: | Funder Grant number EUROPEAN COMMISSION - HORIZON 2020 814247 EUROPEAN COMMISSION - HORIZON 2020 823967 EUROPEAN COMMISSION - HORIZON 2020 101003491 |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 23 Sep 2022 11:13 |
Last Modified: | 23 Sep 2022 11:13 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Elsevier BV |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1016/j.ecolecon.2022.107382 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:190799 |