More efficiency is not enough. Capabilities and limits of the circular economy

Abstract

Industrial production has led to an exponential increase in resource consumption; the digital revolution will reinforce this trend-through even higher productivity and the possibilities of online marketing and trading. At the same time, there is hope for a digital closed-loop economy. Greater efficiency, for example, through sustainable product design and energy-saving products, as well as the substitution of non-renewable with renewable resources in the sense of consistency, are steps towards a closed-loop economy. However, rebound effects lead to efficiency gains being absorbed again through increased consumption. What is also needed is a change in consumption and prosperity that gives growth a different direction and makes sufficiency a part of a good life.