What if a household appliance could be fully integrated into the circular economy system? What would that mean for jobs, and the need for certain raw materials? What about exports to other countries?
Economic innovations help to drive the economy forward, but we often fail to carry out a macroeconomic analysis of these economic innovations. Dr Jan Brusselaers was awarded the Green Talents trophy by the German Government in 2018 for his research into alternative economic systems.
The impact of a circular economy
The circular economy enables us to be less dependent on scarce or expensive raw materials, as well as significantly reducing waste. But what does that mean? Will we consequently have to make people redundant or in fact hire more workers? Will we see a shift in demand towards particular work profiles? And how will this affect demand for and supply of certain raw materials? Will the effects of this for one particular branch of the economy also have an impact on another? We are missing the bigger picture, and that is exactly what Jan Brusselaers and his colleagues are piecing together.
Jan collects, processes and analyses all available quantitative and qualitative data relating to the circular economy. He is developing macro-economic and micro-economic models that demonstrate the potential of the circular economy. The models he is developing can also be used to map out the impact of policy decisions. These results will be useful for sector organisations and governments at European, national and regional level.