ATI offers short course: Entrepreneurship & the Circular Economy

The Austin Technology Incubator is pleased to announce a new short course on Entrepreneurship & the Circular Economy

The course will take place on four Wednesday evenings from January 30 to February 20, 2019. It is free and open to the public.

In this short course, you will:

  • Learn basic entrepreneurship topics and how to apply them in a Circular Economy context.
  • Develop a general overview of the principles and ideas behind a Circular Economy.
  • Explore business models that are conducive to a Circular Economy, and analyze the barriers and opportunities for transitioning to these circular business models.
  • Investigate what it takes to create products that are easy to repair, remanufacture or recycle.

Individuals who complete all four classes will earn a certificate from the IC² Institute at the University of Texas at Austin.

Dates: Wednesdays January 30 – February 20, 2019
Times: 6 to 8 PM
Location: IC² Institute, 2815 San Gabriel St., Austin, TX 78705 (free parking)
Cost: Free

 

Syllabus

Class 1: What is the Circular Economy? (Wed Jan 30)

What is wrong with our current Linear Economy? What benefits can a Circular Economy bring? You explore the roots of the Circular Economy together in the fields of industrial ecology, cradle to cradle and biomimicry.

Webster, Ken. The Circular Economy; A Wealth of Flows. Ellen MacArthur Foundation Publishing, 2017 (now in its 2nd edition).
https://www.ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/publications/the-circular-economy-a-wealth-of-flows-2nd-edition

Towards The Circular Economy Vol. 1: An Economic And Business Rationale For An Accelerated Transition. Ellen MacArthur Foundation. 2013. Free download from:
https://www.ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/assets/downloads/publications/Ellen-MacArthur-Foundation-Towards-the-Circular-Economy-vol.1.pdf
https://www.coursera.org/lecture/circular-economy/introduction-to-the-circular-economy-part-i-zwubb

Class 2: Circular Economy Business Models (Wed Feb 6th)

Through closed loop supply chains and reverse logistics, new opportunities for business are created. This session explores value creation and new business models in a Circular Economy.

Koppius, Otto, Öznur Özdemir-Akyildirim, and Erwin van der Laan, Business Value from Closed-Loop Supply Chains, 2014, Int. J Sup. Chain. Mgt, vol. 3, nr. 4, p 107-120. Available through: http://ojs.excelingtech.co.uk/index.php/IJSCM/article/view/1006

Tukker, Arnold. Eight Types of Product-Service System: Eight Ways to Sustainability? Experiences from Suspronet. Business Strategy and the Environment, 13, 2004. p. 246–260 Available through: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/bse.414/abstract

Class 3: Circular Design (Wed Feb 13th)

The smaller the loop, the greater the profitability of the system. Learn how to look at product life extension through the eyes of designers and entrepreneurs.

Bakker, Conny, Marcel den Hollander, Ed van Hinte and Yvo Zijlstra. Products that Last; Product Design for Circular Business Models. TU Delft Library, 2014. More information: http://productsthatlast.nl/site/app/index2.html

Growth Within: A Circular Economy Vision for a Competitive Europe. Ellen MacArthur Foundation and McKinsey Center for Business and Environment. 2015. Free download from: https://www.ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/assets/downloads/publications/EllenMacArthurFoundation_Growth-Within_July15.pdf

A series of articles from The Guardian on The Circular Economy.
https://www.circulardesignguide.com/

Class 4: Remanufacturing (Wed Feb 20th)

Remanufacturing enables companies to recapture value at a product or component level. It is currently being rediscovered as a promising business opportunity. You explore the topic together with researchers and entrepreneurs.

Nasr, Nabil and Michael Thurston. Remanufacturing: A Key Enabler to Sustainable Product Systems. Proceedings of the 13th CIRP International Conference on Life Cycle Engineering, p 15-18, 2006. Available from http://www.mech.kuleuven.be/lce2006/key4.pdf

Graedel, T.E., E.M.Harper, N.T. Nassar, and Barbara Reck, 2013. On the materials basis of modern society. PNAS, pp.1–6. Available from http://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1312752110

Peck, David, Prabhu Kandachar and Erik Tempelman. Critical materials from a product design perspective. Journal of materials and design, Vol. 65, p 147 – 159. 2015. Available through http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.matdes.2014.08.042

Questions?

For more information, please contact Mark Sanders at msanders@ati.utexas.edu. 

Sponsors

ATI would like to thank our sponsors, the City of Austin and Austin Resource Recovery. They are focused on growing the zero waste industry in order to create well-paying local jobs, attract investment, and support the necessary infrastructure for a resilient circular economy in Central Texas.