Bottom‐up dynamics in circular innovation systems
The perspective of circular start‐ups
Bibliographic Data
The concept of circular economy (CE) is proposed to lead humanity toward a sustainable future. Public authorities increasingly build on CE narratives. The progress of private sector actors is key to enable more circular resource flows. Still, the world falls far short from becoming circular and large‐scale implementation of CE in actual problem–solution spaces is scarce. This study sheds light into the external strategies of circular start‐ups (CSUs) in building an adequate socio‐institutional embedding for circular business models (CBMs) and puts the findings in the context of CE and sustainability transformations research. CSUs are a distinct group of CE‐oriented actors that build and implement CBMs wholistically and from scratch. Thereby, they can directly and indirectly contribute to the creation of circular innovation systems. This study defines the common CE mission of CSUs, sets it in context of respective socio‐political CE missions, and scrutinizes the roles that CSUs adopt to drive systemic CE implementation. We observe that CSUs’ strategic interventions go further than only novelty creation. This article proposes and elaborates on four roles that CSUs adopt: conveners , reinforcers , pioneers , and champions . The roles differ according to the CSU business models, stakeholders, the institutional elements that are addressed, as well as the directionalities that CSUs set. The findings are discussed considering the governance, policies, and strategic management of various directionalities in which CE innovation develops. It sheds light on inadequacies and limitations for bottom‐up CE innovation in existing norms and cognition, policy, and network governance
Biology · Circular economy · Economic geography · Economics · Geometry · Industrial ecology · Physics · Sustainability · Bioeconomy and Sustainability Development · Innovation and Socioeconomic Development · Mathematics · Sustainable Supply Chain Management · Ecology
Bridging circularity and inclusion in urban metabolic transitions
What are transformative missions, really? Three dimensions for one shared understanding
The Fast, the Steady and the Tenacious
The Role of the Private Sector and MSMEs in Advancing the Circular Economy in Arid Metropolitan Regions
AI ‐Driven Circular Transformation
The roles of agri-food tech start-up ecosystems in strategic niche management for food system transitions
A defense of the circular economy
Dynamic Interactions Between Circular Economy, Technological Innovation, and Renewable Energy for Sustainable Development
Environmental quality in a growing economy
Institutions and Institutional Work
Beyond Cockpit-ism
Institutional Work
Why carbon pricing is not sufficient to mitigate climate change—and how “sustainability transition policy” can help
A typology of circular start-ups
Towards circular economy implementation
Mission-oriented innovation policy and dynamic capabilities in the public sector
I Ndustrial S Ymbiosis
Sustainable innovation, business models and economic performance
Targets for a circular economy
How mismatching institutional logics hinder niche–regime interaction and how boundary spanners intervene
Product design and business model strategies for a circular economy
The circular economy
Industrial Policy for the Twenty-First Century
Designing business models in circular economy
Mapping the social dimension of the circular economy
Urban experimentation and institutional arrangements
Demand, challenges, and innovation. Making sense of new trends in innovation policy
The interplay between theory and method
Legitimizing research, technology and innovation policies for transformative change
The Multi-Level Perspective in Research on Sustainability Transitions in Agriculture and Food Systems
The roles of the state in the governance of socio-technical systems’ transformation
Mapping and navigating transitions—The multi-level perspective compared with arenas of development
The impact of entrepreneurship education on the entrepreneurial intention of students in science and engineering versus business studies university programs
Mission-oriented innovation policies
Constructing mystery
How do scholars approach the circular economy? A systematic literature review
Strategic niche management and sustainable innovation journeys
Business model innovation for circular economy and sustainability
Functions of innovation systems
Government-affiliated intermediary organisations as actors in system-level transitions
Seeking Qualitative Rigor in Inductive Research
Conceptualizing the circular economy
The governance of sustainable socio-technical transitions
What is protective space? Reconsidering niches in transitions to sustainability
The multi-level perspective on sustainability transitions
Business Models for Sustainability
Industrial ecology
Circular economy in China – the environmental dimension of the harmonious society
Restorative and regenerative
Operational Perspectives on Extended Producer Responsibility
Circular Economy Policies in China and Europe
Critiques of the circular economy
Is life cycle assessment enough to address unintended side effects from Circular Economy initiatives
How Circular is the Global Economy
Facilitating systemic eco‐innovation to pave the way for a circular economy
Measuring Progress towards a Circular Economy
Exploiting the Potential of Public Procurement
The Circular Economy
Circular value creation architectures
A transitions framework for circular business models
How to monitor environmental pressures of a circular economy
Circular Economy
Combining industrial ecology tools to assess potential greenhouse gas reductions of a circular economy
Circular economy innovations, growth and employment at the firm level
The effect of consumption and production policies on circular economy business models
Circular economy
Sustainability in a global circular economy
Opportunities and limitations for the introduction of circular economy principles in EU aquaculture based on the regulatory framework
The battle of the buzzwords
Ecosystems, strong sustainability and the classical circular economy
Does circular economy mitigate the extraction of natural resources? Empirical evidence based on analysis of 28 European economies over the past decade
Closing the loop or squaring the circle? Locating generative spaces for the circular economy
Shared Visions, Unholy Alliances
Radical change and deep transitions
Interrogating the circular economy
The politics of niche-regime conflicts
Business model innovation in demand response firms
Transition Management for Sustainable Development
Governing the second deep transition towards a circular economy
Legitimizing transformative government
Assessing mission-specific innovation systems
Operationalizing contested problem-solution spaces
Mission-oriented innovation systems
Niche construction and empowerment through socio-political work. A meta-analysis of six low-carbon technology cases
The Circular Economy
An agenda for sustainability transitions research
Coming Full Circle
What is Wrong with Social Theory
Islands of Sustainability
The Politics of Reflexive Governance
Three Approaches to Qualitative Content Analysis
Regime Resistance against Low-Carbon Transitions
Agencing ethical consumers
| Unique citing works | 8 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 8 |
| Citation span | 2025 - 2026 (2) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 8 |