Introduction
The purpose of this study will be to examine how Google, Toronto Tool Library and their supply chain partners are implementing circular economy activities on the internet and in conjunction with related technology for enhanced waste management. The applied companies can use the ideas of the circular economy and technology to improve waste management practices. Furthermore, this study will use frameworks applicable in businesses to strongly back internet usage and the accompanying technology that impacts the environment. To better use available resources, the proposal will provide a framework that incorporates both non-technical and technical provisions for various service and product combinations. The social and geographical proximity of the procurement process and the stakeholders are considered when determining socio-cultural credentials.
Background
Founded in the United States, Google is a multinational internet technology company. It is a business emphasizing computer hardware and software, cloud computing, search engine technology, and online advertising. Because of its many collaborations and acquisitions, Google has developed significantly. The company has developed Android and other operating systems, such as Chrome, in tandem. Since its start in 2012, the Toronto Tool Library has maintained a collection of more than 7,000 instruments. The public can borrow the tools if they choose to use them. Each member pays an annual membership fee and can use the tools at no additional charge (Morseletto, 2020). Because of numerous gifts, the library’s toolbox expanded in size and variety. Attributable to ensuing support, the team has set up additional external funds, and the public now has broader access, which is a fantastic development. A recycling network has been established for the company’s trash, particularly paper and plastics.
Research Questions
- What is needed to have a successful circular economy?
- How do the ideas about the circular economy get expressed in enhanced waste management?
- Which are the critical factors that enhance the circular economy in waste management?
Aims and Objectives
Aims
Circular economy sustainability’s primary goal is to solve a wide range of social, economic and environmental problems at once. This study aims to establish how a circular economy necessitates converting trash and extracting valuable resources while promoting activities that bridge production and consumption processes. An investigation of the link between delivery and procurement methods, as well as the transition from a paradigm based on delivering items to one based on service delivery at Google Inc. and the Toronto Tools Library, will be the subject of this research.
Objectives
- To determine what is needed to have a successful circular economy.
- To evaluate how ideas about the circular economy are expressed in enhanced waste management.
- To establish factors for improving circular economy in waste management.
Literature Review
A significant portion of the present economy is built on a linear economy model that relies heavily on energy resources that can be easily accessed. Because of this, society and the environment are left with a significant quantity of garbage at the end of their useful lives (Camacho-Otero, Boks, and Pettersen, 2018). In addition, the scarcity of resources has been a major influence in determining product availability and cost in recent years (Velenturf and Purnell, 2021). Similarly, the linear model is becoming increasingly difficult to maintain in today’s world. As a result, there is a strong demand for the drastic system reforms that are necessary.
A valuable framework for the circular economy focuses on recovering both the value chain and the resources that are analytically focused on waste design. Sustainability as a company strategy is not as clear-cut as the framework that incorporates all business practices (Sherwood, 2020). Typically, this paradigm includes wealth decoupling from currently accessible resources, the expansion of product life using renewable energy, and the variety of irrepressible production systems. This framework system may also be seen as a solution to the current reliance on fossil fuels and low-cost resources (Kirchherr et al., 2018). Initially, the circular economy was pushed by organisations like the United Nations.
The Ellen MacArthur Foundation has released several publications concentrating on businesses. There is, however, a lack of knowledge of the circular economy. The global business sector has played a significant role in promoting economic growth. Unlike an economy-dependent paradigm, the one that relies on the ‘dispose of make take’ is regenerative and restorative. Therefore, such a linear model has reached its boundaries imposed by nature. Data from 2015 shows that global demand for resources has increased by more than 1.5 times what the planet can supply. As a result, Google has built the notion of giving everyone on the planet equal access to knowledge. It is hoped that this approach has made it possible for all the information to be accessible to everyone. Google is indeed dedicated to accomplishing this to have a good long-term effect on the world. Hartley, van Santen and Kirchherr (2020) affirm that product circulation materials and concepts are key to a circular economy. The essential aspects of a circular economy are optimizing resources, product circulation and cycle application. This is facilitated by recycling, refurbishment and remanufacture, reuse and redistribution, and maintaining and extending life span.
The Ellen MacArthur Foundation has teamed up with Google in a partnership. The process of creating an infrastructure model incorporates current practices and the ideas of the circular economy into the organization’s culture and operations (Benachio, Freitas, and Tavares, 2020). To demonstrate how Google has implemented the circular economy, there is no need to look further than its management of hardware in its data centers (Prieto-Sandoval, Jaca, and Ormazabal, 2018). For this reason, the approaches used are paired with the organization’s approach to maximize servers’ life spans, which has increased overall cost avoidance.
Sequential Order of the Model
The circular economy is a business model aimed at reducing resource use and waste. Reusing, sharing, fixing, remanufacturing, and recycling are part of the circular systems that aim to reduce waste, pollution, and carbon emissions by conceiving a tight spiral system. The goal of the circular economy is to utilize resources in a responsible and efficient manner. If one wants to remain sustainable, they do not have to lose revenue or incur more costs (Moraga et al., 2019). Composting is a process that utilizes the naturally occurring microorganism in organic materials and is one of the most efficient ways to manage trash.
The circular economy framework is used as a first step in reducing waste and recycling as much of the useful material as possible from the inevitably created garbage. It follows a waste hierarchy, where energy is regenerated from garbage once insignificant items have been removed from the recycling process. It only disposes of rubbish after getting the most value out of it as possible. Treatment of organic waste produced in various industrial processes has grown in both volume and variety (Kristensen and Mosgaard, 2020). One of the circular economy’s guiding concepts is to deploy technology that can lower costs while increasing the value of organic waste and generating by-products that can be used both within and outside the manufacturing process. To maintain a circular economy, biowaste is not discarded but is used to produce organic fertilizers, compost, and other bioproducts. This process reduces manufacturing expenses and severe environmental repercussions by reusing or reintroducing by-products into the ecosystem (Grafström and Aasma, 2021). The biosphere is not harmed by releasing the products, residues and slag.
When organic waste is managed under the principles of the circular economy, it may be safely disposed of once its energy is recovered. Compost made from food scraps and garden waste provides humus and nutrients that boost soil organic matter and improve economic activity. The decomposition of nutrients and carbon in the environment is harmful. Reduced use of chemical fertilizers, irrigation and watering, and greenhouse gas emissions from organic farming aid in the breakdown of nutrients (Rajput and Singh, 2019). Earthworms are used for optimum biomethane and humus production through anaerobic digestion and composting. In addition, it has a wide range of applications, including reducing the need for irrigation and decreasing the requirement for chemical fertilizers. Soil carbon storage increases and photosynthesis is boosted because of humus production. Organic waste management is studied as part of the circular economy to discover its strengths and flaws. Lack of public knowledge and readily available biomass are two of the system’s shortcomings. Strengths include turning trash into precious resources, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, fostering cooperative ventures, encouraging the manufacturing of bi-based compounds, and developing new value chains from organic wastes.
Methodology
Research Method
Secondary data will be interpreted using a qualitative, thematic manner, and the results of the intended research study will be carefully analyzed. Thus, the proposed research will benefit from qualitative methods to examine the most critical aspects of the circular economy in waste management. Google Inc. and Toronto Tool Library will be utilized as case studies for the qualitative research method. A qualitative approach will be used to examine previous ideas and studies by various authors to improve the originality of the research offered. A qualitative technique will review the current literature on the connection between delivery and procurement practices in Google and Toronto Tool Library and how they improve waste management.
Data Collection
To gather secondary data for this study, the researcher will go through recently published works, such as books, journals, and company websites. The advantage of employing a secondary strategy for data collection is that it will be faster than using a primary method. In other circumstances, the primary data collection method might be prohibitively expensive in terms of time and money. Google Inc. and Toronto Tool Library will be investigated to see how they might improve the circular economy in waste management as part of the planned research. Rather than focusing on a few findings, the goal is to learn how the firms use the circular economy. As a result, secondary data will be used to examine the suggested research questions concerning current literature with a similar or identical subject.
Reliability
It is imperative that all data obtained for the planned research project be analysed thoroughly and objectively to verify that the findings are accurate. It will, therefore, be necessary to consult reliable sources, such as peer-reviewed journals, books, and the official websites of Google Inc. and the Toronto Tool Library, for this research project.
Validity
To ensure that the research questions are answered to the best of the researcher’s ability, there will be the need to use data-gathering methods appropriate for this project. The researcher’s own experiences will be linked to data from previous research to enhance the validity of the proposed study’s findings.
Data Analysis
The information acquired in the proposed study will be transformed into variables to facilitate the qualitative analysis and present the findings in a comprehensible manner. To address the stated research questions, the findings of this study will be displayed thematically. Qualitative analysis will be used to better understand waste management processes in Google Inc. and Toronto Tool Library. Compared to quantitative strategies, no preset or compulsory approaches in qualitative approaches may be employed to generate findings. The researcher’s critical thinking will thus play a crucial part in the study’s data analysis.
Activity Planning
The table below outlines the timeline for completing the proposal and final research project, which commenced in December 2021, until May 2022.
Table 1: Activity plan
Conclusion and Recommendations
Conclusion
The purpose of this research will be to assess how Google, Toronto Tool Library, and their supply chain partners are implementing circular economy practices on the internet and in conjunction with related expertise for enhanced waste management. Circular economy sustainability’s main goal is to simultaneously solve a broad scope of social, economic, and environmental problems.
Recommendations
Before data collection, the researcher should ensure that all the sources used for the study are up to date with the topic to ensure the credibility of the research. Another kind of study methodology should be used in future research to examine what individuals think regarding waste management in the circular economy.
Reference List
Benachio, F., Freitas, M. and Tavares, S. (2020) ‘Circular economy in the construction industry: a systematic literature review’, Journal of Cleaner Production, 260, pp. 1-12.
Camacho-Otero, J., Boks, C. and Pettersen, I. (2018) ‘Consumption in the circular economy: a literature review’, Sustainability, 10(8), pp. 27-58.
Grafström, J. and Aasma, S. (2021) ‘Breaking circular economy barriers’, Journal of Cleaner Production, 292, 12-18.
Hartley, K., van Santen, R. and Kirchherr, J. (2020) ‘Policies for transitioning towards a circular economy: expectations from the European Union (EU)’, Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 155, pp. 2-9.
Kirchherr, J. et al. (2018) ‘Barriers to the circular economy: evidence from the European Union (EU)’, Ecological economics, 150, pp. 264-272.
Kristensen, H. S. and Mosgaard, M. A. (2020) ‘A review of micro level indicators for a circular economy–moving away from the three dimensions of sustainability?’, Journal of Cleaner Production, 243, pp. 1-18.
Moraga, G. et al. (2019) ‘Circular economy indicators: what do they measure?’, Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 146, pp. 452-461.
Morseletto, P. (2020) ‘Targets for a circular economy’, Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 153, pp. 1-10.
Prieto-Sandoval, V., Jaca, C. and Ormazabal, M. (2018) ‘Towards a consensus on the circular economy’, Journal of Cleaner Production, 179, pp. 605-615.
Rajput, S. and Singh, S. (2019) ‘Connecting circular economy and industry 4.0’, International Journal of Information Management, 49, pp. 98-113.
Sherwood, J. (2020) ‘The significance of biomass in a circular economy’, Bioresource Technology, 300, pp. 12-27.
Velenturf, A. and Purnell, P. (2021) ‘Principles for a sustainable circular economy’, Sustainable Production and Consumption, 27, pp. 1437-1457.