{"id":16392,"title":"How we get there: The Triangular Economy","description":"Nearly everything in the world is made in a linear model where resources are taken out of the ground then turned into products designed to be thrown \u2018away\u2019- wherever that is. Back into the environment, basically, but as trash and pollution. This means the more we buy and the more our economy grows, the more our system reduces nature and increases pollution.","content":"

Nearly everything in the world is made in a linear model where resources are taken out of the ground then turned into products designed to be thrown away- wherever that is. Back into the environment, basically, but as trash and pollution. This means the more we buy and the more our economy grows, the more our system reduces nature and increases pollution. If everything is made in this way its hard to make any choice that leads to a different outcome. The only choice that truly changes anything is the choice between a linear model, or something different. So what are the alternatives? Academically, the best idea is the circular economy. We want to talk about how to go from a line today towards a theoretical circle. It might be as easier than we think, if we first build a circle out of lines; or a triangle.

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Unlike a linear model, in a circular model, the idea is to take that linear conveyor belt of stuff but bend it around so that the waste goes back to the start and new products are made from old ones. This is different to recycling (picking a few bits out of the trash and using them once or twice more). This is about design: Designing products from the start to be remade, with a recovery mechanism by the original producer to return it to the original manufacturer<\/em> and to be remade again back into its original form - again and again - that means reimagining materials, what they\u2019re worth, and what the things we make are for:<\/p>

When we buy a drink, we want the drink \u2026 so why do we end up with a plastic bottle? That is worth redesigning.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>

It is an opportunity on all sides. After all isn't it crazy how a drinks company goes out to buy polyethylene and to make bottles for people who want a drink, then those people chuck that polyethylene in the trash, so the drinks manufacturer has to go and buy more polyethylene again? They are not in the polyethylene business: They just want to sell drink. When we look at this from a materials level, the model itself is the problem - and if we're feeling generous to producers who know that needs to change, perhaps everyone needs to see what some real practical steps forward might look like.<\/p>

We have been through this and have some observations to report back. When we built the first working circular supply chain for clothing, some weird stuff happened: What do we call a customer if they\u2019re also your material supplier at the other end of the life cycle? If you sold a t-shirt, but also buy the material back, did you sell it or rent it, and who owns the material? Is raw material a cost or an asset now?\u00a0 When the words do not exist, that\u2019s a sign of real progress.<\/p>

The issue is that seeing objects through a circular lens is a big mental step. But even those that see it once the lightbulb goes on in their mind, simply having the idea<\/em> does not make a sustainable, circular future happen. Anyone can have ideas but this is a real-world problem. Only getting it done will get it done. So how do we get it done?<\/p>

Compounding the challenge is the deep entrenchment of linearity even in the way we think<\/em>. It is unnatural - everything in nature follows a circular path where waste from one process is food for the next - but perhaps even that shows how deep the habit of linear thinking goes. Despite nature, take, make, consume<\/em> has become human nature. Our manmade world and manmade approach can feel like a mental gravity and it\u2019s easy even for designers trying to do the right thing to fall back into old habits.\u00a0 So if linear thinking is almost a mental force of nature, let\u2019s work with it\u2026<\/p>

A circle can be thought of as many small lines. The simplest possible circle is a triangle. This is our proposal to anyone who wants a fast way to see how the circular economy can be done in the real world. The minimum viable circular model is just three linear models connected together.<\/em>
<\/p><\/blockquote>

The first is taking product and selling it. The second buys that back off the consumer when it is worn out. The third processes that material into a raw material suitable for the first. Then, the first buys the material and makes it into a product.
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The triangular economy is a trick. Connect three linear processes together, and things flow round like in a circle.<\/em><\/p>

This begins the cycle, which is renewable and self-improving. If the material is hard to buy back, the business will work to improve it. If the material is hard to reprocess that needs work. All this might feel, at the start, like a three-legged race: A little clunky. But what matters is the basic parts are in place and tied together, with a clear finish line. Considerate teamwork is all that is required to harmonise it: In time the materials, technology, design and most importantly the customer learns a new way of working and the flow of materials smooths the corners into a circle.<\/p>

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How do we go from a line to a circle? Via a triangle. What matters is that the material flows back to the start, not to landfill.<\/em>
<\/p>

And because the material is kept in use and flowing, the fundamental economics of reuse means that everyone must be better off. The business has lower materials costs, the customer can get rewarded for returning valuable material, and pollution can be designed out to the benefit of the environment. On three fronts, a win-win-win.\u00a0

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We make new products from the waste material of old products to keep material in circulation and out of landfill.<\/em><\/p>

So if the circular economy feels like a nice idea but something a long way in the future, remember the triangular economy. We already know how to do lines and if you can draw a line, you can draw a triangle. Thats how we close the circle.<\/p>

It might not be as hard as we think.<\/p>","urlTitle":"triangular-economy","url":"\/blog\/triangular-economy\/","editListUrl":"\/my-blogs","editUrl":"\/my-blogs\/edit\/triangular-economy\/","fullUrl":"https:\/\/rapanuiclothing.com\/blog\/triangular-economy\/","featured":false,"published":true,"showOnSitemap":true,"hidden":false,"visibility":null,"createdAt":1644245420,"updatedAt":1651220926,"publishedAt":1644772988,"lastReadAt":null,"division":{"id":14,"name":"Rapanui"},"tags":[],"metaImage":{"original":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/atwrliko3rjzflzsfvfcsw7gpje2k1urovxupig6ddlguycf.jpeg","thumbnail":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/atwrliko3rjzflzsfvfcsw7gpje2k1urovxupig6ddlguycf.jpeg.jpg?w=1140&h=855","banner":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/atwrliko3rjzflzsfvfcsw7gpje2k1urovxupig6ddlguycf.jpeg.jpg?w=1920&h=1440"},"metaTitle":"The road to the circular economy","metaDescription":"To achieve the circular economy (the best way to end waste) we need to rethink the system of how stuff is made. Here's how we're doing that","keyPhraseCampaignId":3918,"series":[],"similarReads":[{"id":17027,"title":"Inspired by nature? The biomimicry design process in fashion","url":"\/blog\/biomimicry-design-fashion-sustainability-circular-economy\/","urlTitle":"biomimicry-design-fashion-sustainability-circular-economy","division":14,"description":"Sometimes we do things and don't really talk about it, like when it comes to sustainability, materials, energy and better production systems - we just feel it's better to actually do it, not promote a pledge that we're aiming to do it. But sharing what we're up to is one of the things we need to get a bit better at. In this blog we wanted to show you a little bit of the design process, and how nature is a resource packed with design information and as omnipresent as the internet, but without the trolling or screen glare.","published":true,"metaImage":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/v5sjbiduk7o0edglwd4m4rsmkealchne08wkxedo1smkwyfm.jpeg.jpg?w=1140&h=855","banner":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/v5sjbiduk7o0edglwd4m4rsmkealchne08wkxedo1smkwyfm.jpeg.jpg?w=1920&h=1440"},"hidden":0},{"id":17219,"title":"How To Design Your Own Custom Hoodie In Seconds","url":"\/blog\/design-your-own-hoodie\/","urlTitle":"design-your-own-hoodie","division":14,"description":"We've made it easy to design and order personalised custom printed hoodies online. With no minimum orders, you can create a personalised hoodie in seconds.","published":true,"metaImage":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/pjofj1obapmjoox7f8blia0peb3ozb9qaonnvhbnxurvrimd.jpeg.jpg?w=1140&h=855","banner":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/pjofj1obapmjoox7f8blia0peb3ozb9qaonnvhbnxurvrimd.jpeg.jpg?w=1920&h=1440"},"hidden":0},{"id":46572,"title":"Take Back Friday | Turning waste into opportunity with Plastic Bank","url":"\/blog\/take-back-friday-turning-waste-into-opportunity-with-plastic-bank\/","urlTitle":"take-back-friday-turning-waste-into-opportunity-with-plastic-bank","division":14,"description":"At Rapanui, whatever we do means going forward. Standing still isn\u2019t an option - we\u2019re in an industry where a truck full of textile waste is burned or buried every second. Black Friday shines a spotlight on this problem and is a moment in our calendar when the industry prioritises volume and profit over quality and sustainability","published":true,"metaImage":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/rrg0f1ex3majmystxbxqdfy4kuv1bruaow02dbn10wzcqaay.jpeg.jpg?w=1140&h=855","banner":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/rrg0f1ex3majmystxbxqdfy4kuv1bruaow02dbn10wzcqaay.jpeg.jpg?w=1920&h=1440"},"hidden":0}],"labels":{"monitorCheckExcluded":"1"}}