Tools
Welcome to the Tools section!
Here you’ll find easy-to-use resources, templates, videos, and activities to help you learn about the circular economy and create your own ideas.
Just click on the “+” next to each title to open the description and access helpful links and materials. Explore, learn, and get inspired!
Understanding Circular Economy
Goal: Get familiar with the concepts and why they matter for people, planet, and business.
What is circular economy:
Circular Economy (Ellen MacArthur Foundation)
This page introduces the circular economy, highlighting its principles and how it differs from the linear model. It includes visuals, examples, and links for further learning.
How the Circular Economy Works
Circular Economy Butterfly Diagram
This page features the circular economy diagram (the butterfly diagram), showing how materials flow through biological and technical cycles. It illustrates how products can be designed, used, and recovered to reduce waste and regenerate nature.
Circular Economy in Everyday Life:
A great starting point that explains how the circular economy connects with the choices we make every day, from fashion to food to electronics.
Real Life examples - European Parliament
Features real-life examples of how circular practices are being implemented in businesses, homes, and communities.
SustainableJungle
Accessible explanations and real-life examples of circular economy applications, including in fashion, electronics, and food.ccc
FashionRevolution
Learn how to repair, swap, or sustainably source clothes. Encourages transparency in the fashion industry.
iFixit
Step-by-step repair guides for electronics, furniture, and household items—empowers people to fix instead of throw away.
Design Your Circular Business Idea
Goal: Turn your idea into a real, sustainable business model using practical tools.
Circular Business Model Canvas (CBMC)
The Circular Business Model Canvas (CBMC) is an adaptation of the traditional Business Model Canvas (BMC), designed to help businesses transition from a linear economy/take-make-waste to a circular economy/reduce-reuse-recycle. It inspires sustainability and resource efficiency into business strategy by focusing on closing material loops and minimizing waste.
Circular Business Model Canvas (CBMC) – Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth
This official guide presents a visual CBMC framework incorporating circular economy principles like waste elimination, material recirculation, and nature regeneration. It includes examples of circular value propositions and practical applications.
EDC Circular Business Mode
The CICLO Toolkit is a hands-on resource that helps you turn your sustainable idea into a real business—no business background needed! It includes simple worksheets and creative exercises to guide you step-by-step in designing a circular product or service. Perfect for beginners, educators, or anyone exploring eco-friendly entrepreneurship.
The Circular Toolbox
Specifically tailored for apparel brands, this toolbox guides users through a five-step process to design and launch circular business models like rental or resale. It includes design thinking tools, workshop sheets, and facilitator guides.
The Circular Toolbox – How to launch a rental or resale pilot in 10 months.
Explore Existing Initiatives for Inspiration
Goal: Explore examples and video from local activities
Initiatives that CIRC consortium visited
This document outlines all the initiatives visited by the consortium throughout their various activities, including descriptions and the circular practices observed during each visit.
Acre Farm (Africa)
One-acre farm is a highly profitable, mixed-farm near Lake Victoria in Uganda, East Africa. The small farm was designed by farmer and veterinarian Dr. Emma Naluyima. It uses circular practices like composting and regenerative farming to grow food sustainably and support local ecosystems.
https://www.ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/circular-examples/one-acre-farm
Agnos Grocery (Cyprus)
Agno grocery is Cyprus’ first zero-waste and refill store. They offer a wide range of bulk foods, plastic-free accessories, cleaning detergents, personal hygiene items, and fresh produce, all with minimal or, ideally, no packaging. They are committed to sourcing only the highest quality products!
Lemons Vintage Shop (Cyprus)
At Lemons, they carefully curate vintage and secondhand clothing with a focus on quality, character, and sustainability. Each piece is chosen with an eye for detail. Shopping secondhand isn’t just about the look—it’s about making a choice. A choice to slow down, to reduce waste, to choose quality over quantity, and to wear something that truly matters.
Stena Recycling Poland (Poland)
At Stena Recycling, they want to create a sustainable world in partnership with their customers – a world where nothing goes to waste. With their comprehensive range of services and solutions, they contribute to a circular economy by helping you find the hidden value in your waste material. Providing all the support you need, wherever you are on your sustainability journey.
Elemental holding (Poland)
Elemental Holding, a Polish company, specializes in collecting and recycling spent auto catalysts and electronic waste. With support from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), they have developed facilities that recover critical raw materials from electric vehicle batteries and other electronic components, promoting resource efficiency and reducing environmental impact.
Original Unverpackt (Berlin)
Original Unverpackt is a Berlin-based zero-waste supermarket that revolutionized grocery shopping in Germany by eliminating packaging altogether. As a pioneer in the circular economy, it encourages consumers to bring reusable containers, shop in bulk, and reduce plastic waste. Beyond its retail model, it offers workshops and educational content to spread sustainable consumption practices across Europe.
Share (Berlin)
Share is a Berlin-based social enterprise that embeds giving into everyday consumption. For every product sold—be it water, snacks, or hygiene items—Share donates an equivalent item or service to people in need. With a strong focus on circularity, many of its products are packaged using recycled materials, and the company actively partners with NGOs to support clean water access, education, and waste reduction globally.
Repair Café (Netherlands)
Repair Café is a global movement that organizes community events where volunteers help people repair broken items, from electronics to clothing. These gatherings promote a culture of repair over disposal, fostering community engagement and reducing waste.
De Ceuvel (Amsterdam)
De Ceuvel is a sustainable office park and community space built on a repurposed shipyard. It serves as a hub for creative and social enterprises focused on sustainability and circular economy initiatives.
De Ceuvel | – playground for innovation and creativity in Amsterdam North
De Clique (Utrecht)
De Clique is a social enterprise that collects organic waste from businesses and transforms it into valuable resources like compost, biogas, and animal feed. By creating local circular loops, De Clique reduces waste and promotes sustainable resource management within urban environments.
Cauto (Brescia)
Cauto is a social cooperative that has been offering environmental services for over 25 years. They focus on waste management, recycling, and the creation of circular economy solutions, aiming to reduce waste and promote sustainable practices within communities
Coffeefrom (Milan)
Coffeefrom is an innovative company that repurposes spent coffee grounds into sustainable materials. They produce thermoplastics suitable for various applications, including packaging and automotive, offering a biodegradable alternative to conventional plastics
Circular City Hub Playlist
This playlist showcases local activities and initiatives developed under the “Circular City” project, promoting circular economy principles within social enterprises. Explore how educational methods, community engagement, and innovative practices drive sustainable change at the local level.
For First-Time Entrepreneurs
Goal: Make starting less intimidating.
Starting something new can feel overwhelming, but you’re not alone.
This space is designed to help beginners take their first steps with confidence. Share your ideas, ask questions, and connect with others who are just getting started. Whether it’s brainstorming your business model or finding your first collaborator, this is the place to learn by doing and grow together.
Techstars Entrepreneur’s Toolkit
An interactive platform offering videos and exercises on topics like pitching, customer discovery, and business modeling.
BDC Entrepreneur Toolkit
Provides free templates, guides, and webinars to assist with business planning, financial management, and marketing strategies.
10 steps to start your business
Starting a business involves planning, making key financial decisions, and completing a series of legal activities. Read on to learn about each step.
Learning Activities & Exercises
Goal: Practice, reflect, and learn with peers or on your own.
The Circular Design Guide
This page introduces the Circular Design Guide, a practical toolkit for designing with circular economy principles. It offers methods, exercises, and case studies to help create products and systems that eliminate waste and regenerate natural systems. Ideal for designers, innovators, and businesses aiming to design for a sustainable future.
Product Lifecycle Mapping
Objective: Understand the full journey of a product from raw material to disposal.
Activity: Choose a common item (e.g., a plastic bottle or smartphone) and trace its lifecycle. Then brainstorm ways to make each stage more circular (reuse, repair, recycle, etc.).
Materials: Paper, pens, internet access for research.
Circular Business Model Canvas
Objective: Adapt a traditional business model canvas to reflect circular strategies.
Activity: Fill out a canvas with circular approaches (e.g., value proposition = reused materials; revenue streams = product-as-a-service).
Repair Café Role-Play
Objective: Explore the benefits of repairing over replacing
Activity: Organize a mock repair café where participants play roles (repairer, customer, observer). Discuss circular benefits.
Circular Scavenger Hunt
Objective: Identify circular practices in daily life.
Activity: Create a list (e.g., refill stations, secondhand stores, compost bins) and go on a scavenger hunt to find local examples.
Reverse Logistics Game
Objective: Understand how returned products can be reintegrated.
Activity: Simulate a logistics network where products are returned, refurbished, or recycled
Tools: Printable maps or online logistics planners.
"Design for Circularity" Challenge
Objective: Practice rethinking product design for durability and reuse.
Activity: Redesign a simple object (e.g., takeaway cup or T-shirt) to follow circular principles. Present the ideas to the group.
Video Library
Goal: Make learning accessible for people with lower literacy or language barriers.
Templates & Printables Center
Goal: Practice, reflect, and learn with peers or on your own.
Business Plan: A business plan is a simple document that helps you describe your idea and how it will work.
Why it’s useful: It helps you stay organized and prepared when applying for funding or explaining your idea to others.
Note: The business plan template shared is available through Microsoft Create and is professionally designed for use in Microsoft Word. The template has been sourced from the official Microsoft Create Platform to support users in developing clear, structured plans for their circular economy ideas.
Customer Interview Sheets: Talking to potential customers helps you understand their needs and problems.
This tool gives you easy questions to ask, and space to write down answers — so you can improve your idea.
Why it’s useful: It helps you build something people truly want and will use.
Note: The Customer Interview Form is provided by Smartsheet, a platform known for offering a wide range of productivity and planning templates.
Local Mapping Tool: This is a worksheet that helps you explore your local area to find opportunities for circular economy.
Why it’s useful: It helps you discover local problems — and think of creative solutions for them.
Note: Use Google My Maps to explore and map community assets, identifying opportunities for circular economy initiatives. These two video tutorials will guide you step-by-step on how to use this simple and free tool.
Online Platforms-Toolkits
These links offer a broad introduction to circular economy that anyone can use, especially first-time learners
EU Circular Economy Learning Portal
The “Measuring the Circular Economy” page on the European Circular Economy Stakeholder Platform offers a suite of tools, frameworks, and indicators to help organizations assess and track their circularity performance. It includes resources like the Circularity Assessment Tool, Circulytics, and ISO 59020:2024, providing practical guidance for businesses, policymakers, and researchers aiming to implement and monitor circular economy strategies.
Green European Foundation: Circular economy for all
The Green European Foundation’s publication, A European Single Market for the Future, reimagines the EU Single Market as a catalyst for environmental and social transformation. It advocates for a “Single Market 2.0” that integrates sustainability, social equity, and strategic autonomy into its core framework, aiming to align economic integration with the EU’s climate and social objectives.
Online Circular Economy Course | Circular Economy Certification
The Online Circular Economy Course offered via circulareconomycourse.com is part of the Circular Economy Alliance (CEA), a global leader in online economy education and certification. CEA provides student-, self-paced online programs designed to equip professionals and organizations with practical skills to implement sustainable, circular strategies.
Online Circular Economy Course | Circular Economy Certification
Circularity Gap
This site explores the global circularity gap, highlighting how much of the world’s economy is circular and offering insights to drive systemic change toward a more sustainable future.
EcoDesign Circle
This site offers tools, training, and resources to support circular design and help professionals integrate sustainability into products and services.
Circular Economy Toolkit
This free toolkit is designed to help small businesses and entrepreneurs identify opportunities within the circular economy. It offers practical guidance on implementing circular strategies in business operations.
Explore Circular Economy Resources by Country
madeincarcere
An initiative that combines social inclusion and sustainability, producing handicrafts from recycled materials with the involvement of women prisoners, promoting the circular economy and providing opportunities for re-employment.
- Links Italy
icesp
Platform that collects and promotes good practices of circular economy in Italy, offering thematic working groups and resources to support the dissemination of sustainable models in various sectors.
- Links Italy
circulus
Interactive platform that allows companies to evaluate the circularity of their products and processes through a self-assessment test, providing educational resources and tools to promote sustainability.
- Links Italy
circularceres
Digital platform offering courses, information materials and design tools to support the transition to the circular economy, facilitating collaboration between students, SMEs and other actors in the sector.
https://circularceres.net/our-project/building-a-circular-economy-digital-innovation-hub-cedih
- Links Italy