ENV ENG 1003 - Resources and Energy in a Circular Economy

The dominant linear economy (make> use > dispose), wastes resources, is economically inefficient and leads to environmental damage. In a circular economy, the maximum value is extracted from resources in use, then products and materials are recovered and regenerated at the end of each service life. This course will introduce students to the systems thinking that is required to develop technological solutions and businesses models that contribute to making our economy more circular. The course will conduct a basic lifecycle assessment to quantify environmental impacts for different product options, will consider case studies of best practice for a variety of circular strategies and will critically analyse data to identify possible strategies relating to the circular economy on campus.