Circular Economy Research and Practice: Past, Present and Future

The continuing emergence of circular economy (CE) research and practice as a critically important concept for the foreseeable future has renewed interest in understanding its theory and practice. In this chapter, we first analyse the evolution of CE research and practice by examining research published over the last decade. We then summarise the key themes emerging from review articles over the past decades. These themes form the basis of a proposed integrative CE research and practice synergy model. We further offer suggestions for future research by proposing critical topics and emerging themes for future research, such as organisational circular economy attitudes, knowledge synthesis and exchange, circular economy practice taxonomy, and circular economy pandemic response. We conclude by offering conceptual perspectives and highlighting key recent developments that will likely impact future practice and should be addressed by scholars.