How Can Design Accelerate the Shift to a Circular Economy?

00:00 – Introduction: Design and the circular economy
01:24 – Jonquil Hackenberg’s career path and motivation
05:24 – Where the global circular transition stands today
07:46 – Common misconceptions about circular economy
09:55 – From pilot projects to scale: leverage points for change
11:54 – Leadership, collaboration and courage
18:46 – The role of design in driving circular innovation
21:56 – Design opportunities in fashion and textiles
24:12 – Advice for young designers
25:07 – Skills future leaders will need
28:59 – AI, optimism and shaping a positive future
31:55 – Outlook on the Circular Design Summit keynote

Circular Economy Is More Than Recycling
Jonquil Hackenberg emphasises that circularity is often misunderstood as being synonymous with recycling. In reality, its greatest potential lies upstream: in design, business models and systems thinking. Designing out waste from the start and keeping materials at their highest value for as long as possible creates new economic opportunities and resilience across supply chains.

Design as a Strategic Lever for Systems Change
From product and service design to policy, ownership models and behavioural change, design sits at the heart of the circular transition. Whether rethinking battery ownership in the automotive industry or enabling circular business models in fashion and textiles, designers play a critical role in reshaping how value is created, shared and sustained.

Collaboration, Courage and Long-Term Thinking
True progress towards circularity requires collective action. Hackenberg highlights the importance of pre-competitive collaboration, brave leadership and aligning sustainability with core business strategy rather than treating it as a reporting exercise. Moving from short-term thinking to long-term value creation is essential to achieving scale and impact.