Circularity in Built Environments

Aims and Scope

Buildings and cities can become resilient and sustainable by adopting innovative circular economy approaches. These include strategies to minimize material waste and pollution, keep resources circulating and recirculating within the system to extract their maximum benefit, increase productivity, and regenerate natural systems, while using advanced digital and smart technologies.

Circularity in Built Environments publishes research on circular economy innovations based on the pillars of design, technology, and materials to support sustainable built environments.

Topics in each pillar include:

Design

Strategies for zero-waste design and construction
Circular design in architecture and buildings
Circular cities, urban planning and policy

Technology

Emerging digital technology, including artificial intelligence, for infrastructure and systems efficiency 
Smart buildings and digital twins 
Integration of energy infrastructure in buildings, including on-site renewable energy, battery storage and EV charging

Materials

Climate-neutral urban resource management, including waste management
Green materials, manufacturing, and applications in built environment and infrastructure 
Life cycle assessment of alternative building materials 
Life cycle assessment of potential trade-offs between use of more energy- and carbon-intensive materials and reduction in operational energy