5.3

Change-Makers and Transformative Change Processes

In this step we’ll explore how to drive transformative change. Understanding these processes is essential for circular practices to thrive and for creating the conditions necessary to sustain a circular economy within society.

Defining Transformative Change in a Circular Context

In the pursuit of a circular economy, transformative change refers to fundamental, system-wide shifts in the structures, values, and practices that underpin our society. It is the process of moving beyond incremental adjustments – like improving recycling rates – to fundamentally rethink how we produce, consume, and relate to the living, material world.

Key aspects of transformation include:

Systemic and Fundamental: Rather than simply greening the existing linear model, transformation involves overhauling entire systems of governance, finance, and social organization. It moves the focus from individual products to the redesign of entire value chains.
Deep and Complex: This process requires shifting the unwritten rules of society, our beliefs, norms, and behaviors. It challenges the assumption that economic success must be tied to material extraction and consumption-led growth.
Addressing Root Causes: Transformation targets the underlying drivers of environmental crises – such as the take-make-dispose logic – rather than merely managing the symptoms, like pollution or waste generation.
A Whole-of-Society Approach: No single actor can achieve circularity alone. It requires radical collaboration between governments, businesses, civil society, and local communities to create new spaces for innovation and justice.
Navigating Uncertainty: Transitioning to a circular society is a long-term, non-linear process. It is often messy and unpredictable, requiring us to act decisively even when the final outcome or perfect circular future is not yet fully known.

The following video highlights one example called ‘Transformative Change-Making’, a method to overcome political deadlock using narratives and catalytic projects. It emphasizes building broad societal alliances to shift paradigms and drive deep, systemic sustainability reforms.

Further reading, learning and references

IPBES – Media Release: IPBES Transformative Change Assessment https://www.ipbes.net/transformative-change/media-release

Abson, D.J., Fischer, J., Leventon, J., Newig, J., Schomerus, T., Vilsmaier, U., von Wehrden, H., Abernethy, P., Ives, C.D., Jager, N.W. and Lang, D.J. (2017). Leverage points for sustainability transformation. Ambio, 46(1), pp.30–39 https://doi.org/10.1007/s13280-016-0800-y

Moore, M.-L., Riddell, D. and Vocisano, D. (2015). Scaling Out, Scaling Up, Scaling Deep: Strategies of Non-profits in Advancing Systemic Social Innovation. The Journal of Corporate Citizenship, (58), pp.67–84 https://www.jstor.org/stable/jcorpciti.58.67

Escobar, A. (2020). Pluriversal Politics: The Real and the Possible. Durham: Duke University Press https://www.dukeupress.edu/pluriversal-politics

© Daniel Mossberg, CEMUS, Uppsala University and Sonali Phadke, studio Alternatives and Stephanie Foote