The promise of modularity for a new Global Circular Economy!
Introduction
You are the new CEO - Chief Executive Officer of the fictional consumer electronics conglomerate “Sharkorp”, which makes high end smartphones, tablets, wearables and computers. You make products focused on continuous innovation to push for continuous sales, while you are always cost cutting labor and environmental regulations and by purchasing the cheapest resources from all over the world, exercising planned obsolescence, making them intentionally hard to be repaired by independent contractors, and by pushing against the right to repair laws, while at the same time marketing aggressively to put new phones on people’s hands every year while not providing any contingency for recyclability or waste management. You are trying to do things a new way and you are exploring what your competition is doing so that you are informed.
That is when you come across a company called Fairphone (https://www.fairphone.com/en/). This is a very small Dutch company that aims to change the way the phone industry produces and consumes phones, by focusing on restoration, fair prices for the producers, ensuring ethical conditions for its production in all parts of the global chain and building a truly modular phone with replaceable parts that can last for longer and be upgraded with new hardware to keep it up to speed with technology advancements, while having in place a comprehensive system of waste management and recyclability. Has the landscape of buying a new phone changed? Is the new woke culture catching up? Are ethics now a part of the decision matrix when buying a new phone?
That is when you come across a company called Fairphone (https://www.fairphone.com/en/). This is a very small Dutch company that aims to change the way the phone industry produces and consumes phones, by focusing on restoration, fair prices for the producers, ensuring ethical conditions for its production in all parts of the global chain and building a truly modular phone with replaceable parts that can last for longer and be upgraded with new hardware to keep it up to speed with technology advancements, while having in place a comprehensive system of waste management and recyclability. Has the landscape of buying a new phone changed? Is the new woke culture catching up? Are ethics now a part of the decision matrix when buying a new phone?
Task
This WebQuest can be implemented both as an individual exercise and as a three-person group activity that will in each case either produce a deeply knowledgeable student or create the preconditions of an intellectual exchange between students that will focus on one particular aspect of the circular economy WebQuest.
Your task will be to understand the concept of the two economic systems in opposition, then to explore Fairphone’s Modular Design and finally to deal with the recycling/waste management aspect of the circular economy. By the end, you will have learned about the concept of sustainable consumption and decide if the shift towards sustainable practices by future consumers makes it imperative that you clean your business to cater to the new consumer and if the technology exists to do so. You will thus be able to understand how our global economy can work sustainably using circular economy principles. The teams, which can be thought of as task research teams and shareholders under the CEO, will prepare a presentation and argumentation based on their research and formed opinion. In the end, each person in the classroom will have one vote on whether the company should shift toward circular economy practices while the CEO has 5 votes.
Your task will be to understand the concept of the two economic systems in opposition, then to explore Fairphone’s Modular Design and finally to deal with the recycling/waste management aspect of the circular economy. By the end, you will have learned about the concept of sustainable consumption and decide if the shift towards sustainable practices by future consumers makes it imperative that you clean your business to cater to the new consumer and if the technology exists to do so. You will thus be able to understand how our global economy can work sustainably using circular economy principles. The teams, which can be thought of as task research teams and shareholders under the CEO, will prepare a presentation and argumentation based on their research and formed opinion. In the end, each person in the classroom will have one vote on whether the company should shift toward circular economy practices while the CEO has 5 votes.
Process
1. Choose your intrepid industrialist
One of the students will play the CEO of the company (learn what that is here). She or he will assign the teams, do research on his/her own on whatever subject related to profitability of relevant businesses or the cost of doing businesses, the sustainability shift to more ethical products, what other competitors are doing in the field, the supply chain of creating the product and other strategical related inquiries. In the end, the CEO will need to write down a number of questions that he/she wants to ask his/her team during the debate phase.
2. Choose your learning method!
In the first step the teacher will define the roles in this group activity. The teacher should group students based on their inclinations. For example, the more theoretical minded people could be better suited to understand the concepts of linear vs circular economy, the more practical inclined students to analyze the concept of modularity and interchangeability and the more socially active students to analyze whether the purchasing decision of millennials are changing. The idea is that by the end the CEO will be able to decide if his business should shift to a more socially and environmentally friendly way to operate the business or should continue with its current ways as the best strategy for the future.
3. Get that knowledge!
At this step, the participants will need to make use of the provided electronic resources in the “useful links” section and the additional resources for 20 minutes or so, if time permits, to gain insides for their respective tasks, namely linear vs circular economies, modular designs and changing purchasing attitudes of millennials using statistical resources from Eurobarometer or reputable online articles.
4. Converse with your peers!
Allow a long enough period of research for each team and have in mind that it is very important to have time to sit, exchange resources and views in order to come to a common understanding; if cannot reach a common understanding, then create break away groups that will argue on their chosen views.
5. Argue your case!
You should now be able to present your findings, argue your case to the CEO and provide him/her with an advice on whether the company should move to a different direction. You should be able to respond effectively to any questions the CEO may have.
6. Choose and Design your new company!
Now it’s time to vote! Do not forget that each person in the classroom has one vote, while the CEO has 5. If the response for change is negative, please justify your response by writing down the reasons of your rejection in a piece of paper, or if you choose to alter your practices start designing your new line of products by taking into consideration all the arguments!
One of the students will play the CEO of the company (learn what that is here). She or he will assign the teams, do research on his/her own on whatever subject related to profitability of relevant businesses or the cost of doing businesses, the sustainability shift to more ethical products, what other competitors are doing in the field, the supply chain of creating the product and other strategical related inquiries. In the end, the CEO will need to write down a number of questions that he/she wants to ask his/her team during the debate phase.
2. Choose your learning method!
In the first step the teacher will define the roles in this group activity. The teacher should group students based on their inclinations. For example, the more theoretical minded people could be better suited to understand the concepts of linear vs circular economy, the more practical inclined students to analyze the concept of modularity and interchangeability and the more socially active students to analyze whether the purchasing decision of millennials are changing. The idea is that by the end the CEO will be able to decide if his business should shift to a more socially and environmentally friendly way to operate the business or should continue with its current ways as the best strategy for the future.
3. Get that knowledge!
At this step, the participants will need to make use of the provided electronic resources in the “useful links” section and the additional resources for 20 minutes or so, if time permits, to gain insides for their respective tasks, namely linear vs circular economies, modular designs and changing purchasing attitudes of millennials using statistical resources from Eurobarometer or reputable online articles.
4. Converse with your peers!
Allow a long enough period of research for each team and have in mind that it is very important to have time to sit, exchange resources and views in order to come to a common understanding; if cannot reach a common understanding, then create break away groups that will argue on their chosen views.
5. Argue your case!
You should now be able to present your findings, argue your case to the CEO and provide him/her with an advice on whether the company should move to a different direction. You should be able to respond effectively to any questions the CEO may have.
6. Choose and Design your new company!
Now it’s time to vote! Do not forget that each person in the classroom has one vote, while the CEO has 5. If the response for change is negative, please justify your response by writing down the reasons of your rejection in a piece of paper, or if you choose to alter your practices start designing your new line of products by taking into consideration all the arguments!
Evaluation and Learning Outcomes
On the completion of this webquest, the learner will be able to:
Knowledge | Skills | Attitudes |
· Basic knowledge on the definition of a CEO. · Fundamental knowledge on the definition of linear economy. · Fundamental knowledge on the definition of circular economy. · Factual knowledge of what is modularity and how it connects to the circular economy. · Factual knowledge on the amount of waste in the electronics industry. · Factual knowledge on the changing attitudes of consumption. · Basic knowledge of how to conduct internet research. · Factual knowledge on how to find statistics to support a case. · Basic knowledge of how to prepare a presentation |
· Use research skills to conduct research in online environments to complete a set task · Use critical thinking skills to balance the feasibility of the proposal with its potential impact in the company · Use argumentation and preparation to anticipate questions by a CEO. · Use presentation skills to present the results of your research · Use effective reading in order to identify key statistics and arguments to support your view |
· Appreciate the diverse opinions produced in the discussions · Appreciate the democratic process and allow opposite voices to be heard · Allow oneself to be swayed by arguments rather than needing to win the argument · If arguments are unconvincing, allow oneself to strengthen own opinion to break away from the consensus and present own arguments |
Conclusion
21st century circular economy marks a fundamental shift from our growth hungry economy of the 20th century. There is now increasing pressure to ensure sustainability for future generations rather than continuous explosion of growth with flagrant disregard to the environment, resources, and people. The 21st century will probably be the century where companies will need to take a step back and contemplate their impacts to long term survivability of the human race. It is a discussion that is paramount for societies’ future and requires knowledge and an informed populace.
Useful links
Linear vs Circular Economy
· Linear economy vs circular economy
· Circular vs Linear Economy
· From a linear to a circular economy
Modularity
· Google Translate
· online dictionary
· Merriam Webster dictionary
· https://www.sustainably-smart.eu/our-results/make-products-for-a-circular-economy/
https://modularmanagement.com/circular-economy/
Waste Management
· How circular is the Global Economy? An Assessment of Material Flows, Waste Production, and Recycling in the European Union and the World in 2005
· A circular economy for smart devices Opportunities in the US, UK and India
· Waste statistics - electrical and electronic equipment
· Treasure Trove in World's E-Waste
Changing Consumption Attitudes
· https://www.ethicalconsumer.org/
· Ethical consumerism
· The Consumer as Citizen: The Role of Ethics for a Sustainable Consumption
· Is There Really Such a Thing as “Ethical Consumerism”?
· Are You an Ethical Consumer?
· Ethically minded consumer behavior: Scale review, development, and validation
· Millennials are making it luxe to be more ethical and environmentally aware
· You Have Millennials to Thank for All the Responsibly Sourced Decor in Your House
· 73 Percent of Millennials are Willing to Spend More Money on This 1 Type of Product
· Millennials like their diamonds ethically sourced or man-made, and jewellers are responding
· This Is How Millennials Shop
· Millennials Driving Brands To Practice Socially Responsible Marketing
· Linear economy vs circular economy
· Circular vs Linear Economy
· From a linear to a circular economy
Modularity
· Google Translate
· online dictionary
· Merriam Webster dictionary
· https://www.sustainably-smart.eu/our-results/make-products-for-a-circular-economy/
https://modularmanagement.com/circular-economy/
Waste Management
· How circular is the Global Economy? An Assessment of Material Flows, Waste Production, and Recycling in the European Union and the World in 2005
· A circular economy for smart devices Opportunities in the US, UK and India
· Waste statistics - electrical and electronic equipment
· Treasure Trove in World's E-Waste
Changing Consumption Attitudes
· https://www.ethicalconsumer.org/
· Ethical consumerism
· The Consumer as Citizen: The Role of Ethics for a Sustainable Consumption
· Is There Really Such a Thing as “Ethical Consumerism”?
· Are You an Ethical Consumer?
· Ethically minded consumer behavior: Scale review, development, and validation
· Millennials are making it luxe to be more ethical and environmentally aware
· You Have Millennials to Thank for All the Responsibly Sourced Decor in Your House
· 73 Percent of Millennials are Willing to Spend More Money on This 1 Type of Product
· Millennials like their diamonds ethically sourced or man-made, and jewellers are responding
· This Is How Millennials Shop
· Millennials Driving Brands To Practice Socially Responsible Marketing
Videos