Research group
Circular Business Models
We advance circular business together with companies and develop the teaching of circular economy in national and international networks.
The research group advances circular business together with companies and develops the teaching of circular economy in national and international networks. At the forefront in the future is to find new solutions for moving from owning products to producing services and a sharing economy.
We solve and promote the concrete challenges of circular economy in the Circular Economy Lab project learning environment, where experiments and development projects based on the needs of companies are carried out together with higher education students from different fields. We see circular economy as a 2.0 version that takes into account not only the circulation of materials but also the perspectives of global justice and equality.
The subjects of our research and development
- circular economy ecosystems
- circular economy business models
- circular economy business development
- development of circular economy education.
Circular economy expertise plays an increasingly important role in sustainable development. It is important to integrate circular economy themes into all levels of education, including vocational and continuing education. Not everyone needs to be a circular economy expert, but everyone must be able to apply circular economy thinking to their own work.
Annika Holmbom, Research group leader
Circular Economy Lab
The Circular Economy Lab is Turku UAS’ innovation platform for companies. We help companies find circular economy opportunities for their business. The circular economy lab also serves as a learning environment where students from different fields get to develop their skills and work on projects implemented with companies.
Shaping the future of the circular economy in the Science Park
A new experimental lab has opened on the Kupittaa campus, where students involve other students and citizens in the development of the area. Everyone can give their suggestions on what the Science Park could look like in the future.
The activities of the Experimental Lab are part of the joint Circular Science Park project of Turku University of Applied Sciences and the City of Turku, which aims to produce fresh innovations.
– We involve the industry in a joint debate. We encourage them to take concrete circular economy actions in the fields of construction, mobility, biodiversity and business. We also involve thesis writers and other students, Piia Nurmi explains.
Our Experts
The research group includes experts in business development, sustainable development, service design, environmental technology, life cycle assessment, public procurement, communications and pedagogy.
Education
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Bachelor's Degree
Energy and Environmental Engineering, Bachelor of Engineering
Full-time StudiesTurku
Other courses and study modules
In addition, higher education students from different institutions can deepen their skills and acquire business life contacts through hackathons or projects, for example. You can also complete an internship in the circular economy lab. Read more
Partners
Our cooperation partners include dozens of companies from different industries that are developing circular business as well as various research institutes and development organizations that are involved in our ecosystem work.