Circular City Berlin – Second Generation Circular Economy: Conceptual Overview of a New Innovation Ecosystem

As part of the CiBER project "Circular City Berlin - pathways from potential to implementation", initiatives and business models are being investigated that can con-tribute to the development of a next-generation circular economy in Berlin. The special focus is on the areas of construction, electronics and textiles. The next-generation circular economy is about innovations in product design and product use systems. There are four basic practices:

1. life cycle design (re-design of products in connection with waste-avoiding services)
2. extension of the useful life of products (re-use, repair, re-commerce and refurbishing)
3. intensification of use (sharing, borrowing and renting)
4. re-use of materials (upcycling and retro-logistics).

An evaluation of various databases and platforms shows that a diverse innovation landscape and a testbed for a Circular Economy has emerged in Berlin, which focuses on new product utilisation systems. The innovation ecosystem is based on the interaction of a multitude of actors and environmental conditions. The innova-tion scene consisting of re-use actors, sharing providers, repair cafés, upcycling providers, start-ups, platforms, innovation labs, etc. represents the critical landscape of actors in the ecosystem. The innovation system is shaped by political and legal framework conditions, incentive structures and funding measures.