The Circular Economy and Institutional Economics: Compatibility and Complementarity

Abstract: The notion of a circular economy (CE) developed out of the work of Kenneth Boulding and others concerned about Earth’s limited resources and its capacity for regeneration. The concept has recently become the heart of an economic perspective influencing governments, companies, and researchers. Core topics examined by those researchers include resource use, economic value, and systems thinking. The CE literature and the tradition of institutional economics (IE) have important elements of compatibility and complementarity which we examine in this article. There are also opportunities for collaboration between CE and IE.