Practice Perspective Implications for Sustainable Circular Economy Transitions

Advancing sustainability transitions in cities is dominated by policies to shape market forces and influence individual behaviours. However, market and behavioural approaches often ignore the active role sociomaterial arrangements can play in shaping sustainability activities. In contrast, practice theory goes beyond the extant focus on structures or individual actions and instead focuses on daily practices. That is, the bundle of daily activities that give order and meaning to social living. While scholars have substantially applied practice theory to sustainability research, understanding sustainable circular economy (CE) practices remains emergent in policy and daily activities. In particular, there needs to be more recognition of the complex interactions of the materials, meanings, and competencies that constitute a coherent, sustainable CE practice and an examination of this at the household level. This chapter summarises doctoral research on household plastic consumption and sustainable CE practices, the transformation of daily routines, and implications for transitioning cities to sustainable CE platforms. Irrespective of the social sector (household, business, or policy), the analysis of sustainable CE practices does not easily conform to binary scales like ‘sustainable’ and ‘unsustainable’. An alternative analytical framework of sustainable CE practices is provided based on three different variations and stages of performance. These are input assemblage, input combinations, and outputs and outcomes.