On November 29 Eric Schoones' book "Alle dagen duurzaam, op weg naar een circulaire economie" was presented in the Amsterdam Art Center. In this book, Schoones presents interviews with inspiring circular experts, including partner/architect at EGM architects Eric Wendel architect of the Reinier de Graaf Hospital and Robert-Jan van Ogtrop, the founder of Circle Economy.
Eric Wendel, partner/architect at EGM architects : 'I have designed a facade for the building of the hospital - partly premanufactured - which can be recycled and easily mounted. That was applauded for cost efficiency, you build faster and cheaper. The first plans for the new hospital date from thirteen years ago. Then they wanted to demolish all the existing and build houses. Now we are thinking about the renovation of old buildings, about other features, if only partially. If it can not be a (new ) building it is after all still the most durable thing to do. With Pharmafilter eventually a smaller building will do. Building less square footage is also economically interesting. This concept is a new booming standard. Hospitals see the benefits and there is also a lot of interest from abroad. In Peru, we designed a lowcost hospital. It would be wonderful to do something likewise there. But the principle of Pharma Filter can also be used at a larger scale, at festivals, in neighborhoods.' Survival of the species
In the book, Robert-Jan van Ogtrop explains that mankind has embrace system thinking to survive. "Survival of the fittest" is no longer the best strategy, it is all about "survival of the species" now. We have to reorganize our society, by collaborating throughout product chains and by fundamentally reconsidering the effects we have on the ecosystems we are part of.
Circle Economy has been initiated by Robert-Jan van Ogtrop, former CEO Bols Royal Distilleries and Remy Cointreau, in 2009. As his experience in the business world grew, so did Robert-Jan’s belief that our current system is malfunctioning; a finite system of take-make-waste that has led us to live in, not only an economical crisis, but an ecological and cultural crisis as well. Therefore, we need a fundamental shift of our entire system. The only way to get this done is by collaboration in a non-threatening environment. A platform characterized by an inclusive model where companies, organizations, and changemakers from different worlds can join and find each other to accelerate this transition together.
'We do not really have any choice. We cannot continue to go ahead, exploiting the natural resources of our planet as if they were infinite nor using a linear growth model that produces enormous amounts of waste that inevitably will destroy our quality of life. It is time to use our collective intelligence to redesign our way of working with nature as inspiration since it is, in itself, a perfect 'circle economy'. - Robert-Jan van Ogtrop. A Alle dagen duurzaam, op weg naar een circulaire economie (All days sustainable, towards a circular economy)
A portrait of actors and their initiatives
author: Eric Schoones
228 pag | hardcover | 2013 | ISBN 978-90-78171-18-8 Dutch