Op-Eds

Rebound effect: an invisible brake on circular sustainability

Rebound effect: an invisible brake on circular sustainability

European measures for the circular transition seem to be struggling to take root: over 87% of resource consumption in the European Union continues to rely on virgin raw materials. In line with the r...

It's time to get specific on how circular economy strategies can service just transitions

It's time to get specific on how circular economy strategies can service just transitions

As climate change’s impact on people becomes increasingly clear, calls for a just transition are growing − but what issues this seemingly self-explanatory term sets out to tackle varies ...

The Circular Economy in the Chemical Industry

The Circular Economy in the Chemical Industry

Circular economy means taking a regenerative approach to resource usage, in order to meet the needs of all 8 billion people on the planet. The Ellen Mac Arthur Foundation’s butterfly diagram r...

The Periodic Table

The Periodic Table

Those who have never closely observed the periodic table of the elements, conceived in 1869 by the Russian chemist Dmitry Ivanovič Mendeleev, have little grasp of the reality they cross in the shor...

Ford, electric car sales down: company changes strategy

Ford, electric car sales down: company changes strategy

On August 21, 2024, Ford Motor Company announced updates to its electrification strategy to accelerate consumer adoption and improve profitability given evolving market dynamics as recent sales...

Looking Upstream

Looking Upstream

“It’s only you townies who use the word nature. And it’s as abstract to you as the word itself. We say wood, meadow, river, rock, things that we can actually point to. Things that ...

Pushing the Mountains Away

Pushing the Mountains Away

"Mountains are mute teachers and make silent disciples," said Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, explaining in one sentence the intimate nature of the highlands and its people. Fragile giants, distant land...

European elections: the strengthening of nationalism, the downsizing of the ecologists

European elections: the strengthening of nationalism, the downsizing of the ecologists

The European election night sent shockwaves through many capitals, producing unexpected political outcomes: from the dissolution of the French parliament sought by Emmanuel Macron and the fall of Al...

Electro! Shock!

Electro! Shock!

Triple renewable energy and double energy efficiency by the end of the decade: this is the core of the global energy industrial plan adopted by 196 nations last December at COP28 in Dubai, at the he...

New Economy Turns 50

New Economy Turns 50

The authorship of a project is always collective, but somewhere there is a moment and specific people who trigger the process that, eventually, will lead to its realisation. This may sound like a cl...

Financing the EU's Circular Transition

Financing the EU's Circular Transition

The transition to a Circular Economy is under way. It is just over 8 years now since the European Commission published its Circular Economy Action Plan. In that time, we have had a second Action Pla...

Renewable Matter's sponsored articles

Renewable Matter's sponsored articles

Transparency is one of the core values of Renewable Matter, which is why I want to clarify to our readers how we engage with advertising companies, while fully respecting our authority. The co...

Welcome to Post-Capitalism

Welcome to Post-Capitalism

Chico Mendes, a Brazilian trade unionist and environmentalist, is often credited with the phrase that “environmentalism without class struggle is just gardening.” In a world where the ri...

Less is more? Degrowth, green growth and the future of our economy

Less is more? Degrowth, green growth and the future of our economy

Imagine a world where overwhelming narratives on climate change are a thing of the past, with healthy air, clean water and fertile soil. And no one’s had to suffer for it: people around the wo...

European farmers’ protests show the need for a just transition to Net Zero

European farmers’ protests show the need for a just transition to Net Zero

As many countries prepare to go to the polls in 2024, the need for a transition to Net Zero emissions has become a key political battleground. In Europe, the sustainability of farming practices is t...

Two Intelligences

Two Intelligences

“We are seeing growing evidence that artificial intelligence can prove to be an invaluable tool in the fight against climate change. We need to harness its potential and empower innovator...

Circular Economy: A Concept at a Crossroad

Circular Economy: A Concept at a Crossroad

Despite the initial enthusiasm and efforts to transition towards circular models, recent data reveal a concerning decline in the global circularity rate. From 9.1% in 2018, the circularity rate...

Renewable Matter goes bimonthly

Renewable Matter goes bimonthly

We begin the year 2024 with great news: Renewable Matter becomes bimonthly. Six issues a year for more comprehensive and even more articulate reporting. From the circular economy of territorie...

Ten words for 2024

Ten words for 2024

Another year has come to an end. There are those who reflect on these past twelve months while others prefer to look to the year ahead. We of Renewable Matter, who by nature are always looking ...

A circular food system can reverse the overshoot of planetary boundaries

A circular food system can reverse the overshoot of planetary boundaries

* Álvaro Conde and Alex Colloricchio contributed to this article   A global transition towards a sustainable food system is long overdue, scientists agree: and although farming has lon...