| Issue |
E3S Web Conf.
Volume 408, 2023
International Conference on Sustainable, Circular Management and Environmental Engineering (ISCMEE 2023)
|
|
|---|---|---|
| Article Number | 01021 | |
| Number of page(s) | 9 | |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1051/e3sconf/202340801021 | |
| Published online | 02 August 2023 | |
The circular economy of Robinson Crusoe: Exploring the impact of the representative consumer
1 Institute of Industrial Economics of National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, 03057, Ukraine
2 Dalhousie University, Department of Mathematics and Statistics, Halifax, B3H 4R2 Nova Scotia, Canada
* Corresponding author: roman.smirnov@dal.ca
The circular economy typically addresses waste recycling issues at the micro-level, primarily focusing on individual enterprises, and less frequently at the meso-level, such as regions. This article introduces a novel perspective by examining recycling processes not only at the macro level but also through the lens of the Robinson Crusoe economy (ERC). The ERC concept was originally proposed in the 1930s. In this new paradigm, a representative producer, embodying Robinson Crusoe, establishes a business structure that implements a circular economy mega-project. This project comprises individual mono-projects aimed at maximizing profits derived from waste recycling. On the other hand, a representative consumer (representing the state and society) seeks to maximize its inherent utility, including taxes and fees. Now, the focus shifts to Robinson Crusoe as a consumer, thus defining the objective of this study as identifying approaches to determining the macroeconomic effects associated with such consumption. The recycling of blast-furnace slags in Ukraine serves as a case study for analysis.
© The Authors, published by EDP Sciences, 2023
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