Background: Despite the obvious attraction for “greener” solutions in all industries, the different sustainable measures adopted by governments, business associations, andbusinesses themselves, the remaining high number of landfilled solid wastes from allindustries per year, especially the construction industry, suggests that a waste managementtowards valorisation is not systematically the first chosen option for the firms collecting the wastes. Purpose: To increase awareness, develop knowledge and show how collaboration within abusiness ecosystem and adapted corporate strategy allows the development of sustainablewaste management. Methodology: A comparative case study on the waste valorisation and innovation creationprocess, approached throughout a semi-structured qualitative data collection of fivepractitioners within a similar business ecosystem. Findings: The findings indicate that mutli-strategy level collaboration within and betweenbusiness ecosystems is a nursery for the development of innovation in the context of waste valorisation.

La presente Tesis tiene como tema la presentación de Economía circular en la pos modernidad, más específicamente la gestión sostenible y responsable de los residuos sólidos posconsumo en tiempos de obsolescencia planificada, donde el objetivo institucional es la obtención del título de Doctor por el Curso de Doutorado em Ciência Jurídica da Universidade do Vale do Itajaí – UNIVALI, insertándose en el área de concentración “Constitucionalismo, Transnacionalidad y Sostenibilidad”, vinculándose a la línea de investigación “Estado, Transnacionalidad y Sostenibilidad”, con doble titulación por la Universidad de Alicante – UA/España por la línea de investigación “Derecho ambiental y de la sostenibilidad”. En lo que trata de la metodología, el método utilizado en la fase de investigación fue el inductivo; en la fase de tratamiento de datos, el cartesiano, y en el informe de investigación, expreso en esta Tese, la base lógica inductiva. En las varias fases de la investigación fueron accionadas las técnicas del Referente, de la Categoría, del Concepto Operacional y de la Investigación Bibliográfica. El objetivo investigativo es ofrecer una propuesta original y sin precedentes que pueda servir como alternativa para superar la mala gestión de los residuos sólidos. La investigación articula el uso de instrumentos legales capaces de incentivar cambios en el comportamiento humano para lograr una gestión ambientalmente sostenible y responsable de los residuos sólidos posconsumo. Para ello, el momento actual de la humanidad, denominado posmodernidad, se presenta en un marco histórico y sociológico, que tiene una fuerte característica en el consumismo y encuentra en la obsolescencia programada una fuerte patología de mercado que coopera para una aceleración de la degradación ambiental por la extracción excesiva de recursos mientras genera residuos sólidos cuyo destino está mal gestionado. La ciencia del derecho, debido a su sesgo comportamental, puede y debe contribuir a los cambios necesarios en la conducta del hombre en la sociedad. En tal horizonte teórico, se observa que la transición de un patrón lineal de producción y consumo a la economía circular es una oportunidad importante para la evolución del modelo económico actual, más sostenible, capaz de superar una crisis ambiental transnacional y cooperar con el preservando el equilibrio de los ecosistemas y conservando los recursos naturales globales, mientras crea alternativas de empleo e ingresos para el mercado y brinda ventajas competitivas para los estados. Es en este contexto, con la reserva fundamental de la humildad científica, que se atreve a proponer un modelo económico circular, estimulado a través de instrumentos legales, capaz de concebir un hombre más responsable, con hábitos sostenibles y preparado para gestionar los dilemas de esta y las futuras generaciones, conciliando desarrollo económico, bienestar y calidad ambiental.

Esta Tesis pertenece a la Línea de Investigación “Estado, Transnacionalidad y Sostenibilidad”. El objetivo general es investigar la posibilidad de que el derecho transnacional y la economía circular actúen en la consolidación de la sostenibilidad a partir de los desafíos de la gobernanza de los recursos hídricos en Brasil y España, a partir de la gestión de las aguas subterráneas, así como comprender las transformaciones que se producen en el medio ambiente y que se relacionan con los factores de disponibilidad, producción y consumo de agua en el plan económico, social y ambiental. En cuanto a la metodología, el método utilizado es el inductivo, con respecto al abordaje, predomina la forma cualitativa. En relación a los objetivos, se trata de una investigación exploratoria. Es una búsqueda bibliográfica que ayuda a la comprensión y mejora de un tema, ya que cuenta con una amplia base bibliográfica nacional e internacional. La Tesis cuestiona estrategias para determinar la transnacionalización del derecho como elemento de consolidación del nuevo paradigma posmoderno en relación al agua subterránea en Brasil y España, buscando garantizar los estándares de sostenibilidad que permitan un consumo y producción responsable para el uso de aguas subterráneas, además de preguntarse cómo realizar el relevamiento y la medición de aguas subterráneas, verificando las estrategias adoptadas por los dos países para el mantenimiento, monitoreo y manejo de los acuíferos, ya que ambos Estados tienen regiones con abundancia y escasez de agua. Además, la investigación cuestiona si mediante el uso de la economía circular es posible lograr la sostenibilidad. Por lo tanto, la investigación se divide en ocho capítulos, el primero trata el agua como derecho humano y la crisis en su gestión, el otro retrata el derecho transnacional, los intermediarios abarcan cuestiones sobre gestión de los recursos hídricos, cooperación, gobernanza, aguas subterráneas, etcétera. , el quinto y el sexto, respectivamente, recogen a consumos y pérdidas de agua en Brasil y España, presentando el mapeo de las aguas subterráneas en los países destacados, destacando, al final, el tema de la sostenibilidad, los objetivos de desarrollo sostenible y economía circular. Como resultado de la investigación, se entiende que la economía circular es una posibilidad de lograr la sostenibilidad porque reduce la probabilidad de escasez de agua para las generaciones presentes y futuras, además de ayudar en la propagación de la gobernanza multinivel y transnacional, ya que todos los actores son importantes en la gestión adecuada del agua, cooperando, ofreciendo más seguridad hídrica basada en una estructura mucho más coherente y menos fragmentada, permitiendo la realización del desarrollo sostenible.

Thesis’ background This thesis intends to contribute to the literature gap identifying when connecting the literature on capabilities required for the transition towards circular business models and the literature that investigates the value creation and capture in these business models. Research aim Identifying the key capabilities that facilitate the transition towards circular business models and investigating their use for value creation and capture Methodology A qualitative approach was followed, and semi-structured interviews were conducted with four managers working at companies that are experiencing circular business models Findings Eight key capabilities were identified from this research including: (1) Developing the systemic thinking, (2) Managing the circular network,(3) Managing knowledge, (4) fostering open innovation, (5) Understanding customer’s requirement for exploring the wasted value, (6) Designing products for longevity, (7) Innovating in the sale and use phase and (8) managing circular suppliers to close the loops between the end use and the production. Deploying these eight key capabilities with a systemic thinking would enable companies moving to circular business models and creating and capturing economic and non-economic sustainable values.

I denna rapport undersöks återanvändnings- och återvinningspotentialen för stommaterial ur byggnader i Sverige. De två materialen som har undersökts är betong och trä. Rapporten innehåller en litteraturstudie över återanvändning och återvinning. En fallstudie har även utförts på två byggnader. Den första byggnaden är ett småhus med träkonstruktion. Den andra byggnaden är ett flerbostadshus med betongkonstruktion. Byggsektorn står för stora mängder utsläpp och har en stor påverkan på miljön. Av allt material som ligger på deponi står byggbranschen för ca 35 % av allt material. Ett alternativ för att minska byggbranschens påverkan på miljön är att återanvända och återvinna material i högre grad. Hantering av avfall ska prioriteras enligt EUs direktiv gällande avfall. I direktivet finns avfallstrappan som rangordnar avfall efter vad som ska prioriteras över andra alternativ. Betong är ett material som både går att återanvända och återvinna. Att återvinna betong är en vanlig process som innebär att betong krossas och sedan används som ballast till ny betong. Denna process kan innebära att betongens kvalitet ändras. Återanvändning av betong utförs inte i samma utsträckning men har stor potential i framtiden. Materialet trä bör följa kaskadmodellen för att förlänga dess livslängd. Kaskadmodellen beskriver hur träets livslängd kan förlängas innan den går till förbränning med energiutvinning. Fallstudien i denna rapport har utförts på två teoretiska byggnader. Byggnaderna har grundats på undersökningen BETSI och ska representera ett medelvärde av byggnader i Sverige. Fallstudien undersöker hur mycket material som går att återanvända och återvinna ur byggstommen. Resultatet visar på att all betong har en stor potential att återanvändas och återvinnas. Allt trä som används i de två byggnaderna bör följa kaskadmodellen där de komponenter som går att återanvända återanvänds.

Increased effectivity in resource management in the construction sector is required to achieve the environment goals of Agenda 2030. The largest source of total accumulated waste derives from the construction and demolition area. This thesis contains a literature study about circular economy application in the process of construction- and demolition waste and interviews with local actors that represent the Swedish construction material chain in the Region of Gästrike, Sweden. A cooperation with the municipality property owner Gavlefastigheter AB has provided an opportunity to study the demolition process to examine what actions the building sector requires to increase reusage of demolition waste. Gavlefastigheter AB own and manage a variation of building types such as schools, agencies, sports arenas and other exclusive designs. The result of this study shows that the existing policy instruments of waste management are primarily developed to evaluate climate change impacts and to avoid waste that could cause harm to the environmental and health. In the literature review life cycle assessment was shown to be the most common method to analyze the effects of circular economy. The Swedish construction Federation have recently updated the construction- and demolish waste management directives mainly to help transitioning the construction business towards circular economy. Albeit these directives are not yet practically utilized the result of the interviews of local actors indicated that there were a few practices of demolish with reusage applications. The conclusion summarizes the important subjects that need to be dealt with to increase reusage within future demolition projects in the Region of Gästrike, Sweden.

In der vorliegenden Arbeit konnte am rekombinanten Tom40 aus Neurospora crassa und aus Saccharomyces cerevisiae gezeigt werden, dass in beiden Spezies ein einziges Tom40-Molekül in der Lage ist ein membrandurchspannendes Beta-Barrel Protein aus 16 transmembranen Beta-Strängen auszubilden. Tom40 aus beiden Spezies bildet einen kationenselektiven Kanal dessen charakteristischer Hauptleitwert eine gute Übereinstimmung zu publizierten Werten zeigt und genau einer porenbildenden Einheit im TOM-Komplex entspricht. Ein generell unterschiedliches Verhalten von Tom40 durch eine Fehlfaltung des zuvor denaturierten Proteins, kann also ausgeschlossen werden. Der Kanal interagiert seitenabhängig mit aminoterminalen mitochondrialen Präsequenzen. Die Spezifität der Wechselwirkung mit Tom40 ist jedoch geringer als die mit dem TOM-Komplex. In elektrophysiologischen Untersuchungen des SAM-Komplexes aus Saccharomyces cerevisiae konnte gezeigt werden, dass Sam50 die charakteristische porenbildende Einheit im Komplex darstellt. Sam50 aus Saccharomyces cerevisiae und Homo sapiens bilden kationenselektive Kanäle, wobei der Hauptleitwert im humanen Protein signifikant größer als im Hefe-Protein ist. Der evolutiv konservierte C-Terminus von Sam50 reicht hierbei aus diese Pore zu bilden, ist aber im Vergleich zum Volllängenprotein stark im Schaltverhalten beeinträchtigt. Die elektrophysiologischen Eigenschaften von Sam50, spiegeln exemplarisch die Werte verwandter Poren der Omp85-Familie wider. Der Sam50-Kanal wird im SAM-Komplex durch die ebenfalls essenzielle Komponente Sam35 reguliert. Es konnte gezeigt werden, dass sich durch eine Interaktion von Sam35-Protein mit einem konservierten Beta-Signalpeptid der Komplex in einen aktiven Zustand größerer Leitfähigkeit überführen lässt, der sich durch ein dynamisches Schaltverhalten und das Auftreten multipler Leitwerte auszeichnet, wobei im Komplex mehrere Porenproteine am Stromfluss beteiligt sind.

Zinc is an essential metal ion for the activity of multiple enzymes and transcription factors. Among many other transporting proteins human serum albumin (HSA) is the main carrier of Zn(II) in the blood plasma. HSA displays multiple ligand binding sites with extraordinary binding capacity for a wide range of ions and molecules including fatty acids. Hence, HSA controls the availability and distribution of those molecules throughout the body. Previous studies have established that the existence of one zinc site with high affinity (MBS-A) that is modulated by the presence of fatty acids. Therefore, the fatty acid concentration in the blood influences zinc distribution which may result in a significant effect on both normal physiological processes and a range of diseases. Based on the current knowledge of HSA's structure and its coordination chemistry with zinc ion, here, we attempted to investigate zinc interactions and coordination with HSA and the effect of different fatty acids on the protein structure, stability and on Zn(II) binding. By NMR titration, we examine the Zn(II) binding to HSA and the spectra show distinct movements of some resonances showing a conformational change has occurred as a result of Zn(II) binding. Isothermal calorimetry titrations study was performed to evaluate zinc binding affinity to HSA in the absence and presence of fatty acids. Free HSA results indicates the existence of one high affinity site and multiple low affinity sites. Upon the binding of fatty acids to HSA, three distinct behaviors of Zn(II) affinity was observed ranging from no effect to moderate to significant depending on the FAs. By the use of circular dichroism, we investigate secondary and tertiary structure of HSA in the presence and absence of FAs and Zn(II). We found albumin is predominately α-helical and the overall conformation of the protein remains unchanged even after interacting with FAs and Zn(II) with some exception. The structural stability of HSA was evaluated by obtaining the denaturation temperature in the presence and absence of fatty acid and we found the thermal denaturation of HSA increases with the increase of amount of fatty acids.

In the sports industry, the products currently being developed by design teams are degraded over time due to wear and tear. During the last decade, awareness about the global environmental crisis has increased and sports users are now more demanding about the environmental impact of products and services that they are using. Therefore, people are searching for companies that make durable and sustainable products and services. While the importance of durability regarding the development of a circular economy has been recognized, a concrete concept has not yet been specifically addressed in European product policies. Standards are missing and this research aims to develop a method, where companies from the water-sports industry could follow a step-by-step process to assess the normative lifespan of a product, especially in the early design stages of the product development process. The case study of OLAIAN, the DECATHLON surf brand, has made it possible to develop repeatable long-term quality test protocols on neoprene wetsuits and surfboards to characterize the ageing of these products. A product’s resistance is one of the durability factors that are tested in this method, by creating a database containing the number of uses a product has made and its evolution over time. This case study has allowed the testing of different protocols in co- creation with the surf organizations and explores further the study of a testing phase during the product development process. From these empirical findings, a 10-step method has been designed to estimate the normative lifespan of a product. Globally, the outcomes are intended for the design team, in order to know a product’s resistance over time and its weaknesses, thus being able to improve and further its lifespan. A second outcome is to fulfill information to complete studies on durability. Therefore, increase the reliability of Life Cycle Analysis and observe where is the biggest environmental impact in the product’s process (from inception to recycling) to take actions. This also helps to know more precisely the temporal warranty that companies can promise to their customers, and it completes studies on environmental indicators display to guide consumers to more sustainable choices. This study aims to allow in the future, sports organizations certified by Standardization organization for testing of products and the assessment of their durability. Further research on sensors or electronic devices, to more precisely follow the evolution of product during field- testing would be very relevant. As this thesis focused on field-testing for the reliability of products, based on these results further research in statistical models to support failures analysis in accelerated lab-testing must be implemented. Another opportunity is the emergence of platforms and product-service systems in the sports field. This could open up opportunities to have products used at a high frequency and in intense conditions to enable faster feedback on durability.

The objective of our thesis was to conduct a pilot study to evaluate if an Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) for textiles in the EU could be a socioeconomically beneficial policy to complement the EU Waste Framework Directive’s amendment of separately collected textiles. The aim was to investigate if the policy could achieve increased circular design of textiles as well as if it could work as a management plan for the increased collection rates. The evaluation was made with a Cost-Benefit Analysis, using the French EPR-system for textiles as a base. It was further complemented with previously conducted research of EPR-systems for other waste streams in the EU, as well as by previously conducted investigations for other national implementations of producer responsibilities for textiles. In additional support, we used data for differences between the member states in the European Union and conducted an expert interview. The EPR was compared to a situation where the municipalities in the member states would instead be responsible for the separate collection of textiles. The result of our investigation illustrates how both alternatives generate a net-loss, the Municipal Responsibility with - €7,611,410,291 and the Extended Producer Responsibility with - €6,012,109,341 during the first year of implementation. The EPR alternative generates a lower net-loss during the first three years of implementation. The producer responsibility is however the less beneficial alternative four years after implementation, since the decreased opportunity cost of labour generated through the hiring of unemployed assumed under the producer responsibility is deducted. The producer responsibility does however generate benefits through clearly defined responsibility of the textiles placed on the European market and gives incentives for increased fibre-to-fibre recycling and for increased durability of textiles. The initiative therefore generates both higher quantifiable-and non-quantifiable, environmental benefits than the alternative. We conclude that an Extended Producer Responsibility should be further examined as a complement to the regulation of separate collection of textiles, to reach an increased circular textile industry.