Circular economy doesn't fail because of lack of ideas. It fails because systems aren't built for it.
Circularity moves only as fast as the systems around it: entrepreneurship, finance, procurement, policy and education. We work with funders and partners to build the conditions circular solutions need to grow and last.
130+ Impact Hubs in 70+ countries
1 in 3 Impact Hubs run circular economy programmes
13,500 entrepreneurs & ventures supported
130+ Impact Hubs in 70+ countries
1 in 3 Impact Hubs run circular economy programmes
13,500 entrepreneurs & ventures supported
Circular economy
barriers are structural.
So are the solutions.
Across markets, we find the same thing: promising circular businesses are working against the grain. Finance still rewards linear growth. Procurement favours established players. Supply chains remain locked in, while policy and public demand lag behind.
Entrepreneurs have the ideas, drive, and local insight to build something better. What they often lack is an ecosystem designed to help them succeed. No single business can change that alone. Nor can a well-funded pilot.
Progress towards a circular economy requires the wider system to shift alongside the businesses operating differently. We work with partners to help create that shift, building the conditions for circular business to become the norm.
All three levels need to move together. Most programmes only focus on one.
MICRO
Supporting circular enterprises
We identify and support startups, SMEs, and MSMEs to adopt circular business models, strengthen operations, and connect them to the networks and finance they need to scale.
This is where circular ideas become viable businesses, but without the surrounding ecosystem, they hit a ceiling fast.
MESO
Coalitions that embed circularity
We convene entrepreneurs, procurement officers, policymakers, educators and financial institutions around shared priorities, helping them embed circularity into long-term institutional systems.
This is where lasting change happens, and where most programmes fall short. A self-governing coalition delivers long after a programme ends.
MACRO
Public understanding and demand
We support impact campaigns, provide training, and build the storytelling infrastructure that makes the case for circularity visible and credible at a regional and national scale.
This is where circularity earns public trust and demand. Without that momentum behind it, even strong local initiatives struggle to scale.
Programmes end, but the work of systems change continues.
We delivered two EU-funded programmes in very different contexts, adapting the same ecosystem-building model to local needs and opportunities. Here are some of our achievements.
CLOSED: 2023-2025
CirculUP! Armenia
- Circular economy is now in Armenia’s national Framework Action Plan, endorsed by Prime Ministerial Decree in November 2025.
- The Armenian Circular Economy Coalition is now a registered independent NGO, with its own governance and mandate to continue without external facilitation.
- Impact Hub Yerevan is a certified CIRCO Hub, with locally trained facilitators delivering circular economy business model training independently.
- Circular economy is embedded across universities, including Yerevan State University, the Academy of Public Administration, and a new Master’s programme at Eurasia International University.
ONGOING: 2023-2027
Roots of Circularity Nepal
- Circular economy content is now in national school and university curricula across 11,500+ institutions, reaching more than 1.6 million students.
- The Nepal Circularity Alliance is now an institutionalised platform for policy-practice alignment, having convened the country’s first national circularity conclave with 900+ participants in 2025.
- 400+ green jobs created through the incubation programme, the majority held by women.
- 71 trained journalists are now equipped to tell circular economy stories accurately and at scale.
Different context, one approach.
Think strategically
We adapt our approach according to each context. We diagnose the barriers to circular business, then design around them. Armenia and Nepal both needed policy work and circularity embedded in education, but each required a different response.
Partner locally
130+ locally governed Impact Hubs in 70+ countries. Real institutional relationships. Local teams make decisions—not consultants flying in. This deep local presence helps us understand what is needed and what’s actually possible.
Measure what matters
Not just enterprise numbers. We track institutional shifts: adopted policies, embedded curricula, coalitions that govern themselves. The real proof: when our programmes end, the systems keep working.
Lessons that take our work further.
Armenia and Nepal ran into the same barriers: finance that doesn’t reach circular business, policy written without entrepreneurs in the room, and institutions with no mechanism to coordinate. What differed entirely was how those barriers showed up, and what it took to address them.
Five areas where circular economy work is falling short. And where we're looking for partners.
Storytelling, education, youth pathways, indigenous knowledge, the digital divide. Five gaps the evidence points toward, and an open invitation to funders and partners ready to address them together.
Explore what circular economy looks like across different contexts.
A cross-context analysis from two independent programmes. Armenia and Nepal face the same structural barriers and the same enabling conditions. What differs entirely is how those conditions manifest, and what it takes to respond.
Build circular economy capacity in your region.
We’ve proven this approach works in Nepal and Armenia. We’re now looking for funders, governments, and multilaterals who want to:
- Run circular economy programmes in new regions
- Strengthen existing circular economy coalitions and policy-practice platforms
- Scale support for circular enterprises with real pathways to market and institutional demand
- Build storytelling and education infrastructure that makes circular economy visible and viable
- Adapt learning from Armenia and Nepal to your specific contexts and markets
Connect with one of our local teams across 130+ cities.
One conversation is all it takes.
Designing a programme, strengthening an existing one, or looking for a partner with trusted local reach? Get in touch!