From niche to necessity: the circular economy's strategic moment

Trade wars, resource shortages, and the AI-driven scramble for critical minerals are exposing the fragility of our current economy.  And for businesses still operating on a linear model, the vulnerabilities are becoming impossible to ignore. The global economy isn’t just being disrupted, it’s being restructured. 

In this episode, Seb is joined by Julia Binder, Professor of Transformation at IMD Business School, and Manuel Braun, entrepreneur and co-author of The Circular Business Revolution, to explore why circularity has moved from the sustainability agenda to the boardroom.

They discuss:

• Why today's disruptions are structural, not episodic, and what that means for supply chains
• How the circular economy offers a direct answer to resource dependency and geopolitical risk
• The shift from an impact case to a business case, and how to have that conversation with your CFO
• What companies like Hilti are doing differently, and what executives can act on tomorrow

Mentioned in this episode:

IMD circular value creation courses for leaders: https://www.imd.org/sustainability/cvce/creating-value-circular-economy/

Material Advantage: How circular strategies drive business value: https://www.imd.org/ibyimd/innovation/material-advantage-how-circular-strategies-drive-business-value/

Circular Business Revolution book: https://www.imd.org/research-knowledge/books/the-circular-business-revolution/

Startup landscape: https://www.circular-republic.org/insights/circular-startup-landscape-2026

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