Urban Upcycling: high-quality reuse of waste streams

Upcycling: high-quality reuse of residual streams

In recent years, valuable residual streams are increasingly getting a second life through upcycling. Furniture is refurbished, remanufactured or (partially) reused for other forms of high-quality products (repurpose). Upcycling takes place in local initiatives, but also in so-called “circular craft centers” that municipalities are developing. A circular craft center is a place where discarded products and materials handed in at a municipal recycling facility can be given a second life.

Upcycling offers social opportunities

According to Rob Lubberink, researcher within the Urban Economic Innovation research group, upcycling offers many social opportunities. 'It increases awareness about the value of things, creates new social employment and stimulates local entrepreneurship, especially in an urban environment.' All kinds of agencies - municipalities, waste collectors and processors, social organizations, makers, designers and producers - are therefore eager to work with upcycling.

Research into scaling up initiatives

However, there are still many questions about how they can approach this together as chain partners, notes Marco van Hees, researcher within the Circular Design and Business research group. 'How can they best arrange the assessment, storage and processing of the materials? How do they design and realize attractive products? And how can they realize viable and scalable circular business models for circular craft centers and for upcycling discarded furniture and residual streams? With Urban Upcycling, we help them answer those questions and look for opportunities to scale up the initiatives.'

Methods Urban Upcycling

In the research project, the HvA is researching three aspects with a large consortium:

1. The development of innovation ecosystems around urban upcycling. What do ecosystems look like, how do they develop over time, and which elements are successful and which are not? This is happening in the regions of Almere, Amersfoort, Amsterdam, Leiden, Rotterdam and Zwolle. 
2. In addition, the consortium is investigating which business models for upcycling are successful and how upcycling initiatives can be sustainably scaled up. Here, not only the financial feasibility is considered, but also the social value and impact on the current raw material scarcity.
3. The project then looks at what concrete products can be made with upcycling. How do consumers view upcycling products, and what is the market acceptance of these types of products?

Education

The research is conducted by AUAS lecturer-researchers and students from different fields (Economics, Business Administration, Business Engineering, Product Design). They are assisted by the project partners. Collaboration between research and education is also promoted by an ongoing graduation and internship workshop. In this, students are given the opportunity to gain joint knowledge about urban upcycling and relevant aspects through a series of excursions, lectures, workshops and discussions with each other. In addition, the results of the research are incorporated into the teaching of the Faculty of Technology.

Team

• Eva Promes (project leader)
• Inge Oskam(opens in new window)
• Marco van Hees
• Deborah Sumter
• Christel Hofmans
• Willem van Winden
• Rob Lubberink

Partners and funding

Urban Upcycling is co-funded by a RAAK-PRO grant from Regieorgaan SIA. The consortium consists of the following parties:

• The knowledge institutes AUAS, Hogeschool Windesheim and Universiteit Maastricht
• The municipalities Amersfoort, Amsterdam, Almere, Rotterdam, Zwolle
• Urban upcycling initiatives WaardeRing (Zwolle), Circulair Warenhuis (Leiden), Pantar and Buurman Rotterdam
• Designers of upcycling products Blooey, Studio Hamerhaai, The Upcycle and Tolhuijs Design
• Waste collectors ROVA and Renewi
• Representatives of the furniture and interior design industry IKEA and Koninklijke CBM
• Knowledge partners Het Groene Brein and Rijkswaterstaat