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Many of us are looking for ways to make our lives and activities more sustainable and reduce the amount of waste we produce. One way to achieve these goals is to adopt the concept of the circular economy. In a circular economy, resources are used more efficiently, waste is minimized, and materials are recycled or reused, creating a closed loop system where materials and products are continually reused or replenished.
One of the trends in this economic circle is the emergence of peer-to-peer (P2P) internet platforms that connect people with something to sell or donate to people who need or want a particular product. Within this, we also see recycling or reusing old products for sale to others.
search in International Journal of Export Marketing, researched why people resell used products on such online platforms. The study, conducted by Salim Ur-Rahman and Hannu Makkonnen of the Faculty of Marketing and Communication at the University of Vaasa in Finland, collected and analyzed data from more than 3,000 people in Finland. The team found that there are many disparate reasons why people choose to resell items they no longer need on these platforms. Some simply want to make money, some do it for fun, and still others find it an attractive part of being social. Interestingly, the study found that practical, generative, and invocative motives do not influence reselling behavior.
The researchers suggest that these findings may help policymakers keen to improve society’s green credentials, to understand how people use these platforms, to develop regulations to ensure consumer protection as well as to encourage this type of circular economic activity with the aim of reducing waste. The research also provides some insights for platform developers and operators who may now tailor specific services based on the motivations of their users.
Closing the loop in the circular economy can help us reduce waste and materials for simple recycling or worse, landfill, create new economic opportunities, and promote sustainable use of resources.
more information:
Hannu Makonnen et al. Is This a New Era for Old Goods Analyzing the Motives for Reselling Used Products in the Platform Economy, International Journal of Export Marketing (2023). DOI: 10.1504/IJEXPORTM.2023.10053980
the quote: Closing the Loop on the Circular Economy (2023, May 15) Retrieved May 15, 2023 from https://phys.org/news/2023-05-loop-circular-economics.html
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