The idea of a circular economy transition is gaining traction amongst city governments as a means to develop sustainable economies which reduce waste and demand for virgin resources. It seeks to localise knowledge, skills and labour, and in doing so, exposes “post-industrial” trends in our cities, whereby material use (including (re)sourcing, (re)manufacturing and repair) has become increasingly undervalued, geographically dispersed, offshored, and largely disconnected from consumption. These trends have resulted in lost accountability for material use and with it, valuable skills and employment opportunities required for making and remaking for circular futures.
Using comparative case studies of municipal approaches, we critically examine and compare two existing approaches to reintegrating remaking skills and labours with local communities in “post-industrial” contexts. One, encourages citizen-ownership of waste as unpaid, community-driven labour. The other, facilitates workforce participation and development approaches for disadvantaged seekers within existing labour market dynamics. Both approaches have emerged as ways of addressing critical but underappreciated, labour-intensive “dirty work” aspects of the circular economy in a climate where professional, clean and high-tech innovative approaches are overemphasised.
Our case studies include two Councils in metropolitan Melbourne who are both guided by circular economy policies and demonstrate both approaches through organising events, developing community awareness, community engagement and in providing support to key social enterprises and community-based organisations. We draw comparisons between these approaches and their implications for equity, social justice, citizen engagement and workforce development and critically assess the ways in which they challenge existing neoliberal paradigms