Circular economy (CE) principles have gained prominence in the fashion industry since it is a highly polluting industry and requires sustainable changes. Even though there are several CE initiatives already in place within the fashion production chain, changes towards CE are still slow. This study seeks to identify the drivers, barriers, and practices that influence implementing circular economy concepts in the fashion industry production chain using a systematic literature review. The results show that some more barriers and criteria keep consumers away from circular fashion concepts than drivers. These barriers include fast fashion consumer culture, even though more consumers are environmentally conscious. This is because awareness has not reached large-scale populations, despite the world being more aware of social and environmental issues. Consumers still do not see ethical and ecological problems associated with the fashion industry and continue to be targeted for large fast fashion retailers that sell a misguided version of consumerism. This study contributes to both academia and new fashion business models that seek to become more sustainable since it presents opportunities for investments and the obstacles that must be overcome for reaching CE within this sector.

The fashion industry is one of the most important industries for the world economy, but is also one of the most polluting. Some fashion companies have been adopting circular economy initiatives to combat this. Circular fashion (CF) results in cleaner production and reduces textile waste, but depends on consumer collaboration. Several studies analysing consumer CF issues worldwide have been recently published, but these studies are not common in emerging countries. This paper seeks to investigate the relationships between Brazilian consumers and CF. The methodology comprised a systematic literature review and survey. The main results show that, although young consumers are willing to change their clothing consumption habits and believe that fashion companies should be more sustainable, most of them never get involved in circular actions in the fashion chain. This paper seeks to fill a research gap on Brazilian CF, and contribute to both literature and the fashion industry in developing countries.

With the spread of the new Coronavirus, there was an increase in the generation of contaminated waste. Thus, healthcare waste management (HCWM) became even a greater challenge in hospitals due to Coronavirus easily spread. In this context, it was necessary to create tools that could aid healthcare facilities in evaluating their HCWM. Therefore, the objective of this article was to elaborate a support tool that helps in identifying the shortcomings of hospitals’ HCWM. For this purpose, the Health Service Waste Management Index was developed based on the selection of indicators in the area. The index was applied to six hospitals in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil. Its application meet the purpose of this research, since the results in the form of an index objectively summarize the reality of the HCWM in healthcare facilities. From the six hospitals investigated, four were classified as highly efficient. However, even though most of them were well evaluated, they still have difficulties with properly training their employees, which can be even a worse problem during a pandemic, when every precaution is extremely important to reduce the spread of the disease. Therefore, beyond this article contribution related to sustainability by demanding the hospitals to check which points of HCWM should be improved, it also adds academically by developing a tool with indicators that evaluate operational, human, economic and environmental factors in an innovative way.

Textile waste represents a significant socio-environmental challenge, while the circular economy has emerged as a strategic approach to mitigate its impacts. This study applies circular economy principles to address issues related to Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) textile waste in a multinational energy company located in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. Using an action research methodology, the study aims to develop an upcycling-based solution to promote the reuse of textile waste within the energy sector. The action research in this project was developed in four stages: Planning, Diagnosis, Implementation, and Analysis. Based on the solution identified, the results showed a potential reduction of approximately 2.7 tons of textile waste, diverting 8,000 pieces from co-processing to upcycling. Approximately 10,000 items made from repurposed materials will be produced, promoting the reuse of textile waste. In addition, the social impact will be significant, with an estimated benefit to 44 women, through the creation of direct jobs and increased household income for the families involved. The main challenges to be faced include the need for financial investment and the variability in the quality of recycled materials. The proposed actions can have a major impact on society and the environment, while also bringing innovation to the company by implementing circular strategies for secondary waste in the energy sector. Moreover, the study indicates that the circular economy offers a viable and sustainable approach to textile waste management.

The transition to a circular economy (CE) in the fashion industry remains particularly challenging in emerging economies, where policy frameworks are recent and fragmented, such as Brazil. While existing studies emphasize the role of public policies in enabling circular practices, there is limited understanding of how policy approaches shape sectoral transitions in specific contexts. This study combines a comparative analysis of policy frameworks with semi-structured interviews with sectoral actors to examine how CE policies influence the development of circularity in the Brazilian fashion industry. The results show that, in Brazil, CE policies are predominantly regulatory, providing a formal framework but failing to support sectoral transformation. Interview-based evidence indicates that this regulatory dominance is associated with implementation gaps, lack of sectoral specificity, and reduced economic viability for circular business models. At the same time, a distinctive feature of the Brazilian context is the integration of social justice objectives, linking circularity to income generation and the inclusion of vulnerable groups. These findings suggest that advancing circularity requires moving beyond regulatory approaches by strengthening incentive-based and strategic policy instruments, particularly through economic incentives, institutional coordination, and long-term planning.