Pharmaceutical packaging is a complex group of products, the main purpose of which is to protect the medicine and forward information. Pharmaceutical packaging waste is generated and accumulated along the various phases and practices of the value chain. In general, the amount of packaging has been growing during the increasing political pressure to reduce waste and to increase the circulation of materials. The goals and solutions are expected to be found in the circular economy; however, the literature on circular pharmaceutical packaging is lacking. This study explores the key factors when promoting the circularity of pharmaceutical packaging along its value chain. This was conducted by reviewing the legislation, elaborating the value chain and analysing the data from focus group discussions with stakeholders. The results show that various barriers, such as legislation, a lack of information or interaction between stakeholders, but also rigid practices, block product design for circularity. In the developing circularity of packaging, the causal links along the value chain must be understood. Chemical recycling technologies are expected to resolve the challenges of maintaining clean cycles. Further studies are needed to demonstrate the environmental benefits of increasing circularity along the value chain of pharmaceutical packaging.

The governance of the transition to a circular economy (CE) within the textile industry is a topical, complex, and political issue that is inadequately understood. This empirical paper provides insights into companies’ expectations of governance in terms of the circularity of textiles. Theoretically, this study contributes to the literature on transition governance by viewing the shift toward a circular economy through the multilevel perspective (MLP) on socio-technical transitions. The focus is on companies’ expectations of governance and how these differ between niche- and regime-level companies. The study was conducted by interviewing 27 companies in Finland, a country that aspires to be a forerunner in the CE. The results show that textile companies differ in their expectations depending on the activities related to circularity and modes of governance. Companies operating at the niche level call for either strict regulations or self-governing methods to create a more supportive operating environment, while companies at the regime level perceive the opportunities of collaborative governance. The lack of shared expectations of governance can destabilize the regime practices, which can further act as a lock-in and prevent a transition to the circularity of textiles. Accelerating the transition toward circularity requires new ways of collaboration between companies and the government but also between companies. The results of this study increase the understanding of companies’ preparedness to accept governance processes and new policy tools for CE.

The proposed strategy for increased reuse and recycling of textiles provides a starting point for the work towards a more sustainable textile and fashion sector in the Nordic region. It is focused on the increased collection, sorting, reuse and recycling in the region and thereby provides one part of the sustainability puzzle in the sector. The proposed strategy includes incentives, policy measures and measures needed on local, regional, national and Nordic levels to ensure successful implementation. The report is part of the Nordic Prime Ministers' overall green growth initiative: “The Nordic Region – leading in green growth” - read more in the web magazine “Green Growth the Nordic Way” at www.nordicway.org or at www.norden.org/greengrowt

The original paper has been corrected to properly relink the tables with the areas they are mentioned in the main text.