Recent studies have advocated that digital technologies (DTs) positively affect the transition of a linear economy model to a circular economy (CE) model and facilitate enterprises in implementing circular strategies. Despite this general statement, the literature still overlooks how enterprises should apply various DTs of Industry 4.0 across the entire product lifecycle to operationalize CE-related strategies. To fill this gap, this paper proposes a conceptual framework exploring DTs in terms of CE operationalization from the perspective of the product lifecycle. Based on insights gained through a systematic literature review, we clarify how DTs can facilitate CE performance objectives through the three stages of the product lifecycle: product design, product use, and product recovery or recycling. Furthermore, we study how various Industry 4.0 DTs, such as the Internet of things, big data, and cloud computing, are utilized to operationalize the transition toward a CE. DTs applied to the service-oriented product-service system contributes innovation into circular business models to make full use of idle resources and provide high-quality personalized services. We have adopted three performance objectives: using fewer materials and resources, extending product lifespan, and closing the loop to evaluate the effects of DTs in promoting CE development. By investigating how DTs affect CE performance objectives, the conceptual framework developed in this paper advances the knowledge regarding the role of DTs as an enabler of CE from the product lifecycle. Our findings provide a practical reference enabling researchers and managers to harness the potential of DTs to support CE transition.

Purpose: Investigating potential social and socio-economic impacts should play a key role for the development of sustainable mobility alternatives. Social life cycle assessment (S-LCA) is becoming increasingly important to ensure holistic sustainability assessments. The present work aims at identifying and evaluating social and socio-economic impact subcategories in S-LCA. A novel participatory approach implying all concerned stakeholders is proposed to select relevant impact subcategories and thus contribute to a thorough interpretation of S-LCA results. It is applied to assess electric and conventional vehicles. Methodology: This paper describes a comprehensive step-by-step S-LCA framework. The innovation of this work consists in defining a structured S-LCA framework integrating a systematic approach based on two stages: (1) a sectorial risk analysis for the identification of impact subcategories and (2) a participatory approach for their prioritization. The proposed participatory approach considers all concerned stakeholders to enable the selection of the most relevant impact subcategories. A set of social inventory indicators is attributed to subcategories that were perceived as the most relevant. These are used to perform the social evaluation and carry out a full analysis in the result interpretation allowing thus to integrate a multi-actor perspective to the materiality assessment. Results: The defined S-LCA framework is implemented to compare two mobility scenarios, corresponding to electric and conventional vehicle technologies. A new set of mobility-related impact subcategories is proposed for users’ stakeholder. Following the new designed participatory approach, subcategories for all stakeholders are prioritized according to different actors’ perceptions. For example, “safe and healthy living conditions,” “local employment,” and “delocalization and migration” were perceived for local communities as the most relevant subcategories by the different consulted stakeholders (industrial, academic, and public actors and users). These results also showed that social significance varies depending on the consulted actors and on the geographical area of the study. Using PSILCA database, we have investigated the subcategories that were perceived as the most relevant. Results for the evaluation and interpretation phases are presented for both transportation technologies. Conclusions: This approach aims at increasing local relevance of S-LCA results and their representativeness. Results for the considered mobility scenarios have demonstrated the need to extend the scope of the materiality assessment, generally used for determining subcategories’ social significance from a single stakeholder perspective, by involving other stakeholders into the prioritization stage. Moreover, the proposed comprehensive S-LCA framework integrating the participatory approach is general enough to be applied to other product systems and sectors.

The exponential spread of digital technologies is shaping the economy and society around the globe. It paves the way for an ever-increasing amount of data which has become a fertile ground for growth and innovation, but also for improvements in human well-being and environmental performance. Digitalization can offer, through an enhanced knowledge of territorial resources and activities, increasing opportunities to achieve more circular economy models and thus more sustainable production and consumption systems. By contrast, many barriers can slacken the deployment of digital tools which need to be identified and tackled. The present work seeks to understand the nature of the opportunities and challenges that arise within the introduction of digitalization to promote the circular economy on a territorial level. Hence, through a systematic literature review, key issues associated with the deployment of digital tools are highlighted by emphasizing the areas of application; agriculture, transportation and energy. Subsequently, a “Strengths, Challenges, Opportunities, Responses, Effectiveness” (SCORE) approach is adopted to investigate through a qualitative analysis the past, present and future opportunities and challenges. These findings are positioned and discussed with a key actor managing the Paris-Saclay territory and transitioning towards more circular economy practices. Finally, recommendations are made for public actors to tackle the challenges and accommodate the digital transition towards more circular territories.