Circular economy has emerged as a sustainable alternative to the traditional, linear, extract-produce-use-dump economy. The scientific society, practitioners, policymakers, and business sectors are all actively taking part in driving the transition toward circular economy in their own sectors. Every sector is striving to address the environmental issues of their own area, and to find solutions to the problem of resource scarcity. However, there is a lack of comprehensive studies on the general status of circular economy research and applied projects. Finland aims to be a global pioneer in this field, which is why there is a tremendous boost in research in various fields of sustainable materials management. Therefore, there is a need to have a better perspective of the research society’s efforts to accelerate the transition to circular economy. The objective of this paper is to review scientific research and practices of circular economy transition in Finland, in order to categorize and analyze them. The paper aims to give an insight into the current status and provide a comprehensive understanding of the trend changes during the past 20 years. The analysis shows that there is growing attention to circular economy in many research fields, researchers and practitioners in all fields have responded to the need of the society. However, the recycling-based ‘end-of-pipe’ interpretation of circular economy is still more dominant than developing and implementing strategies for circular product design, dematerializing society, and developing service-based business models. It is important to bear in mind that circular economy is about much more than improved resource flows and waste management practices. Achieving a circular economy needs the engagement of the society, it needs invention and innovation and it also requires the creation of new technologies, products, services, and business models. This study gives a comprehensive perspective at the national level and addresses the key actions and sectors which require more investment and attention from the scientific community to boost the transition toward circular economy. There are some limitation in this study derived from the method of data collection and selection of databases. Due to this, there may be valuable works that were not published, or only in the Finnish language and were, therefore, not identified in this study.

Phosphorus (P) recovery and recycling play a crucial role in improving resource efficiency, sustainable nutrient management and moving toward circular economy. Increasing demand for fertilizers, signs of geopolitical constraints, and high discharge of P to waterbodies are the other reasons to pursue the circularity of P. Various research have been carrying out and several processes have been developed for P-recovery from different resources. However, there is still a huge unexplored potential for P-recovery specially in the regional framework from the four main P-rich waste resources: food waste, manure, mining waste, and sewage sludge. This study reviews recovery methods of P from these secondary resources comprehensively. Additionally, it analyzes the Nordic viewpoint of P-cycle by evaluating Nordic reserves, demands, and secondary resources to gain a systematic assessment of how Nordic countries could move toward circular economy of P. Results of this study show that secondary resources of P in Nordic countries have the potential of replacing mineral fertilizer in these countries to a considerable extent. However, to overcome the challenges of P-recovery from studied resources, policymakers and researchers need to take decisions and make innovation along each other to open the new possibilities for Nordic economy.

The present study investigates how the original sewage sludge characteristics influence the composition of sewage sludge-based chars for land applications. Sewage sludge from two different wastewater treatment plants in Sweden was pyrolyzed at 500, 700, and 900 °C, and the resulting chars were analyzed. Thermodynamic equilibrium calculations (TEC), together with chemical fractionation, were implemented to simulate the char after the pyrolysis process at different temperatures. The results showed that, in general, for both the municipal sewage sludge (MSS), phosphorus (P) was significantly retained in the char at various temperatures. However, no specific correlation could be found between the pyrolysis temperature and the amount of P remaining. With regard to the heavy metals removed from the char after the pyrolysis reaction, the concentrations of copper, chromium, lead, nickel, zinc, and cadmium were below the limits of the Swedish regulations for farmland application.

Objective: The rapid digitalization of healthcare has implications for its carbon footprint. The goal of this scoping review was to identify how digitalization is proceeding in healthcare and the mechanisms through which it can affect the climate impacts of healthcare. Methods: The scoping review was conducted following PRISMA guidelines and utilized the databases Web of Science and PubMed to identify literature on the climate impacts of digitalization in healthcare. The literature search identified 32 relevant studies. In addition, diagnostics, overdiagnosis, self-tracking technologies, and artificial intelligence (AI) were identified as key topics not sufficiently represented in the literature review, and related articles were added into the material. Results: Most carbon footprint analyses focused on telemedicine solutions, but research topics also included health informatics, education, diagnoses, overdiagnosis, treatments, medical appliances, robotics, and AI. Regarding telemedicine, the carbon footprint of the virtual consultations ranged between 0·005 and 3 kgCO2e, while the in-person healthcare clinic visits ranged between 0·57 and 178 kgCO2e depending on the mode of transport used, the difference in the carbon footprint being 79–99%. Although the transparency of carbon footprint analyses was often low, system boundaries were often different, and the evidence for digitalization decreasing or increasing climate impacts was limited. Conclusions: The findings highlight the need for future research on these topics and that leadership and setting strategic goals in particular were missing in the literature. Our scoping review also presents a framework for digitalization-related topics and means for advancing a lower carbon footprint in healthcare.

Climate change is an increasingly important problem, and efficient mitigation requires actions in all fields. While the impact of individual medical devices is small, the total impact of all the devices is large, and their use is also growing with the increasing elderly population. Therefore, it is urgent that this study improves knowledge of the impacts of the production and use of medical devices to find ways to decrease them. This study examines the carbon footprint of two prevalent blood glucose monitoring methods for diabetes management: self‐monitoring of blood glucose and continuous glucose monitoring systems. Using cradle‐to‐grave life cycle assessment, the carbon footprint of six different devices across both techniques is evaluated. Components of these devices are disassembled, weighed, and the different plastic parts are chemically analyzed using Fourier‐transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) to accurately quantify their material composition. The results of this study show that the carbon footprint of self‐monitoring devices is generally lower compared to continuous glucose monitoring devices, unless the testing frequency of the glucose level is higher than normal, or the device is used for shorter than average periods. The primary contributors to the carbon footprint of self‐monitoring devices are disposable strips and lancets. Regarding the continuous method, a major part of the carbon footprint is attributed to the plastic material and the instruction leaflet. This research provides important insights for product manufacturers, policymakers, healthcare providers, and individuals with diabetes, for more environmentally conscious choices in diabetes management technologies.