5 real-world examples of the circular economy
The circular economy promotes sustainability in IT by extending product life and reducing waste. These examples show how it can cut costs and align with environmental goals.
Sustainability has moved from a talking point to a business imperative for technology leaders. From the boardroom to the data center, CIOs and CTOs are being asked to digitize faster and do so sustainably.
The circular economy, which involves keeping materials, components and assets in use for as long as possible, is emerging as a framework for more innovative and responsible IT. The idea is straightforward: design out waste, extend the useful life of products and recover value at every stage. In practice, circularity means shifting from a take-make-dispose model to a system where reuse, refurbishment and responsible recycling are a natural part of day-to-day operations.
In technology, this shift is not just about recycling equipment. It's also about visibility across the hardware lifecycle, data-driven optimization of software and cloud resources, and secure, auditable end-of-life processes. The circular economy lets IT teams align environmental responsibility with cost savings, compliance and innovation.
As organizations face mounting pressure to report sustainability outcomes, IT departments are uniquely positioned to lead the way. Data-rich systems, precise asset tracking and measurable energy footprints make technology a natural champion for circular transformation, which turns what was once an environmental initiative into a competitive advantage.
"The most successful IT leaders are integrating circular principles into everyday decision-making, not treating them as an afterthought," said Matt Kelly, chief technology officer and vice president of standards and technology at the Global Electronics Association. "Extending the useful life of technology assets reduces costs, protects brand reputation and helps meet rising expectations from customers and regulators."
The circular economy in technology
Circularity matters to IT because technology infrastructure touches every part of the value chain, from sourcing chips and servers to disposing of retired devices and managing energy-hungry cloud workloads.
Hardware lifecycle management, e-waste reduction and software-driven optimization all fall under the same umbrella of sustainable IT practices. For CIOs, these practices make the business case, as they reduce waste, improve asset utilization, lower the total cost of ownership, limit compliance exposure and strengthen brand trust.
Many businesses now consider circularity necessary, and most adopters report positive effects on profit and growth. Yet, circular business models still account for less than 10% of operations in most sectors, according to a report from the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, underscoring the untapped potential of these models.
Additionally, analysts from the World Economic Forum estimated that circular models could generate up to $4.5 trillion in additional economic value by 2030, signaling both environmental and financial opportunity for IT-driven enterprises.
The following five real-world examples of the circular economy in action show how businesses already benefit from these strategies.
1. Standards make reuse safe and scalable
The electronics industry has reached a turning point where technology repair and reuse are becoming mainstream, Kelly said. Standards are driving that change.
"Standards like IPC-7711/21, which governs rework and repair of electronic assemblies, remove uncertainty," Kelly said. "They ensure a repaired product performs as well as new. That gives IT departments confidence to redeploy rather than replace."
Aligning procurement and maintenance with recognized standards can help organizations document technology performance and their sustainability outcomes.
"When you buy or redeploy against these specifications, you can show verifiable results in your ESG reports," he said. "That transparency builds trust."
2. Circular IT as an operational strategy
Stacy Savage, founder and CEO of environmental consulting firm Zero Waste Strategies, has spent two decades helping companies rethink e-waste and working with legislators to pass laws that encourage the circular economy. Her client list, which includes Dell, Apple, AT&T and the City of Austin, among others, shows how seriously large enterprises take circularity.
"The circular economy for tech is a shift from the buy-use-discard model," Savage said. "We have to connect every phase: maintain, reuse, refurbish and recycle. That means treating laptops, servers and peripherals as assets with recoverable value, not disposable commodities."
Savage said IT departments should manage lifecycle ownership as they would any other critical asset. This includes the following:
- Tracking serial numbers.
- Tracking repair history.
- Checking the warranty status.
- Assigning value tiers to devices to determine which can be redeployed internally, donated or recycled.
- Working with certified refurbishers and recyclers.
If organizations can't trace where their equipment went, they take on potential legal and reputational risks, Savage said. Her clients have found that visibility and verified partners decrease total procurement cycles, reduce costs and protect sensitive data.
"Circular IT isn't just about sustainability," Savage said. "It's about compliance, brand integrity and talent recruitment. People want to work for companies that take responsibility."
3. Policy lessons from e-waste laws
Savage helped craft the Texas Computer TakeBack Law in 2007 and the Texas TV TakeBack Law in 2011, which established extended producer responsibility (EPR) for electronics. The principles behind those laws still apply to modern enterprise IT, she said, because they require producers to take back and recycle devices responsibly.
"They taught us that clarity and infrastructure matter: You need definitions, certified collection networks and engagement across the supply chain," she said.
Organizations can also incorporate EPR-style clauses into vendor contracts. For example, they can define what's covered, require certified processing and demand proof of proper data sanitization. That's how to operationalize compliance, Savage said.
4. Software-driven sustainability
Circular IT doesn't stop at hardware. In the cloud era, software-driven optimization is the digital equivalent of reuse. Whether an organization uses a hybrid or multi-cloud environment, it can use the principles of continuous optimization to maximize every resource.
Many enterprises have idle or overprovisioned cloud resources. When they optimize their resources, they can reduce that waste, which saves money and reduces the physical infrastructure that cloud providers must build to meet that demand. Continuous automation can help with that, as it narrows the insight-to-action window to drive cost savings and sustainability benefits.
5. Emerging standards and digital traceability
The Global Electronics Association's Kelly said the next frontier is digital product information and traceability, including digital product passports that record materials, repair history and environmental impact.
"These tools make redeployment safer and faster," he said. "They let organizations verify where components came from, how they were processed and whether they meet sustainability criteria. That's how circularity becomes a managed process instead of an exception."
With global initiatives such as the EU's Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation, traceability will soon be a compliance requirement as well as a best practice, Kelly said.
Lessons for IT leaders
To fully embrace the circular economy, IT leaders can embrace the following best practices:
- Design for reuse. Buy products based on repairability and traceability standards, and require vendor certifications.
- Extend hardware life. Track devices, redeploy them internally and measure their recovery value before recycling.
- Integrate sustainability into operations. Treat lifecycle management as part of IT's core mission, not a side project.
- Use digital tools. Inventory systems, automation, AI and digital product passports make circular practices measurable.
- Mind compliance and reputation. Certified partners and a clear chain of custody reduce risk and build stakeholder trust.
"Circularity isn't just about doing the right thing for the planet; it's about doing the smart thing for the business," Kelly said.
Christine Campbell is a freelance writer specializing in business and B2B technology.
