Circular Economy in the Nordic Real Estate and Construction Industry: A Policy Review

Circular economy (CE) has gained attention in the real estate and construction policy, practice, and research in the past few years. This study explores how two neighboring Nordic countries and EU member states, Sweden and Finland, are transitioning toward circularity in the real estate and construction industry context. The aim is reached through a review of CE policies on the national and industrial level, as well as a practice review on the city level. Common features for both countries include the promotion of circular business models, with digitalization seen as an enabler for circular economy. This indicates that the policies from both countries have moved beyond the so-called long loops and recycling focus. Still, much more focus should be placed on the short loops, such as sharing and access-based models, which are more efficient in reaching sustainable consumption targets.