The world is striving for the transition from a linear economy to a circular economy. The linear economy that emerged after the first industrial revolution is often referred to “take-make-throw” model (Cui, 2021). It is a wasteful consumption and manufacturing of resources with severe environmental impact. In comparison, the circular economy is divergent from this damaging approach and can be defined as a model that attempts to include the needs of businesses, societies, and the environment (Cui, 2021). This model is directly involved in the provision of sustainable services and manufacturing that aims to proliferate their products as much as possible.
Currently, Tesla guides its economic development towards the sustainable approach of circular economy through their batteries for electric vehicles. The company’s electric vehicles are powered by batteries that, unlike fossil fuels, which emit hazardous pollutants without the possibility for reuse, can be recycled and recovered (Tesla, n.d.). The company claims that its batteries are not disposed of in the landfill and are 100% recycled (Tesla, n.d.). Therefore, materials for Tesla batteries are refined and placed in a cell and remain within until the end of their life cycle. Then valuable ingredients are recovered and reused.
However, this is not the only aspect of the company’s circular economy. The company’s factories are designed to be sustainable and minimize the amount of unrecyclable waste to the minimum. Its battery producing Gigafactory in Nevada was designed to be covered with solar panels and aims to produce 24,000 KW of energy for manufacturing purposes (Tesla, 2021). The company is utilizing renewable energy in every operation possible “factories, sales, service or delivery locations, or through Supercharger Network” (Tesla, 2021, p.21). In the future, the company plans to launch the Robotaxi project to address disproportionate carbon emissions from regular taxis and reduce its imprint on Earth (Tesla, 2021). Tesla’s approach to the environment is elaborate and tries to encompass every unit of its activities globally.
5 examples of circular economy taken from the book “An introduction to circular economy”:
- Aluminium used by Apple in its computers and phones.
- Patagonia’s lifetime warranty for return and repair.
- Michelin tyre example.
- Sharing platforms such as AirBnB, Uber, Grab, Mobike.
- “Rice-fish-duck” system in China, Vietnam, Philippines
Reference List
Cui, M. (2021) Key Concepts and Terminology. In: Liu L and Ramakrishna S (eds), An introduction to circular economy. Springer Singapore, pp. 17–34.
Tesla (2021) Impact report 2020.
Tesla (no date) Battery Recycling.