Circular Design for Business

At Design Forum Finland, we work to enhance the competitiveness of Finnish companies and aim to elevate Finnish design and product development to a world-class level through circular economy-based approaches.

Do you work in product or service development and are fluent in Finnish? Our free online course (in Finnish only) will provide you with an understanding of circular design in just ten hours. Register for the course now!

Did you know that globally, only 7% of materials are recycled after use? Design plays a critical role in ensuring that our planet’s limited resources are sufficient, as the majority of a product’s or service’s environmental impact is determined at the design stage.

Nature does not produce waste. We believe that waste is a flaw in design. However, in Finland, only 4% of materials are returned to the economic cycle after use. Circular design is an essential skill for pioneering companies that want to innovate and succeed sustainably.

The global ecological crisis is forcing companies to make their business operations more sustainable. The circular economy offers a solution to environmental challenges and holds a key role in creating a sustainable future.

Do you work in product or service development and are fluent in Finnish? Our free online course (in Finnish only) will provide you with an understanding of circular design in just ten hours.

The course content has been created through a collaboration between Design Forum Finland and Ethica Oy, with Ethica Oy serving as experts in circular design. The technical and pedagogical implementation of the course has been managed by MPS Prewise. Register for the course now!

The Ministry of Education and Culture funded the project as part of Finland’s Sustainable Growth Programme, which is supported by the EU’s one-time recovery instrument, NextGenerationEU.

Circular Design for Business webinar

A webinar presenting the topics of the online course was hold on Thursday, 5 December, at 10:00 (EET). The keynote speaker at the webinar was Deborah Sumter from the Netherlands. Sumter researched the evolving skill requirements and roles of designers within the circular economy in her 2021 doctoral dissertation at Delft University of Technology. She currently works as a researcher in circular design and entrepreneurship at the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences. The webinar was bilingual (Finnish – English).

Webinar programme

10.00 Marika Lehti / Design Forum Finland
Circular Design for Business course (in Finnish)
What is it about and what do you learn?

Ida Urmas / Ethica Oy
Product and service strategies in the circular economy (in Finnish)
How do product and service strategies interlink in the circular economy and why are the users in focus?

Questions and discussion (in Finnish)

10.30 Keynote:
Deborah Sumter / Amsterdam University of Applied Science
Circular Economy Competencies for Design
Presenting a framework to guide capacity building within education and practice (in English)

Questions and discussion (in English)

11.15 The event ends

Watch the video recording here