A systems thinking approach to stimulating and enhancing resource efficiency and circularity in households

Households are highly resource intensive in terms of energy consumption and waste generation, and resource utilisation and management in households has wider implications at the national level. This paper applies systems thinking using a circular economy approach at the household level for the first time. The approach takes into consideration energy supply and demand, waste management and resource recovery from waste in a single system. Combining energy and waste management analysis enables better understanding of the systems at household level and can address resource efficiency, fuel poverty and environmental issues more effectively at the national level. This study adopts the Systems Thinking Approach to Resource Recovery (STARR) framework to identify the potential improvements that can be made within the system. Three models of households on energy and waste management, including “waste-and-energy”, “waste-to-energy” and “reduced consumption” models, are examined through assessments of economic, environmental and social dimensions. These models are further explored through different scenarios, by considering the adoption of renewable solar photovoltaic (PV) energy supply, increasing recycling rate, integrating energy from waste into household and reducing consumption of resources and waste generation. The scenario with the least environmental impact involves adopting a concerted approach through switching to solar PV, increasing recycling rate from 45 to 60% and sending 100% of residual waste into energy recovery (i.e. within the “waste-to-energy” model), with global warming potential (GWP) of −1308 kg CO2-equivalent/year and total saving/income of £680 per year, on a one household basis.