Ben Turner

Project title: the feasibility of a digital passport for refurbished/repaired electronic devices.

Especially in higher-income countries, a continuous increase of human’s material consumption over the ecosystems’ capacity to recover is noticeable. The essential transition towards a circular economy (CE) is hardly progressing and the purchase of new electrical and electronic equipment, like mobile phones, still rises. To tackle this issue, circular products and services need to be promoted (e.g. refurbishment). The deployment of a digital product passport (DPP) in the EU is meant to support this, among others, by encouraging pro-circular consumer behavior through information provision. However, the type of data and its provision strategy are decisive, and current developments in DPP do not consider the consumer perspective in that respect.
By conducting a design science research, design recommendations for the DPP will be developed, so that it can support EU consumers in purchasing mobile phones in the most circular way. This thesis research will thus assist a purposeful DPP deployment and an effective CE transition.
 
What is the contribution to the Energy Transition Lab?
The circular economy and energy transition are closely intertwined. On the one hand, conscious usage of renewable energy is a key element of achieving an environment-friendly CE. On the other hand, the principles of CE can inspire an energy transition that tries not to be an additional burden on material consumption and thus ecosystems.
In this context, my research contributes to understanding how and to what extent information can support individuals in their pro-environmental consumption or related decision-making. Thus, my findings might also inform the required reduction in energy consumption.