Being Circular in a Linear Economy: Local Practitioners as Everyday Intermediaries in the Transition to a Circular Economy in Scotland

Studies about the transition to a circular economy (CE) often focus on high-level questions of resource use and consumption, addressing questions of technical innovation and industrial production. Yet a transition to a circular economy is a societal issue. In this study, we respond to criticisms that the CE often portrays individuals as passive user-consumers, and investigate how smaller-scale actors - people working in the CE at the local level - are engaging in the transition. We present findings from empirical data gathered through thirty semi-structured interviews with professional CE practitioners working in public (local government), private (SMEs – small-medium sized enterprises) and third sector (charity/social enterprise) organisations in Scotland. Drawing on insights from sustainability transitions and intermediary actors, we find that CE practitioners working within organisations and small businesses in our study take on behaviours and practices in their everyday roles and responsibilities often attributed to intermediary actors. We show how CE practitioners in Scotland are actively linking actors, resources and skills across the CE, and translating the behaviours and practices necessary for a successful transition to CE to the everyday context. Adding to theory on intermediary actors, we call these actors everyday intermediaries emphasising that while their professional everyday roles and responsibilities are not intermediary roles, these small-scale CE take on roles mediating the CE to wider society. We add to the growing body of literature about the contributions of social science in understanding the transition to the CE and empirically demonstrate the active and engaged role of smaller-scale actors in bringing change through processes of intermediation.