These three models represent radically different mindsets for managing resources:
- Linear Economy (“Take – Make – Waste”)
- Concept: Raw materials are extracted, used once, and discarded.
- Hotel Example: Single-use plastic toiletry bottles – used once and thrown away.
- Recycling Economy
- Concept: Adds a loop at the end – materials are reprocessed into lower-value products (downcycling).
- Hotel Example: PET bottles turned into carpets – which themselves cannot be recycled again.
- Circular Economy
- Concept: Waste and pollution are eliminated by design. Materials stay in continuous, high-value loops through reuse, repair, or reprocessing.
- Hotel Example: Durable refillable dispensers with returnable bulk containers – designed to stay in the loop indefinitely.
