Circular Material Flows, the Twin Transition of Manufacturing, and the Future of Labour

In this chapter, we focus on the “twin transition” of manufacturing and the future of labour within the context of the circular economy and ocean plastics. Our point of departure is the sustainability challenges associated with ocean plastics, the fishing industry, and local coastal communities, and we first describe the existing challenges before presenting issues related to sustainability and circularity. We then discuss the related future opportunities for the labour market given that we are beginning to see the re-imagining and re-routing of material from linear to circular flows. We illustrate this through presenting the “microfactory” concept first developed under the Peniche Ocean Watch Initiative in Portugal, where the re-routing and re-purposing of discarded fishing nets is done on-site, in the local context, to be later re-imagined into new forms of use, in this case, recyclable furniture produced through large-scale additive manufacturing. We then return to our overarching discussion – how a turn to nature might also be a turn for the future of labour, and conclude by pinpointing how this turn offers an alternative way forward – one that by staying close to nature is inclusive, sustainable, and circular.