Our social relations are being reshaped by technology on a daily basis, and so are the urban spaces where we live and work. Nowhere has this been more tangible than in the world engulfed by the COVID-19 pandemic that has contributed to an acceleration in technological change, enabling certain businesses to stay open digitally and keeping diverse social actors (digitally) connected more than ever.

Digital social platforms and mobile apps have also helped to empower citizens whilst enabling access to diverse circular economy spaces and practices. Such digitally enabled circular economies recognize unused resources as wasted assets rather than simply ‘waste’. They include re-use, repair and collaborative, sharing infrastructures such as clothing swaps, second-hand markets, repair cafés or food sharing apps, to name a few.

Why ‘diverse’ circular economies?

Drawing upon diverse economies literature (Gibson-Graham, 2006), the concept of diverse circular economies seeks to render more visible in scholarship and social practice those circular economic spaces and practices that represent a much-needed alternative to mainstream capitalist practices (Lekan & Rogers, 2020). While they may embody both for-profit (capitalist) and not-for-profit characteristics, they are distinct from conventional economies insofar as their primary ambition is to generate value for people and the planet.

In doing so, diverse circular economies help to build (localized) economies whereby social relations (though increasingly digitized) govern economic life, not other way round. In this sense, they are in line with Polanyi (1944) who postulated a shift from market-oriented economy towards embeddedness of the economic system in social relations.

As COVID-19 challenges us to rethink the systems underpinning the economy—with circular economy and digital technologies already recognized as key enablers of the COVID-19 recovery—digitally-enabled diverse circular economic spaces now deserve more attention than ever. We will now take a closer look into an example of such circular economy space and practice, which serves as a point of departure for an engaging debate on issues related to social inclusion and justice when pursuing such increasingly digitized alternative economic models.

“As COVID-19 challenges us to rethink the systems underpinning the economy, digitally-enabled diverse circular economy spaces now deserve more attention than ever”

The story of Tedoy: Consumo Colaborativo Desprendido

Tedoy (EN: ‘I give you’) is a community foundation from Santiago (Chile) whose North Star is to promote Consumo Colaborativo Desprendido (Collaborative Consumption of Discarded Goods) primarily through digital social networks and social media platforms, and more specifically a number of Facebook groups active across the country (#TedoyGrupos). By digitally connecting diverse social actors who freely give away unused items to members of a particular group and/or request specific items that a group member might have and is willing to gift rather than dump, this enterprise helps to build collaborative, environmentally friendly and prosperous communities based on trust.

“This enterprise helps to build collaborative, environmentally friendly and prosperous communities based on trust”

Even if such communities tend to be rather virtual, they foster a sense of a shared purpose and belonging, which is a basic human need, yet so notable during these challenging times. As Tedoy’s mission statement goes: 'Collaborative consumption of unused items generates trust, which is the principal factor for human happiness' (ES: 'El consumo colaborativo desprendido genera confianza, factor principal para la felicidad humana').

Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the initiative has continued to run and has enabled individuals to give away/obtain necessary products. The enterprise is currently in the launch phase of a mobile app (#TedoyApp), which will help to better manage users and activities, and will further boost connectivity between individuals and other enterprises whilst fostering re-circulation of resources (‘gifts’).

It feels good to give. It helps us practice non-attachment to material things, declutter our spaces and live a more sustainable, mindful life – a trend spearheaded by famous minimalists such as Marie Kondo. Our gifted, unused items that no longer ‘spark joy’ in our homes, can instead spark joy in our local communities in surprising ways. For example, Tedoy accepts gifted items such as furniture when refurbishing vacant urban spaces to host diverse community projects (#TedoyEspacio). Volunteers also gift their time and skills, as you can see in the pictures below.

Confronting the digital divide

Since collaborative, diverse circular initiatives increasingly rely on digital tools to function and guarantee citizen participation, we must not overlook the problem of digital divide, which COVID-19 has only further exposed. In other words, the lack of access to Internet and/or ownership of an electronic device coupled with limited capacity to maintain and utilize it perpetuates social divide and may exclude low income and homeless individuals from participating in circular collaborative (gift) economies.

In fact, these vulnerable individuals are the ones who could greatly benefit from the free procurement of ‘pre-loved’, yet basic and much needed goods, and the reinforced sense of social togetherness through such alternative digital platforms. It is therefore necessary to mobilize private, public and social sector organizations to collaborate in order to share digital capital: to offer free WiFi hotspots and universal access to required devices altogether with instructions for use. This could ultimately strengthen society’s immunity and adaptive capacity to external shocks such as COVID-19 whilst contributing to circular economy.

“It is necessary to mobilise private, public and social sector organisations to collaborate in order to share digital capital”

And what about the surveillance capitalism?

Apart from the issue of digital divide, COVID-19 has also stirred concerns over enhanced surveillance capitalist practices associated with the use of digital platforms. As we tend to spend more time in digital milieu and COVtech apps increasingly trace our movements, the concept of ‘digital enclosures’ begs further scrutiny. Digital enclosures refer to virtual spaces that allow for individuals or companies to own, operate and claim ownership over the information generated by the users of their apps (Andrejevic, 2007).

Subject to the capitalist logics of control and profit-making, such spaces foster commodification, colonialism and circulation of our personal data by and across private companies for a more targeted advertising (Tsalikis, 2019). While this is the price we pay for using some social media platforms free of charge, these digital data could be made accessible to research circles and governments that could use it to contribute toward social good.

As diverse circular economy initiatives tend to rely on social media platforms for us (users) to communicate and/or request specific items we may need, a question emerges as to what extent are we tempted to respond to omnipresent ads that are being mysteriously generated and offer new (rather than second-hand and/or soon-to-be repaired) sought-after goods. Shall we question our loyalty to certain digital platforms when engaging with diverse circular economy activities?

“Shall we question our loyalty to certain digital platforms when engaging with diverse circular economy activities?”

Growing concerns over corporate surveillance and tech monopolies have opened up debates over the need for digital socialism whereby proprietary social media networks are decentralized and ‘transformed into local and global digital commons’ (Kwet, 2020) that directly place control into the hands of the people. For example, initiatives such as Tedoy aim to launch an App to create independent digital social networks that protect users’ data and generate trust on a digital level. As the CEO of Tedoy mentioned: “There is a need for transformation, migration toward a community-oriented model, toward a system, which enables to manage personal data more ethically. No data will be sold. It will never be our revenue model. It’s about evolution, not revolution of our economic system”.

We are also witnessing the growth of collectively owned and democratically controlled ‘platform coops’, which challenge the power dynamics embodied in capitalist ownership structures. These alternative structures are characterized by participatory decision-making, transparency, data portability, and adaptive capacity to address emerging community needs (see Platform Cooperativism Consortium). Their premises are aligned with those of diverse circular initiatives, especially regarding solidarity, social inclusion and distrust in conventional extractive models.

“These alternative structures are characterised by participatory decision-making, transparency, data portability, and adaptive capacity to address emerging community needs”

‘Platform coops’ may include cooperatively owned online marketplaces (e.g. Fairmondo), city-owned platform cooperatives (e.g. Allbnb) or decentralised models revolving around peer-to-peer interactions, among others. They may also host second-hand market places. The fact that we do not often hear of them (as compared to platforms such as Amazon) implies that they are not devoid of challenges.

What they usually lack is effective capital-raising and the right set of skills to achieve an effect of scale without losing values that lead to their emergence in the first place (see Scholz, 2016). The success of collectively owned platforms/apps may be achieved once public authorities inject some capital (e.g. use European funds for innovation) to subsidize software development and maintenance. While backing from political parties may raise concerns over lobbyism and contested socio-political interests, the lack of political backing has been associated with the failure of digital platforms such as Uber to be financially strong enough as to avoid being seized by big companies (Morozov, 2018).

Another way to increase the success of socially-owned platforms/apps, could concern the creation of an ecosystem of such multiple, localized and interconnected digital technologies so that they could together confront the brutal laws of competition. Despite the obvious challenges, one, however, cannot deny that, ‘the struggle for different technologies is essential to the struggle for visions of a different society’ (Genovese, 2019).

Towards a more resilient, immune economic system?

It is up to us whether we actively partake in diverse circular economies for the sake of our host planet, every living being and our future. As these alternative circular economic spaces continue to proliferate and stimulate the development of digital social capital that helps to glue together societies otherwise at risk of being disconnected, they can help us to better navigate towards a more just global economic transition.

However, the extent to which such transition will be ‘just’ depends on whether entrepreneurs, governments—and we as individuals—will join the social movement to confront crony capitalism and the unaccountable power exerted by private companies over social infrastructure through digital means. This is especially relevant in the case of those diverse (circular) economic practices that are not just digitally-enabled but whose existence depends on digital means. As Genovese (2019) recognized in the context of circular economies by quoting Illich (1973), there is a need for convivial technologies that are user-empowering, offer a space for creativity and help to find ‘individual freedom realized in personal interdependence’.

*Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay (2020)*

Many thanks to Phelippe Andrés Romero Muzz, CEO of Tedoy, who contributed to the Cresting project (and more specifically sub-project 4.3 investigating the role of social enterprises in the circular economy) by partaking in the interview in March 2020. The interview was complemented with a short video featuring other exciting ongoing projects run by Tedoy: check it out!