Overview
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ABSTRACT
Eco-design is an approach aiming at reducing the environmental impact of goods, services and manufacturing processes at each step of their life cycles. It is identified as one of the levers that companies can use to fight climate change and reduce negative environmental impacts linked to their products, services or processes. Due to its implementation specificities, ecodesign may contribute to the organization’s innovation capacity and management modernization. This article introduces the concept of ecodesign, the specifics of the approach as well as the key elements for a successful implementation.
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Agnès SZABO: Co-Managing Director - DAYnamics, Poitiers, France
INTRODUCTION
Eco-design is one of the initiatives launched in the second half of the 20th century by companies to better control the use of their resources and their impact on the environment. It is widely accepted that 80% of a product's environmental impact is determined at the design stage. Implemented right from the design phase, eco-design is a preventive approach that helps reduce the environmental impact of products, services and production processes at every stage of their life cycle. Thanks to this "life-cycle" approach, eco-design opens companies up to a circular vision that goes beyond the classic, linear "supply-production-use-end-of-life" vision, and offers a solution for decoupling economic growth and environmental degradation. Eco-design has been identified as one of the levers available to companies to combat climate change and, more broadly, limit the environmental impact of their products, services or processes. This approach also directly addresses one of the 17 challenges of the UN Agenda 2030 sustainable development goals: "Establish sustainable consumption and production patterns". More and more companies are initiating eco-design initiatives. In addition to presenting what eco-design is, this article will look at the various reasons why companies are interested in this approach, and how to deploy an eco-design project (key success factors, points to watch out for, players, methods, tools, resources, etc.).
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KEYWORDS
corporate social responsability | eco-innovation | circular economy | eco-design | sustainable development goals
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Context
Bibliography
Standards and norms
- ISO Environmental management systems – Guidelines for integrating eco-design - NF EN ISO 14006 - 2020
- ISO Management environnemental : Intégration des aspects environnementaux dans la conception et le développement de produits - ISO/TR 14062 - 2003
- ISO Environmental management: Life cycle assessment – Principles and framework - ISO 14040 - 2006
- ISO Environmental management: Life cycle assessment...
Regulations
Code de l'Environnement – Partie règlementaire – Livre V : prévention des pollutions, des risques et des nuisances – Titre IV : déchets, November 2021.
Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 December 2006 concerning the Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH), (...), Official Journal of the European Union, L 396/1 of 30...
Directory
Organizations – Federations – Associations (non-exhaustive list)
ADEME
Agence de la transition écologique – public establishment under the authority of the Ministry of Ecological Transition and the Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Innovation
AFNOR
...
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