Creating Circular Futures: Social, Ecological, and Political Pathways of Bioeconomy Transitions

The field of sustainability transitions, circular economy, and bioeconomy research explores how societies move toward resource efficiency, ecological balance, and social inclusion in the face of intensifying climate, biodiversity, and inequality crises. Over the past decade, policy frameworks worldwide have elevated circularity and the bioeconomy as central strategies for sustainable development. Yet, such transitions remain uneven and contested, shaped by local histories, governance structures, and socio‑cultural realities. Recent scholarship and evidence presented at the Sustainability, Circularity, and Bioeconomy Conference (SCB 2026) highlight how emerging bioeconomy pathways across forestry, agriculture, tourism, biomass utilisation, and rural livelihoods intertwine technological, social, and political dimensions. These studies reveal that circular transitions are not simply technocratic shifts or market corrections but negotiated processes embedded in community practices, indigenous knowledge systems, and relational frameworks of sustainability. Despite astonishing advances in biomass innovation and bioenergy technologies, gaps remain around social justice, institutional legitimacy, gendered participation, and post‑colonial governance—highlighting the need for an integrated understanding that spans ecology, culture, and power.This Research Topic aims to examine how circular bioeconomy transitions are enacted, contested, and governed across diverse global contexts. It invites interdisciplinary and cross‑regional studies that bridge environmental, institutional, and socio‑cultural perspectives. Key objectives include analysing how local actors interpret and realise circularity, identifying the conditions enabling or constraining bioeconomic innovations, and exploring how notions of justice, inclusion, and visibility shape the transformation toward circular futures. The Topic also encourages theoretical contributions connecting sustainability transitions, political ecology, and circular economy governance to empirical insights from different world regions. Central questions involve: How do communities and institutions co‑produce circular bioeconomy practices? What tensions emerge between global sustainability goals and local realities? And how can bioeconomy pathways integrate indigenous knowledge, gender equality, and policy coherence?To gather further insights within these boundaries, we welcome contributions addressing, but not limited to, the following themes:-Circular agriculture, regenerative farming, and ecological productivity-Forest‑based bioeconomy, biomass utilisation, and governance legitimacy-Indigenous stewardship, traditional knowledge, and community innovation in circular systems-Gendered, post‑colonial, and justice‑oriented dimensions of circular livelihoods-Policy, finance, and institutional frameworks shaping sustainable transitions-Digital technologies, AI, and platform economies enabling circular practices-Sociomaterial, organisational, and behavioural dynamics of sustainability transitions-Green Total Factor Productivity (TFP), waste valorisation, and modular biorefineries-Cooperation, cultural tourism, and circular entrepreneurship-Comparative analyses connecting global sustainability agendas to local ecological realitiesThe Research Topic also seeks to stimulate interdisciplinary dialogue and international collaboration across the Governance, Accountability and Sustainability Research Cluster at Paris School of Business and its global network of academic, policy, industry, and community partners. We particularly encourage contributions that combine rigorous empirical inquiry with theoretical innovation to inform governance, policy, and practice in advancing equitable circular bioeconomy transitions. Topic editors: Gunjan Saxena, Naheem Jabbar, Huy Quang Lê Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/82852/creating-circular-futures-social-ecological-and-political-pathways-of-bioeconomy-transitions