The hidden drivers enabling the circular economy

What do some of the more surprising stories of scale teach us about implementing the circular economy? In this episode of the Circular Economy Show, Fin is joined by Rachel O’Reilly, Global Human Sustainability Design Director at Accenture, to discuss their upcoming report. The report, titled ‘Circularity is Working’ provides direction on how to improve the consumer adoption of circularity. From musicians in Liverpool reinvesting savings from second-hand instruments, to informal sharing systems in Hamburg, the conversation explores businesses and communities where circularity is succeeding. Rachel shares insights into the hidden drivers of circularity and explains why they could be the secret to normalising, embedding, and scaling circularity. If you enjoyed this episode, then please share with your colleagues, or leave us a review or comment on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or YouTube. The report will be attached in the show notes upon its release in Spring 2026. #circulareconomy #podcast #narrative 00:00 - 00:51 Intro 00:51 - 04:41 Introducing 'Circularity is Working' 04:41 - 06:35 Liverpool musicians & the personal economics of circularity 06:35 - 08:43 Rethinking measurement & long-term resilience 08:43 - 13:19 The power of social infrastructure 13:19 - 14:44 What can we learn from localised solutions? 14:44 - 16:43 Are We Underestimating People? 16:43 - 21:46 Narrative and the circular economy 21:46 - 24:15 Outro ------ Thank you for watching this video. The Ellen MacArthur Foundation is an international charity whose mission is to accelerate the transition to a circular economy in order to tackle some of the biggest challenges of our time, such as climate change, biodiversity loss, waste, and pollution. Subscribe to The Ellen MacArthur Foundation for more insightful videos -   / @ellenmacarthurfoundation   Find out more about our work here: www.ellenmacarthurfoundation.org Follow us online on these channels: Instagram:   / ellenmacarthurfoundation   LinkedIn:   / ellen-macarthur-foundation   Website: http://www.ellenmacarthurfoundation.org