“The circular economy is a natural manifestation of where innovation is going”
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This article is part of the 'Celebrating Circular` initiative and story collection that spotlights trailblazer Irish businesses making strides towards a more sustainable and low-carbon economy.
It aims to highlight the encouraging achievements of companies that participated in the MODOS circular economy training provided by Local Authorities to local businesses and supported by the Regional Waste Management Planning Offices and Dublin City Council.
Expert Insight
Declan Bogan is a senior consultant driving the training pillar within Goodbody Clearstream, which provides global leadership in corporate climate affairs, ESG, and sustainability services.
Over the last 25 years, he has worked on sustainability, innovation, and strategy projects across multiple organisations. As a business consultant, he gained experience and understanding of the fundamental drivers of innovation and design thinking across product, people, portfolio, and business model proposition elements, which he uses to advance sustainability projects and developments.
His colleague and Managing Director at Goodbody Clearstream, Brian O’Kennedy, was part of the original team of trainers who created the initial content for the MODOS training programme, taking on the introduction to circular economy and supply chain management sessions.
Circularity requires business model innovation and system-level change
Declan now hosts modules for the MODOS course to introduce the concept of circularity and its business adaptation while covering carbon management and design thinking. He highlights that integrating sustainability and circularity takes a holistic approach that goes far beyond product development, as it is more about how you manage all aspects of your business.
“Becoming truly circular requires business model innovation and system-level change within an organisation,” Declan shares, adding that this makes it hard to get companies on board since they need to put time and effort into managing change.
In his experience, the circular economy has gained ground in the business world, but it is still far from being part of the core strategy.
Highlighting practical circular solutions to shift mindsets
He adds that businesses must first see the value of adopting sustainability to shift priorities, start thinking about how this could apply to their enterprise, and explore how to benefit from these changes.
“The circular economy is a natural manifestation of where innovation is going. Embracing circularity is next for innovative businesses,”
says Declan, explaining why it is crucial to present circularity as a solution for businesses.
This is one of his focus areas while delivering the MODOS course modules, where one element is introducing design thinking to help participants uncover the practical applications of the circular economy and start shifting their mindset.
His approach is to make circularity real through case studies that shine a light on what it means to adopt it at different levels.
“I aim to open participants` minds and prepare them more for the modules coming up later so they can better apply that knowledge and connect it with their own situation,” Declan says.
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The 'Celebrating Circular` digital publication and online story collection spotlight trailblazer Irish businesses making strides towards a more sustainable and low-carbon economy.
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Mixing different perspectives
Declan emphasises that these modules are more than lectures, as sessions take deep dives into practicality and peer-to-peer learning facilitated by world-class presenters bringing in multiple voices and a wide range of expertise.
“The richness of perspectives brought into the MODOS course through a unique selection of trainers gives participants a special advantage in fully embracing this learning opportunity.”
Since all trainers have worked in this field, they can share real-world experiences in different areas, also adding a touch of reality check on adopting change and implementing these practices.
With almost thirty years of experience in sustainability, innovation, and business, Declan is dedicated to being part of the solution and driving the transition towards a sustainable economy. He enjoys sparking change through education and sharing his expertise with more people.
Finding ways to make change happen
“What excites me the most nowadays is scaling up impact and finding ways to make change happen. I love the feeling of waking up in the morning with the question of who or what I will change now.”
The MODOS course is one of the many platforms where Declan passionately shares what he has gathered over the years and supports leaders in finding their own way of making a difference.
“I believe the energy Joanne Rourke and her team have put into developing the MODOS programme is a force for change, and it shines through the training.”
He adds that the programme definitely has the potential to grow bigger, along with its powerful vision of making businesses more sustainable and circular.
Looking into the future, Declan believes that access to finance and further support would make it even more appealing to companies to invest time in learning and upskilling in sustainability, enabling them to develop innovative services and products.
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