Leena Aarikka-Stenroos: Tech business − what is it, especially in the age of circular economy and climate change
“Our society is in desperate need of sustainable technology. The knowledge generated by our research helps technology companies and the whole of society to evolve and develop to ensure that these technologies remain available to us in the future, too,” Aarikka-Stenroos says.
According to Aarikka-Stenroos, instead of buying products that have a harmful impact on the environment both when they are manufactured and when they are disposed of at the end of their useful life, we should recycle, reuse and reduce the consumption of resources. All this is made possible by a new approach to technology business with a focus on renewability.
“Technology companies are, for example, developing new materials that can be effectively recycled as well as digital technologies that minimise losses and enable customers to choose a service over a product,” Aarikka-Stenroos says.
Aarikka-Stenroos finds that the growing pressure to protect the environment means that technology companies will have to make major changes, but this will also offer them the opportunity to rethink their business structures.
“Now that we are working towards increased sustainability and companies are developing new technologies that support the transition to a circular economy, it is important to carry out research that helps to uncover how these technologies can be turned into a business. My research is inspired by wanting to understand the continuous interaction between technology, people and business.”
