So my name is Jos and I’m working on research in circular economy and automotive sector, and I would like to know your point of view. If you accept, I’m going to record our conversation, transcribe it and put the transcription with a pseudonym, not with your real name in a repository of text documents that will be used for the research. If you do this and you change your mind later and no longer want to participate, get in touch with us and we will immediately remove your interview from the repository. I’m leaving you an information sheet with the contact information, so if you agree, then please tell me your first name and that you agree.
So my name is Giorgio and I agree.
Thank you, Giorgio. So the first question, can you define a circular economy in your own words? What is circular economy?
I think it’s it’s the whole life cycle of any material, any.
Do you participate in a circular economy yourself in any aspect of your life?
Yeah, yeah, quite a lot. We have a very strong separation in in trash. So as an example, I have a bag just to collect plastic, which I can then give back to. I don’t know whom which treats its further on. I of course also separate any any trash in kitchen from from biological. Right of course metallic also and glass. Yes.
How did you become interested in circular economy ideas and practices.
On on two ways on on one hand we are very well organized in Switzerland because of this. And the other one is I’m a salesman, a sailor. A sailor. Yes. I’m very often sailing on the oceans and I see so many plastic. And this makes me really a pain to see it. Yeah.
In your opinion, can a circular economy be implemented in every individual sector or industries or. It must be more global?
I think more global is not the solution because when I see how how we are working in Europe on this and we compare it with any Asian or African country, it’s a big, big difference. So I think it’s on any individual’s responsibility to to start and to to recognize that the recycling of material is important.
Do you think the circular economy already exists in car industry?
Yes. Yeah, of course, especially with the electric cars now with the batteries, but also with all this with how you call it. Don’t find the word. You know what? In German? Stop it, please. I just, uh. Especially in Katalysator. And I know also that they are very intensive now working on separating plastic and metal.
Um, when is the the one adjective or the first thought that comes to mind when you think about car electronics? Electronics in the car, like GPS or things like that. What is the first what you think about it?
The first think about it is it makes the car much more sensitive to any any problems. Just just to give an example, in the past, when you opened the hatch, you you recognized which is the engine and which is, uh, maybe an additional stuff. And today you open a hatch, you cannot even say which one is the engine. So it’s much more complicated. Of course, makes it also much more expensive for car. Uh, I’m not. Not very fan of. Of this.
Uh, do you currently own a car?
No.
Did you own a car before?
Yes. I’m retired, and I was driving all my life for professional reasons. But since I’m not working anymore, I have no car because it’s really not any more A pleasure to drive car. And I’m living very close to public transportation, so I don’t need a car.
In your opinion, are cars that include electronic components easier or harder to adapt to circular economy principles than old regular cars?
I think harder because it’s much more different materials to to to spare out. Yeah.