Circular Economy: An Ethicaland Sustainable Economic Development Model

The traditional linear economic growth model pursues solely the GDP growth, and economic development is achieved at the expense of the environment and the resources. This model has obvious ethical flaws and has been viewed as a “from cradle to grave” approach. Differently, the circular economy development model establishes the principles of “Reduce, Reuse and Recycle” as its core contents in order to achieve sustainable development, which has been viewed as a "from cradle to cradle" approach. Circular economy engenders new ethical relationships, and proposes new ethics of production and consumption. Circular economy implies the holistic value principle and sustainable value principle, which can remedy the ethical flaws of the traditional linear model. As an ethical and sustainable development approach, circular economy contributes to the Copernican change in the field of economic ethics.