One Man’s Trash is Another Man’s Treasure: How the Circular Economy Contributes to Achieving SDGs. The Case of Used Tires in Spain

Abstract

During the end of the 20th century and beginning of 21st century, there is a trend to evaluating the actions undertaken to improve the socio-economic environment in which we live, to achieve a greater level of wellbeing for all citizens. In the context of Stakeholder Theory, considering an organization should always operate towards creating positive value for society, the creation of the UN Global Compact and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals created a shift in many regions. The present study evaluates this context and how the implementation of circular economy policies has affected the achievement of SDGs in Spain. Specifically, the role of different private and public agents is evaluated in the tire manufacturing industry and the impact in each of the SDGs. Results show positive results as well as areas of improvement to further improve the roadmap towards achieving the 17 SDGs.