Inside the Rhizome1 of a Territorial Circular Ecosystem. How to Cope With Networking Relations Between Actors of Sustainable Development Practices?

Abstract The circular economy (CE) has gained increasing prominence in academic research and policy design initiated by public authorities and institutions. In response to the limitations of linear economies and their ecological and environmental impacts, this approach proposes an alternative model that seeks to reconcile economic performance with ecological balance. The implementation of CE practices necessitates both a systemic and territorially rooted approach, where spatial proximity between resources and the various stages of production or recycling is important, as is the organisation of actors, infrastructures, and institutions capable of generating interdependencies, positive externalities, and shared trajectories. To address this need, we propose to study the notion of Territorial Circular Ecosystem (TCE), which integrates economic, environmental, spatial, and institutional components into a coherent logic grounded in place-based governance, and to examine its main characteristics. In particular, we highlight the different components of a TCE, the various actors and their interactions, and then demonstrate, through a case study, how it is possible to analyse and characterise the internal links, structure, and spatial relations. Methodologically, we rely on approaches to social network analysis and proximity relationships to achieve this.