Assessing circular economy and associated factors among university students at Maasai Mara University in Kenya

The global shift from a linear to a circular economic system has become increasingly necessary as the world faces rising pressure on natural resources, growing waste volumes, and intensifying environmental degradation. Higher education institutions (HEIs) play an essential role in supporting this transition by cultivating knowledge, skills, and values that enable students to contribute to sustainable development. Yet research on circular economy (CE) knowledge assessment and its influences is limited, especially among university students and in Africa. This study addresses this gap by systematically reviewing CE knowledge domains through analysis of Scopus and ScienceDirect literature. A four-domain CE framework is developed spanning familiarity with concepts, understanding of principles, knowledge of aims and benefits, and awareness of policies and institutional frameworks. It then applied a mixed-methods approach, combining survey-based evaluation and key informant interviews to assess the CE knowledge of students and associated factors at the Maasai Mara University (MMU) in Kenya, Africa and explore the influence of RCE South Rift on their learning. The study involved 349 respondents selected through convenience sampling and spanning the seven academic schools of MMU. Results of the study revealed that 17% of the respondents have very high CE knowledge, 35% have high CE knowledge and 36% are at an intermediate level while the remaining 12% of the respondents are equally represented among the low and very low levels of CE knowledge. Sociodemographic factors such as academic school of affiliation, number of CE trainings in the past year and participation in RCE South Rift activities had a statistically significant positive relationship with CE knowledge, while gender was found not to be a predictor of CE knowledge. The findings aim to guide a comprehensive assessment of CE knowledge and predictors and inform targeted CE education and integration into sustainable development in Africa.