Closing the loop: digital nomads in coliving spaces and their influence on the urban circular economy in Brazil

Purpose This paper aims to investigate how international digital nomads and Brazilian professionals working globally remotely, residing in coliving and coworking communities, influence the demand, perceived value and diffusion of circular economy practices in their urban environments. Design/methodology/approach A sequential exploratory mixed-methods design (QUAL→QUANT) was adopted in two Brazilian urban case studies: São Paulo and Florianópolis. The qualitative phase comprised semistructured interviews (n = 22), focus groups with coliving managers (n = 2) and circular business entrepreneurs (n = 2), as well as netnographic analysis. The quantitative phase consisted of a survey (n = 387) with partial least squares structural equation modeling to test eight hypotheses based on the theory of planned behavior and the literature on social norms. Findings Social integration in coliving communities is positively associated with the intention of circular consumption, with the effect fully mediated by descriptive and injunctive procircular norms. Easy access to information about local circular services positively moderates the conversion of intention into actual behavior. Qualitative evidence reveals that the community acts as a curator of sustainable options and that convenience is a critical factor for adherence to circular practices. Originality/value To the best of the author’s knowledge, this is the first study to systematically connect the literatures of digital nomadism and urban circular economy in the context of the Global South, proposing digital nomads as potential agents of socio-ecological transition and coliving communities as diffusion nodes in circular ecosystems.