The Circular Economy is based on the reduction, reuse, and recycling of raw materials and on new business models. All kinds of examples of this can be seen in the model home. For example, Interface has laid out carpet tiles made from discarded fishing nets. IKEA provided a couch that is made from PET bottles. Auping supplied a bed with a recyclable mattress and a headboard made from recycled fabric. In addition to Keller cupboards, the kitchen cabinets are handcrafted from Unilin chipboard, which consists almost entirely of recycled wood and there is a Sustonable kitchen top made from recycled PET bottles manufactured by Dekker Zevenhuizen.
About the model house
The property is located in Nijmegen East, one of the most popular neighbourhoods in Nijmegen, and can be visited on request. In this neighbourhood, 500 homes will be renovated and brought up to energy label B (now G). After a year, De Gemeenschap (The Community) will make the house available again as a social rental home.
With the Challenge, the initiators and the housing corporation, together with the 20 participating suppliers, want to demonstrate how the reuse of raw materials and products can lead to a beautiful and surprising design. In this way, visitors can see what a footstool made from banana leaves looks like. Dress shirts are used to make boxer shorts and recycled material leads to luxury lamps. Eventually it should be clear to visitors that circular designs are fun and affordable and also feasible for people with who are on a smaller budget.
The model home is also made available as a small event location and meeting place for residents from the neighbourhood. Because an electric boiler and hob are used, the house is also the first home in the neighbourhood that has been disconnected from natural gas.
Green Capital 2018
It is not by accident that Nijmegen has been chosen as the location. The city has recently been declared the Sustainable Capital of Europe in 2018. In this context, a group of residents who have gathered in the Green Capital Challenges Foundation, want to bring sustainability to the attention of the residents of Nijmegen. They organize all sorts of activities for this purpose. A team of volunteers worked on three projects during the past year, including the circular model home.
The address of the house is Diepenbrockstraat 22 in Nijmegen. Visit the Facebook page for updates:
| Supplier | Products and/or services |
| Housing corporation De Gemeenschap (The Community) | House used as a model home in the renovation of the neighbourhood. |
| VOF combination ’De Spoorbuurt’ | Large maintenance, painting and placement work. The combination consists of three Nijmegen companies: De Klok Groep (De Klok Group) , Hagemans Vastgoed (Hagemans Real Estate)and Van Schaik aannemingsbedrijf. (Van Schaik Contracting) |
| Anselien SchoolStudio School | Biophilic Interior designInterior as Oasis |
| Circulicht | Handmade paper lamps |
| Interface | Made the yarn for the carpet tiles from discarded fishing nets and reclaimed carpet yarn. |
| Auping | Fully recyclable bed and mattress.The headboard is covered with fabric made from 100% recycled yarns. Decorative pillows made from dust residues from the Auping sewing workshop. |
| Peeze | Jura coffee machine, sustainable coffee in compostable packaging and tea bags. |
| Dar | Waste containers, compostables container |
| Recover-E | Refurbished computer and computer screen |
| Ikea | Couch with fabric from PET bottles, chair and pouf |
| Het Goed | Styling and delivery of small household goods |
| Van Hulley | Boxer shorts made from dress shirts |
| Dutch Awearness | Completely Circular workwear and an outside bench made from fibers from old clothing. |
| TribooMartijn Vinke | Chairs, planter, floor lamp of old CDs, refrigerators and much more. |
| Ink-Styling | Wire lights and wallboard from ‘waste’ |
| Sustonable | Countertop from recycled PET bottles. Dekker Zevenhuizen processes it into a kitchen counter. |
| Keller Keukens (Kitchens) | Circular kitchen block, refrigerator and induction plate supplied by Bosch |
| Desko | Bench out of discarded baggage handling bins, reused corner desk |
| Cartoni design | Cardboard design seating elements and cabinet |
| Reve Kussens (Pillows) | Pillows made from fabric remains from interior shops |
| Metiez | Moss in old wooden frames |
| No waste decoration | Wall panel and cushions |
| Unilin | Chipboard (92% recycled wood) for cabinets |
| Interstuhl | ‘Next Life’ Office chair, Velto Ataros |
| Gispen | The Triennial Relax armchair with fabric from Kvadrat, which will be taken back. Various reuse options for the foam are being tried. |
| Circulicht | A hanging lamp and two wall lamps made of hand-made paper from fibers out of discarded textiles. |
| i-did | Felt wallpaper from old army suits |
| Ronald SuykerDrakennest | Interior construction of all cabinets and old wooden kitchen shelves |
| Bleshyou | Second-hand plants |
| Hugo van der Kallen | Circularly designed stool |
| Bundles | Pay for washing cycles and not for the machine |
English
Spanish
Dutch
Swedish
German
French
Turkish