With much focus on environmental concerns, developing a strategy for sustainability in Latin America has become a priority for the region. A circular economy for SMEs — championing the concepts of reuse, recycling, waste reduction, and product redesign in terms of rethinking the system, and the adoption of materiality reports that adhere to international standards — is recommended by experts. A group of international academics has created the Circular MooD Model, an innovative virtual tool designed to enable management accountants and finance functions [MA1] to accurately assess the level of circular economy implementation within Latin American SMEs. As SMEs navigate the complexities of the circular economy, tools like the Circular MooD Model will be instrumental in making sustainable business practices a tangible reality.
As circular economy (CE) gains momentum worldwide, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are still grappling with achieving sustainable value creation and competitiveness. Though conditions are increasingly favourable for the development of CE in Latin American countries, businesses do not have the resources and tools to execute CE-associated activities and assess, monitor, and report on CE implementation level.
The research conducted by a group of scholars at the Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, Universidad de Alcala, Universidad de Sabana and Universidad de Navarra, addresses this knowledge gap through the creation of the Circular MooD Model, a novel virtual tool that enables management accountants and more generally the finance function to assess the implementation level of CE in Latin American SMEs.
Apart from facilitating a better understanding of CE for SMEs, this report also offers solutions for sustainability communication through materiality reports – completed in accordance with existing GRI, SASB and ISO standards.