Chapter 17
Global Recycling System for an East Asian
Low-Carbon Society
Weisheng Zhou, Kyungah Cheon, and Xuepeng Qian
Abstract In order to realize the global sustainability of the East Asian Low-Carbon
Community centered on China, Japan, and Korea, it is essential to review the modern
civilization of mass production, mass consumption, and mass disposal and to realize
a recycling-oriented society aimed at maximizing resource use and minimizing
environmental impact. A recycling society is one in which economic, resource,
and environmental policy are integrated, promoting a circular economy from the
three aspects of small circulation (local recycling), middle circulation (glocal
recycling), and general circulation (global recycling). Small and middle circulations
are domestic recycling methods, whereas general circulation is an international
recycling method. The global recycling system (GRS) includes these three types
of recycling. Therefore, general circulation aims to realize a wide-area recycling
society that transcends national borders, such as in the China–Japan–Korea (CJK)
circular economy model. In June 2015, the Chinese government, in cooperation with
Japan and South Korea, selected Dalian Zhuanghe City as a CJK circular economy
model in China and a practical example of a GRS in the CJK partnership. It has
encouraged economic cooperation in Northeast Asia, strengthening exchanges
among China, Japan, and Korea and promoting the development of a regional
circular economy. It will contribute to achieving the ultimate goal of sustainable
development or minimizing the environmental load.
W. Zhou (*)
College of Policy Science, Ritsumeikan University, Ibaraki, Osaka, Japan
e-mail: zhou@sps.ritsumei.ac.jp
K. Cheon
Research Center for Sustainability Science, Ritsumeikan University, Ibaraki, Osaka, Japan
X. Qian
College of Asia Pacific Studies, Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University, Beppu, Oita, Japan
e-mail: qianxp@apu.ac.jp
© Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2021
W. Zhou et al. (eds.), East Asian Low-Carbon Community,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-33-4339-9_17
307
Global Recycling System for an East Asian
Low-Carbon Society
Weisheng Zhou, Kyungah Cheon, and Xuepeng Qian
Abstract In order to realize the global sustainability of the East Asian Low-Carbon
Community centered on China, Japan, and Korea, it is essential to review the modern
civilization of mass production, mass consumption, and mass disposal and to realize
a recycling-oriented society aimed at maximizing resource use and minimizing
environmental impact. A recycling society is one in which economic, resource,
and environmental policy are integrated, promoting a circular economy from the
three aspects of small circulation (local recycling), middle circulation (glocal
recycling), and general circulation (global recycling). Small and middle circulations
are domestic recycling methods, whereas general circulation is an international
recycling method. The global recycling system (GRS) includes these three types
of recycling. Therefore, general circulation aims to realize a wide-area recycling
society that transcends national borders, such as in the China–Japan–Korea (CJK)
circular economy model. In June 2015, the Chinese government, in cooperation with
Japan and South Korea, selected Dalian Zhuanghe City as a CJK circular economy
model in China and a practical example of a GRS in the CJK partnership. It has
encouraged economic cooperation in Northeast Asia, strengthening exchanges
among China, Japan, and Korea and promoting the development of a regional
circular economy. It will contribute to achieving the ultimate goal of sustainable
development or minimizing the environmental load.
W. Zhou (*)
College of Policy Science, Ritsumeikan University, Ibaraki, Osaka, Japan
e-mail: zhou@sps.ritsumei.ac.jp
K. Cheon
Research Center for Sustainability Science, Ritsumeikan University, Ibaraki, Osaka, Japan
X. Qian
College of Asia Pacific Studies, Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University, Beppu, Oita, Japan
e-mail: qianxp@apu.ac.jp
© Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2021
W. Zhou et al. (eds.), East Asian Low-Carbon Community,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-33-4339-9_17
307