Circular and social functions developed in synergy in Tingvallastaden

How can a neighborhood reduce its climate impact and resource use while becoming more vibrant, accessible and inclusive? In Tingvallastaden in Karlstad, IVL and its project partners are exploring and developing how circular functions, such as reuse, sharing and remake, can strengthen both the circular economy and social sustainability in the area.

How functions are designed influences the values created

Many municipalities are currently testing new approaches to reuse and sharing, including neighborhood reuse centers, free shops and multi-purpose hubs. These initiatives demonstrate that circular solutions can create both environmental and social value. At the same time, many premises remain vacant, while shared workshops and meeting places have disappeared. Interest in reuse, crafts and making things together is growing, but scalable solutions that can be integrated into urban development are still needed.

Karlstad Municipality has developed a range of circular initiatives, including Rundgång, a circular pop-up shopping centre, as well as digital tools such as Smarta kartan and forums like Cirkulär Arena. The project builds on these experiences while addressing challenges such as conflicting objectives and insufficient collaboration, both within the municipality and between different stakeholders.

The project focuses on three key questions:

• How can circular functions be designed and organised to reduce resource use while also contributing to belonging, community, participation, and a sense of purpose?
• How can the municipality strengthen collaboration between its departments and develop long-term cooperation and operating models together with civil society and businesses?
• How can future visions, narratives and practical functions be co-created and used to inform placemaking and urban planning?
  

Tingvallastaden in transition

The project is being carried out in Tingvallastaden, where new development opportunities are emerging as bus services are relocated and new detailed development plans are prepared. This transition creates momentum – a window of opportunity to transform several systems at once by planning circular, cultural and social functions in synergy.

The area is already home to a municipal culture school, a theatre, second-hand shops, a bicycle workshop and other social, cultural and community initiatives. Karlstad Municipality owns the land and buildings, providing favorable conditions for testing new solutions in practice and linking them to the ongoing planning process.

At the same time, experience from other urban transformation projects shows that cultural, non-profit and community-based organisations risk being displaced. The project therefore explores how existing places and buildings can be used to strengthen both the circular economy and social sustainability. It also examines how closer collaboration between municipal departments can strengthen this work, and how placemaking can be co-created with the organisations and communities active in the area.

The project is led by IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute in close collaboration with Karlstad Municipality, Riksteatern Värmland and Stockholm Vatten och Avfall’s centres in Rinkeby and Skärholmen. Through pilot projects, shared learning forums and co-creation processes, the partners are developing new models for collaboration and placemaking, as well as approaches that enable circular functions to interact and reinforce one another within a neighborhood.

The project is expected to increase the use of circular functions, create more accessible and vibrant community spaces, strengthen local engagement and generate models that can be adapted and used by municipalities.