Harnessing regulation for circular economy advancement: Identifying breakthrough areas in the European Union and Hungary

The prevailing linear economic model, characterized by resource extraction, production, consumption, and disposal, is unsustainable and poses significant environmental and social challenges. The circular economy (CE) has emerged as a transformative paradigm emphasizing resource efficiency, waste minimization, and closed-loop production systems. This paper provides a comprehensive overview of the CE concept, its potential benefits and challenges, and the regulatory frameworks enacted by the European Union (EU) and Hungary to facilitate the transition towards a circular economy. In order to facilitate this, the authors also propose specific regulatory steps based on a systematic concept.