2.2 Targets and principles for a circular Vienna

Which Vienna strategies we draw on as foundations for the transition to a circular economy

Saving resources and the circular economy are cross-cutting themes. Existing strategies of the City of Vienna already contain key targets for Vienna’s approach to save resources and to the circular economy. These targets were adopted by the Vienna City Council and contribute to shaping a circular Vienna of the future. Additional specific targets can be found in the chapters “The Circular Economy as a Tool for Saving Resources”, “Saving Resources in Everyday Life in Vienna” and “Saving Resources in Vienna’s Built Environment”.

To address the climate crisis, the Vienna City Council adopted the Smart City Wien Framework Strategy as early as 2014, and most recently updated it in 2022 as the Smart Climate City Strategy Vienna (SKCSW). Its guiding principle is to create a high quality of life for everyone while saving resources as far as possible. An important overarching target in this context is the reduction of the material footprint in line with the vision of a “7-tonne future”.

Another overarching target is climate neutrality by 2040, which is operationalised in the Vienna Climate Roadmap and, since 2025, has also been anchored in the Vienna Climate Act (Wiener Klimagesetz). The Vienna Climate Act additionally establishes the circular economy as the third pillar of Vienna’s climate policy and identifies ecological procurement as an important tool for achieving a climate-neutral administration.

The key targets for Vienna’s approach to save resources and to the circular economy

Opportunities and challenges in the interplay between climate mitigation and climate adaptation

A circular economy is closely intertwined with climate mitigation and climate adaptation, from which both opportunities and challenges arise. For example, space-efficient development and a focus on the existing urban fabric lead to less land sealing and therefore create more room for cooling greenery. This is of great importance for climate adaptation, given the rising temperatures in the city, and offers synergies.

Alongside these synergies, there are also challenges: the shift to electric mobility contributes to greater climate mitigation through reduced emissions, but it also requires the premature replacement of a still intact vehicle and therefore leads to additional resource consumption. This illustrative example shows that particular attention must be paid to the careful use of resources in both the mobility transition and the energy transition. Only in this way can the City of Vienna best meet all the requirements and objectives of a liveable city of the future.

Vienna Waste Management Plan and the Waste Prevention Programme 2025–2030

In the Smart Climate City Strategy Vienna, Vienna commits to becoming a city without waste (zero-waste principle). The Vienna Waste Management Plan and the Waste Prevention Programme 2025–2030 serve as the basis for the Circular Vienna strategy in this field and feed into several of the levers and activities outlined above. They were developed for the 2025–2030 planning period as part of a strategic environmental assessment with broad participation from the administration, academia and civil society, and were adopted by the Vienna Provincial Government in December 2024 following public consultation.

Vienna Plan – Urban Development Plan 2035

The Vienna Plan – Urban Development Plan 2035 is the central guideline for steering spatial and urban-structural development in Vienna. In view of the projected population growth, the focus is on supplementing and further developing the existing urban fabric as well as on already identified urban development areas. Should population growth exceed current projections, additional compact, space-efficient and urban development areas will be designated. In addition, the current Urban Development Plan establishes important framework conditions for saving resources, including the conversion and continued use of existing buildings, sharing-based mobility and logistics.

Five principles for Vienna’s circular economy

Vienna acts justly: implementing the circular economy means assuming global responsibility

Our resources are finite, yet they continue to be exploited through our consumption-oriented ways of living and doing business. The impacts of this are distributed very unequally, falling above all on economically less developed countries. In the spirit of climate justice, Vienna contributes to the fair distribution of limited resources and to reducing negative impacts on people and the environment along the entire value chain of products and services. To this end, Vienna reduces its consumption-based material and greenhouse gas footprint and, as a major city, assumes and actively exercises responsibility that extends far beyond its own city boundaries.

Vienna conducts business sustainably: a strong location is innovative and circular

Circular and thus resource-saving ways of doing business play an important role in Vienna’s strategic positioning. By strengthening regional and local structures, Vienna becomes less dependent on global supply chains and increases its resilience. Reuse creates new forms of work and a renaissance of craftsmanship, while innovative technologies support efficient recycling. For companies based in Vienna, the circular transformation offers competitive advantages by enabling new business models. The City of Vienna makes use of its strong position on the market as a public purchaser and provides important impetus for sustainable product development through circular criteria. The City supports the testing of new ideas and the scaling of successful solutions, enabling them to achieve their full impact rapidly in Vienna and be exported as circular solutions “made in Vienna”.

Vienna provides structure and security: everything is in motion – but we keep the bigger picture in view

The well-regulated and predictable transition to a circular economy is one of the great challenges of this century. To maintain an overview, clear requirements and long-term planning and legal certainty are essential. The new approach to resources requires the further development of processes and standards that take into account the entire life cycle of a product as well as its environmental impacts along the whole value chain. Within its sphere of responsibility, the City of Vienna establishes practical requirements, procedures and structures for planning, procurement and implementation. Vienna further develops existing tools, establishes new applications and makes them accessible in a straightforward manner. Transparency, traceability and regular review ensure that Vienna keeps the bigger picture in view as it transitions from a linear to a circular economy.

Vienna cooperates: saving resources requires many hands and minds

The circular economy is not an isolated specialist discipline. Its development, testing and implementation require comprehensive, cross-sectoral collaboration. Transforming our established ways of living and doing business can only succeed as a joint effort, supported by pooled expertise and the interaction of all actors. Systems thinking becomes a key competence, and cooperation along the entire value chain becomes increasingly important – from research and companies to politics and administration and through to the general population. Vienna regards saving resources as inextricably linked with climate mitigation and climate adaptation and steers and implements it across sectors. The City draws on the broad expertise within its administration, integrates the knowledge and implementation capacity of its city-owned companies, and works closely with Vienna’s business community – from high-tech companies and crafts and trades to retail and services. Vienna leads by example: through targeted collaboration with research institutions and the active involvement of the people of Vienna, the City ensures that everyone is included.

And here we come full circle: Vienna puts people first

The shift from a linear to a circular economy goes hand in hand with Vienna’s social responsibility towards its population. The common good and the safeguarding of our planetary boundaries are not in conflict with economic success – they are its foundation. Saving resources and the circular economy create win-win situations: they foster social participation, make it easier to access sustainable products and services, and make them practical for everyday use, affordable and barrier-free. Changing consumption patterns does not automatically mean doing without but also opens up new possibilities for living together and sharing. Vienna is different from other cities, especially when it comes to lived responsibility towards the entire population in the form of high-quality social and everyday infrastructure. The circular economy expands this foundation by understanding Vienna as a shared resource and further developing the city into a liveable, socially just metropolis.