The European Demolition Association (EDA) has awarded the European Circular Economy in Construction Award 2025 to Yifei Yu, a newly graduated PhD researcher from IEBIS, in recognition of the thesis entitled Circular Construction Ecosystems. This award honours outstanding research contributions to demolition, decontamination, and recycling within the broader context of a circular built environment.
Yifei’s thesis reframes how information and material flows interact in the built environment to enable a circular future. At its core is the Circularity Information Platform, a digital tool designed to coordinate and evaluate circular material flows across multiple building projects. The research provides actionable points and long-term visions for managing circular (de)construction at scale.
The findings highlight the pivotal role of the demolition sector in the circular transition. “Closing material loops requires first closing the associated information loops,” said Yifei, “and this is fundamentally a matchmaking problem.” The work bridges theory and practice following the design science research methodology. It challenges the boundaries of circular economy implementation in the built environment, paving the way toward a new paradigm of Boundless Circular Economy.
VERAS, the national demolition association in the Netherlands, nominated Yifei’s work for the European competition. Representing the Dutch demolition sector, VERAS promotes safe, innovative, and sustainable demolition practices while actively supporting knowledge exchanges between industry and academia. Mrs. Jacqueline Cramer (former Minister of Environment, Housing and Spatial Planning) in her role of chair of the Dutch jury, said, “This award also reflects the Dutch demolition sector’s forward-thinking approach and its strong commitment to innovation through science–industry collaboration at the European level.”
The thesis was well-received by the committee for its clarity of vision, theoretical depth, and practical relevance. It exemplifies the award’s mission: to promote innovation, attract new talent, and advance sustainable practices in European demolition and construction sectors. Open to students across Europe, the EDA’s Circular Economy Award celebrates the next generation of leaders who are transforming demolition and construction into a cornerstone of the circular economy.
More information:
· European Circular Economy in Construction Awards: https://www.europeandemolition.org/activities/european-circular-economy-in-construction-awards
· VERAS: https://www.sloopaannemers.nl/
· Circular Construction Ecosystems: Designing a Circularity Information Platform for the Built Environment: https://doi.org/10.3990/1.9789036563970
