Systemic Environmental Assessment and Analysis

This lecture covers systemic environmental assessment and analysis, focusing on material flow analysis (MFA) methods such as Eurostat MFA. It discusses the importance of understanding material inputs, outputs, and accumulation within an economy, emphasizing the indicators used in MFA diagrams. Through examples like glass recycling systems, the lecture explains the steps of MFA, from system definition to recommendations. It also explores urban metabolism, including the concepts of top-down and bottom-up accounting approaches, and the relevance of territorial vs. consumption-based accounting. The lecture concludes with insights on the challenges and findings of urban metabolism studies, highlighting the need for a systemic overview and the concept of circular economy.