Deep Dive Positionpaper: Cradle to Cradle in Consumer Electronics

What does it take to make circular economy in electronics a reality? This deep dive presents the new position paper from the Cradle to Cradle NGO and brings together industry, associations, and policymakers – to push for binding frameworks, scale pioneering approaches, and develop practical solutions for implementation.

Key Takeaways:

1. Policy and industry must work together to create a solid framework for a circular economy
2. The position paper offers a starting point for rethinking the sector’s future through Cradle to Cradle principles
3. Cradle to Cradle provides guidance for future regulation.

Liebherr-Hausgeräte GmbH is one of 13 product segments within the Liebherr Group. The Domestic Appliances division employs more than 6,000 people and develops and manufactures a wide range of high-quality refrigeration and freezing appliances for both household and commercial use. Production takes place at the company’s headquarters in Ochsenhausen (Germany), as well as at sites in Lienz (Austria), Marica (Bulgaria), Kluang (Malaysia), and Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar (India).
https://www.liebherr.com/de-de/gefrier-kuehlschraenke/hausgeraete-2451384

The WIK Group, a globally active OEM/ODM partner for the development and production of household appliances with offices and manufacturing sites in Europe and Asia, demonstrates how Cradle to Cradle (C2C) principles can be fully embedded into a company’s philosophy.
https://www.wik-group.com/

Since 2014 SHIFT has been pushing the limits of sustainable, modular and fair tech products. The main goal of the purpose-economy company SHIFT is to maximize purpose and values, not only profit. To do as much good as possible, while doing as little harm as possible on the way. With the m-series in 2016, SHIFT introduced the most modular and sustainable smartphone ever built, as well as the visionary con- cept of Universal Computing“. SHIFT GmbH has earned recognition for design and sustainability with awards like the Eco Design Award and the German Sustainability Award.
https://www.shift.eco/

The donation-funded, non-profit Cradle to Cradle NGO has been advocating for a future-ready circular economy since 2012. Through education, networking, and hands-on projects, it brings the Cradle to Cradle approach into business, politics, and wider society. Its goal: a world in which products and processes are designed from the outset to be healthy and fair, with materials that can circulate continuously. This work takes shape through initiatives such as the recurring C2C Congress, the C2C LAB in Berlin, and the concert project Labor Tempelhof with Die Ärzte, which received a special award from the German Sustainability Prize in 2024. In 2025, IFA Berlin is expanding its commitment to sustainability and is entering into a partnership with the Cradle to Cradle NGO.

ZVEI – The German Electro and Digital Industry Association. ZVEI represents the collective interests of Germany’s electro and digital industries, along with affiliated service providers, both nationally and internationally. The association counts more than 1,100 member companies, and 170 employees work within the ZVEI Group. By the end of 2024, the sector employed 900,000 people across Germany, making it the country's second-largest industrial branch. In the same year, the industry generated revenues of €220 billion. The electro and digital industry is one of Germany’s most innovative economic sectors. Each year, it invests around €22 billion in research and development, and more than €9 billion in capital expenditures.