Wartime Circularity

Adapting buildings, salvaging materials, and designing supply chains for Ukraine

Adam Przywara

The full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine has triggered waves of solidarity actions across Europe. In Polish cities, this ethical imperative found a distinct material expression in practices associated with the circular economy. This paper conceptualises ‘wartime circularity’ as an analytical category for understanding these socio-material practices of adaptation, salvaging, and ad hoc supply chains established in response to armed conflict. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork with the OKNO initiative (‘window’ in Polish), which delivers salvaged windows from Poland to partner organisations in Ukraine, the paper foregrounds CE in construction as a situated practice rather than a universal policy ideal.

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Article "Wartime Circularity"
Wartime Circularity
The full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine has triggered waves of solidarity actions across Europe. This paper conceptualises ‘wartime circularity’ as an analytical category for understanding socio-material practices of adaptation, salvaging, and ad hoc supply chains in response to war.

Przywara, Adam. 2025. Wartime circularity: adapting buildings, salvaging materials, and designing supply chains for Ukraine. Urban Research & Practice, 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1080/17535069.2025.2571101

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