海角视频

海角视频鈥檚 Amy Stanfield discusses the firm鈥檚 circularity leadership and why her participation in the Copenhagen Circularity Delegation arrives at a pivotal moment for American cities.

Cities worldwide are rethinking how they build and reuse materials, and Copenhagen has become a model for what a fully integrated circular economy can look like. This spring, 海角视频鈥檚 Amy Stanfield, Graduate Consultant in Strategy & Policy, will join a select delegation of U.S. professionals traveling to Denmark to study one of the world鈥檚 most advanced circular economy ecosystems as part of the Copenhagen Circularity Delegation. 

We sat down with Amy ahead of her trip to talk systems鈥憀evel circularity, what the U.S. can learn from European models, and how 海角视频 is helping clients prepare for the next era of sustainable design. 

Q: Hi Amy, can you tell us a bit about the Copenhagen Circularity Delegation and how you got involved? 

Amy Stanfield: I came across the delegation while researching circular economy leaders globally and domestically for 海角视频. When we mapped out which cities are truly moving the needle, Copenhagen kept rising to the top – along with Amsterdam, Toronto, and a handful of U.S. front鈥憆unners like Portland, Palo Alto, Charlotte, and San Antonio. 

That research led me to , a nonprofit doing impressive work with circularity in the U.S. They organize international delegations (15 to 20 U.S. practitioners at a time) to Munich, Copenhagen, parts of Sweden, and more. It鈥檚 a seven鈥慸ay, 8 a.m.鈥�8 p.m. immersion including workshops, expert interviews, facility tours, and on鈥憈he鈥慻round learning about how leading cities make circularity 鈥渞eal.鈥� I applied to represent 海角视频 and was thrilled to be selected. Earlier this year, Kathleen Hetrick, circular design lead at 海角视频, and I also spoke at the run by the same group, so this feels like a natural continuation of work we鈥檙e deeply passionate about. 

Q: Copenhagen is widely viewed as a global leader in circular design. What are you hoping to learn and how will it inform your U.S. work? 

Amy: My biggest goal is to understand how Copenhagen transforms circularity from an aspirational idea into a citywide operating system. In the U.S., sustainability is often framed as an 鈥渆xtra鈥� – a green option, a LEED path, a decision a business has to actively choose. In Copenhagen, circularity is embedded. It鈥檚 the default. 

I want to study how policy, governance, infrastructure, and public鈥憄rivate partnerships align so seamlessly that sustainable choices are intuitive, not exceptional. And then I want to translate those insights into practical, actionable guidance for our U.S. clients: deconstruction requirements, material鈥憆euse networks, procurement standards, and the infrastructure that makes circularity scalable rather than idealistic. 

海角视频 is uniquely positioned here. We sit at the intersection of systems strategy and built鈥慹nvironment implementation, which means we can help clients move from visionary concepts to real鈥憌orld delivery. 

Q: What sets cities like Copenhagen, Amsterdam, and Helsinki apart from most U.S. cities? How can their approaches be adapted for American contexts? 

Three things consistently emerge: policy, public education, and infrastructure. 

European leaders have robust, ambitious policy. Copenhagen, for instance, has a mandate to triple material reuse from a 2018 baseline. Policies like that directly influence how cities build and 鈥渦nbuild.鈥� 

We鈥檙e starting to see similar momentum in the U.S. Portland, Palo Alto, and San Antonio have already passed deconstruction ordinances. New York State is currently considering legislation that would create cost parity between deconstruction and demolition, which will be a game鈥慶hanger for the market. If you remove cost as the barrier, deconstruction and reuses becomes natural choices. But policy alone isn’t enough. The U.S. often works in silos. European cities pair policy with infrastructure and public understanding. When those three things align, circularity becomes achievable. 

Q: You鈥檝e mentioned the economic value of circularity. How does policy evolution help unlock that value? 

Amy: Circularity pays off when strategies are bundled. For example, in San Diego we鈥檙e developing cross鈥憇trategy solutions that pair policy with infrastructure: reuse innovation centers, tool鈥憇haring libraries, material take鈥慴ack sites, and last鈥憇top recovery hubs. Individually, each step helps. Together, they create a workforce pipeline, reduce landfill dependence, and generate local economic activity. 

Circularity isn鈥檛 just environmental – it鈥檚 economic development. Policy makes that possible.

Q: Are there 海角视频 projects where circular design has already shown measurable impact? 

Amy: From a pure circularity standpoint, the most sustainable thing you can do is not build new. That鈥檚 why adaptive reuse is so powerful.  

While I鈥檓 still completing several circularity-focused projects (so the data is forthcoming), 海角视频 has a strong portfolio of adaptive鈥憆euse work that underscores circularity鈥檚 value, a few examples are: 

• The High Line 
• Reimagine the Canals 
• St. Ann鈥檚 Warehouse 
• Powerhouse Arts 
• Book Tower in Detroit 

Reusing existing structures avoids carbon鈥慽ntensive material extraction, preserves historic character, and often revitalizes neighborhoods. And importantly, circularity isn鈥檛 new – it鈥檚 rooted in cultural practices, particularly among immigrant, and low鈥慽ncome communities that repair, repurpose, and share resources out of necessity, creativity, or stewardship. There鈥檚 a lot to learn from those traditions as we broaden the definition of circularity. 

Q: What remains the biggest barrier to circularity in the United States? 

Amy: If I had to boil it down to one sentence: Aligning policy, public knowledge and motivation, and physical infrastructure. Right now, those three critical components often move independently. To fully adopt circularity, they must work together.

Q: Looking ahead, what are you most excited about bringing back from Copenhagen?  

Amy: In many ways, visiting Copenhagen is like visiting the future. Many places in Europe are at least a decade ahead of the U.S. in circularity, so I鈥檓 excited to see what a mature system looks like on the ground.  

I鈥檓 also meeting with colleagues in our Copenhagen and London offices who are doing incredible circular economy work. We already collaborate across teams, and I plan to act as a knowledge bridge: sharing best practices, internal guidance (like design鈥慺or鈥慸isassembly documents), and project insights across global offices. When I return to the US, I鈥檒l be presenting EU x U.S. circularity takeaways at 海角视频鈥檚 New York office. There鈥檚 so much momentum internally. The firm is deeply invested in this space, and it鈥檚 exciting to be part of shaping where we go next. 

Q: Final question – what excites you most about this moment for circularity in the U.S.? 

Amy: There鈥檚 genuine appetite from policymakers, industry leaders, and everyday communities to rethink how we build. Circularity isn鈥檛 fringe anymore. It鈥檚 becoming a business imperative, a climate strategy, and a cultural shift all at once. And being part of a small but mighty team helping shape that movement at 海角视频 is something I’m incredibly proud of.