Uppsala is a vibrant university town in Sweden, located just northwest of Stockholm. The city has multiple long-term climate goals, including becoming climate neutral by 2030 and climate positive by 2050. As a fast-growing city, Uppsala incurs major carbon costs from materials for construction and renovation that represent a significant obstacle to achieving its climate goals. Therefore, the city launched the SCALE UP pilot to test innovative methods and approaches enabling better use of existing resources in the construction and waste sectors.
The high level of emissions associated with construction and demolition partially comes from the underutilisation of reusable building materials and furnishings. To address this issue, Uppsala created a Pop-Up Recycling “store” for construction materials - a pop-up reuse warehouse in the Gottsunda district. This initiative, led by municipal housing company Uppsalahem in collaboration with building contractors’ group Byggmästargruppen, is designed to extend the life cycle of materials from housing renovations. Rather than discarding usable items, such as sinks, coat racks, and refrigerator parts, from old apartments, the warehouse collects and redistributes them for use in ongoing municipal housing projects.
The warehouse serves not only as a resource hub but also as a powerful communication tool. The pilot team was intentional in its design approach, aiming to prevent people from using the warehouse as a dump. It, therefore, emulates a professional retail environment to normalise and elevate the appeal of reused materials. This visual and experiential reframing is a key part of the pilot’s strategy to shift perceptions and practices among contractors.
A further innovation is the introduction of dual price tags on each item. Alongside the financial cost, each label includes an estimated carbon cost—translated into relatable terms, such as the equivalent emissions of a short family flight. This approach helps make abstract carbon data more tangible, fostering a better understanding of environmental impact at the point of decision-making.
During this pilot phase, access to the warehouse is limited to contractors working on Uppsalahem properties. However, early feedback indicates that the initiative is already influencing behaviour and sparking broader conversations around reuse in the construction sector. Stakeholders have responded positively to the concept, particularly the warehouse’s accessible format and the visibility it gives to the carbon savings of circular practices.
What were the key drivers of the initiative?
Governance: Uppsala’s governance structure includes a municipally owned company responsible for major renovation projects, allowing close alignment with the city’s broader climate and construction goals. The development of a Municipal Carbon Budget further strengthens the enabling governance conditions by embedding climate considerations into the city’s annual financial planning. Strong political support has provided a stable foundation for the project to develop with confidence and allow a long-term perspective.
Knowledge sharing: The pilot functioned as a learning platform for reuse practices, embracing an open-door approach to knowledge sharing. It included practical exploration of reused materials, warranties, and construction logistics. Collaboration with NetZeroCities supported the publication of lessons learned, amplifying the technical credibility and replicability of the pilot.
Stakeholder Engagement: Engagement with tenant associations and broader stakeholder groups created a participatory environment where the reuse concept was co-explored rather than imposed. The pilot has been met with consistent support, reinforcing social acceptance and trust. Its potential impact on more than 30,000 tenants highlights the relevance and potential for broader systemic change.
Strategy: A clear strategic vision, paired with autonomy in execution, allowed the pilot to evolve organically while staying focused on its core goals. The strong emphasis on communication and shared learning fostered a culture of collaboration, reducing resistance and creating a supportive atmosphere across all sectors involved.
What were the challenges and barriers?
Public Perception: A key social challenge was the stigma associated with using second-hand or reused materials. Users often compared reused items to new ones, with scepticism about quality, durability, and cleanliness. To address this, the pilot emphasised clear communication. It adopted a guiding principle of “clean and neat like new,” which applies to the products as well as the entire reuse facility. Building trust in reused materials proved essential to gaining public acceptance.
Technical: Reused materials require refinement and preparation before they can be reintroduced into construction workflows, which are typically optimised for new products. Integrating reused materials into standard logistics and work processes demands new technical steps, such as cleaning, sorting, and adapting materials. The project recognised the need for dedicated roles to ensure quality and consistency at scale.
Economic: The current market system, including supply chains and labour models, is heavily geared toward the use of new, disposable products. Reuse workflows are often more complex and costly upfront, especially in the absence of established infrastructure. Making reuse viable requires systemic change and external support to help bridge the gap and reduce financial and operational barriers during the transition.
Potential for replication
By focusing on practical, real-world testing, Uppsala’s pop-up warehouse offers a replicable model for other cities looking to embed circular economy principles into urban development, reduce construction-related emissions, and promote a cultural shift in material use.
The pilot demonstrated that reuse can be successfully integrated into mainstream construction and renovation processes as a scalable and sustainable practice. What began as a bold, full-scale experiment has evolved into standard operating procedure for one of Sweden’s ten largest municipal housing companies. With dedicated staff now responsible for the refinement of materials, and a shift in perspective that views 18,000 apartments as a “reuse bank,” the pilot has proven both practical and transformative, even after its formal conclusion. One of the key lessons was the power of framing: celebrating progress, sharing results openly, and inviting others to join created a sense of collective momentum. This model offers a replicable blueprint for other cities and housing providers seeking to embed circularity in practice, not just in principle.