Career
After completing her master's degree in environmental engineering at ETH Zurich, Melanie Haupt remained at the Chair of Ecological Systems Design and earned her doctorate on the topic of "Ecological Optimization of Municipal Waste Management." Following her doctorate, she dedicated herself to research in the field of sustainable circular economy for another four years. Simultaneously, she started working in the private sector at REDILO on the implementation of this topic in the packaging industry in Switzerland. Dr. Melanie Haupt has been the owner and managing director of realcycle since 2023. In addition, she is a lecturer for waste and circular economy as well as recycling technologies at ETH Zurich and various universities of applied sciences.
Key Publications
Blum, N. U., Haupt, M., & Bening, C. R. (2020). Why “Circular” doesn always mean “Sustainable.” Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 162, 105042. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2020.105042
Haupt, M., & Hellweg, S. (2019). Measuring the environmental sustainability of a circular economy. Environmental and Sustainability Indicators, 1–2, 100005. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.indic.2019.100005
Haupt, M., Kägi, T., & Hellweg, S. (2018b). Modular life cycle assessment of municipal solid waste management. Waste Management. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wasman.2018.03.035
Haupt, M., Vadenbo, C., & Hellweg, S. (2017). Do We Have the Right Performance Indicators for the Circular Economy?: Insight into the Swiss Waste Management System. Journal of Industrial Ecology, 21(3), 615–627. https://doi.org/10.1111/jiec.12506
Haupt, M., Vadenbo, C., Zeltner, C., & Hellweg, S. (2017). Influence of Input-Scrap Quality on the Environmental Impact of Secondary Steel Production. Journal of Industrial Ecology. https://doi.org/10.1111/jiec.12439
Klotz, M., & Haupt, M. (2022). A high-resolution dataset on the plastic material flows in Switzerland. Data in Brief, 41, 108001. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.DIB.2022.108001
Klotz, M., Haupt, M., & Hellweg, S. (2022a). Limited utilization options for secondary plastics may restrict their circularity. Waste Management, 141, 251–270. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.WASMAN.2022.01.002
Klotz, M., Haupt, M., & Hellweg, S. (2023). Potentials and limits of mechanical plastic recycling. https://doi.org/10.1111/jiec.13393
An overview of all scientific articles by Dr. Melanie Haupt
Core competencies
- Stakeholder management
- Moderation
- Project development, system analysis and system design
- Training courses and workshops
- Waste management, municipal solid waste
- Packaging
- Value chains
- Circular economy strategies
Mandates
- Advisory board member at the Institute for Environment and Natural Resources
- Foundation board member Pusch Foundation
Further education
- Media training