Hi! I’m Michelle Tulac.
I’m a systems-thinker with a background in life sciences, anthropology, and design. My belief in humanity—as a keystone species and integral part of the interconnected web of life—fuels my lifelong passion for environmental stewardship. I’m committed to safeguarding the environment, supporting planetary health while caring for human health—as the two are inextricably linked. I’m helping to create a future where we meet the needs of all within the means of the planet.
I started The Circular Social to help bring a movement to life and turn insights into actions.
I also work at the Ellen MacArthur Foundation where we develop and promote the idea of a circular economy, working with business, government and academia to build a framework for an economy that is restorative and regenerative by design.
My interest in public health and the environment started early. I began my career working in clinical research and at a medical information tech startup. I then joined the global design company IDEO and honed a creative and human-centered approach to innovation.
I’m originally from California, now based in NYC, and I’ve worked with organizations around the world. Let’s collaborate!
The Circular Social is a community of circular economy experts and advisors. We empower and equip founders and funders with a deeper understanding of circular principles and practices. We offer guidance and evidence-based insights for crafting content and designing products, services, and businesses that have positive environmental and social impact.
Curious to learn more? Want to collaborate? Say hello and let’s chat!
Why this work matters…
Switching to renewable energy is not enough to achieve climate targets. How we manage resources, how we make and use products, and what we do with the materials after use are key levers for change and for cutting greenhouse gas emissions—that’s where circularity comes in.
Eliminate waste and pollution to reduce GHG emissions across the value chain
Circulate products and materials to retain their embodied energy
Regenerate nature to sequester carbon in soil, ecosystems, and products
To prosper in the long term, we must redesign the global economy. Nature plays a crucial role in the economy, but it has been overexploited and undervalued. To halt and reverse biodiversity loss, we need to fundamentally transform the way we produce, use, and consume our products and food.
In a circular economy, driven by design, waste and pollution are eliminated so these direct threats to biodiversity are reduced.
When products and materials are circulated in the economy, the need for production from virgin materials is reduced.
Economic activity can, and needs to, actively rebuild biodiversity and regenerate nature.