Abstract 

Background:  Sustainable development is increasing among us and becoming more important and implementing practices in the circular economy for businesses. As for companies combining trust, cooperation and waste management, will the topic of industrial symbiosis become popular for future collaboration of business and a step closer to becoming circular in their businesses. As most research has been focusing on the result of industrial symbiosis rather than the implementation and barriers to achieve that stage.   

Purpose: For this study, the main objective is mapping out different barriers to create new vision and perspective for actors at the regional level to collaborate with each other and what obstacles they can meet on the path to achieve industrial symbiosis. 

Method: In order to fulfil the purpose of this study, a qualitative research method will be conducted as exploratory research and will be designed as a case study with an interpretivist paradigm. An interview with a field expert and with the corresponding project manager has been conducted. The case is defined as the implementation process by the Jönköping County for the establishment of an industrial symbiosis network, in order to map out their barriers and stage level on the maturity grid, to gain deeper understanding and knowledge of the topic. The approach is inductive, as the focus will be to highlight the practical aspects in this study.     

Conclusion: The conclusion for this study is stating that the different barriers relevant for an industrial symbiosis implementation are relatively, effectively dealt with by the Jönköping County. A slow political process and the obstacle of finding an ideal shared digital working platform were specific challenges Jönköping had to face.  Time and willingness are crucial general important factors that need to be taken into account for a local network implementation.