Abstract
As a country, South Africa faces serious sustainability challenges in terms of economic, social, and environmental development. In an attempt to address these challenges, the National Government has made the decision to move South Africa from a linear economy to a circular economy.
However, public awareness and understanding of the circular economy at a community level have been identified as barriers to transitioning to a circular economy. Thus, a change in public awareness and behaviour is required for the successful adoption of the circular economy at community level. People’s attitude and behaviour are shaped through a process of social influence by their personal interaction with people in their social networks that they trust. These trusted community voices are called nano-influencers.
As little research was available on the role of nano-influencers’ voices to create a narrative on the circular economy in their local context and actual communities, this study thus aimed to explore how nano-influencers’ voices created a narrative that influenced awareness and behaviour change in their respective neighbourhoods in the Cape Town Metro.
The study followed a qualitative, interpretivist approach. Nine nano-influencers from different neighbourhoods in the Cape Town Metro were identified based on their known involvement in activities associated with the circular economy in their local communities. Data was collected through a combined approach of a projective technique and in-depth interviews.
The findings showed that nano-influencers played a significant role in influencing community awareness and behaviour through high levels of interaction and co-construction of meaning with people in specific social settings where they are trusted and in a position of power.