Food Waste Combat Cluj is one of the first multi-stakeholder initiatives combating food loss and food waste in Romania. Working in partnership, local environmental associations and municipal authorities have been able to set up an infrastructure that collects excess food from the food and drinks industry and transports this to social NGOs helping out people in need.
EU-funded SwitchMed Programme supports and connects stakeholders to scale-up social and eco-innovations in the Mediterranean. It promotes inclusive growth, job creation and sustainable development by supporting policy makers, eco-innovative small and medium sized enterprises, industries, start-ups and entrepreneurs in the Southern Mediterranean countries.
8 billion plastic bags end up in the environment in Europe every year. They have dramatic impacts on the environment, and especially on marine ecosystems, killing every year thousands of marine animals, and affecting no less than 260 different species.
As an adviser for environmental and climate policy, Leon de Graaf particularly follows policies related to the circular economy, trade and climate, low-emission mobility, implementation of the Paris climate agreement (COP21) and the European emission trading system (EU ETS). He is also deputy manager of BusinessEurope's corporate Advisory and Support Group (ASGroup). Prior to joining BusinessEurope, Leon worked at the research consultancy Ecorys, focusing on renewable energy and international development issues, at DG COMP on energy and environmental subsidies in Europe, and at the Dutch Environmental Assessment Agency (PBL) on indirect ETS costs for energy-intensive industries. Leon has a MSc in environmental economics and climate change from the London School of Economics, and a BSc in business economics from the University of Groningen.
Cement and Environment Labour Foundation (CEMA Foundation) was created by Oficemen (Spanish Cement Association) and the two largest trade unions operating in the Spanish cement industry, CCOO de Construcción y Servicios and UGT-FICA, Federación de Industria, Construcción y Agro.
The city of Almere, working together with local stakeholders and the company Millvision, has developed an innovative circular economy partnership. Mowed plants from the local lake instead of just being disposed of, are now being integrated by Millvision, a paper company, in to biomass blends used to produce sustainable paper. The aquatic plant is a local and renewable input to the production of the paper but it also "circular" as something that would be discarded as waste is re-valued as a raw material used in production.
The Farmacie Comunali of the city of Genoa, in partnership with the Associazione Gigi Ghirotti, organise the collection of unused pharmaceuticals to provide for the needs of those who would otherwise struggle to afford them. Through this project, Genoa's eight Farmacie Comunali distribute these "reused" pharmaceutical products. Pharmacies become collection points where local citizens can drop off pharmaceuticals they will not use.