ICLEI - Local Governments for Sustainability is a global network of more than 1 750 local and regional governments committed to sustainable urban development. Active in over 100 countries, ICLEI influences sustainability policy and drives local action for low emission, nature-based, equitable, resilient and circular development.
Simon Clement joined ICLEI Europe in 2002. As Head of Circular Economy, he is responsible for ICLEI's activities in this field, including managing the European Circular Cities Declaration. For over 20 years he has worked for, and on behalf of, local, regional and national governments in project, policy and strategy development on sustainability issues such as circular economy, procurement, transport and smart cities.
Ms Ettinger is a lawyer in Germany and holds a Master of Law degree from George Mason University (USA). Before joining EuRIC, she worked at a Brussels-based consultancy, advising multinational companies on environmental, health and safety matters.
EuRIC is a confederation which represents the interests of European recycling industries within the EU. It spans the majority of waste streams, and so can facilitate cooperation between national recycling and resource management federations and companies from over 23 European countries, operating both locally and globally.
EuRIC represents:
5 500+ companies generating an aggregated annual turnover of about €95 billion, including large companies and SMEs involved in the recycling of and trade in various resource streams
300 000 local jobs which cannot be outsourced to non-EU countries
a million tons of waste recycled each year (metals, paper, glass, plastics, WEEE, ELVs, tyres, textiles, construction & demolition, etc.).
By turning waste into resources, recycling loops recycled materials back into value chains. Recyclers play a key role in bridging resource efficiency, climate change policy and the industrial transition.
The transition towards the circular economy entails complex economic and social changes. Using a survey, the EDUCIRC project will provide policy recommendations on rural development, with particular emphasis on women and young people.
It will devise a new methodology for assessing the capacity of rural areas to deliver this transition and identify the main obstacles, strengths and problems, as well as possible solutions.
As a growing community of European frontrunner festivals, Green Deal Circular Festivals strives for fully circular and climate neutral festivals, as festivals can play a guiding role in inspiring a green movement and accelerate society’s transition.
The Albanian social enterprise RecycAl reuses textile waste such as leather or canvas by turning it into heavy-duty bags that could be produced at industrial scale.
Parma Municipality, the Confederazione Nazionale dell’Artigianato e della Piccola e Media Impresa (National Confederation of Crafts and SMEs) and La coperta di Linus have launched a project called Arteinborsa (A-Bag-from-Art). This project uses old posters from local exhibitions to create bags and accessories.
At the European Environmental Bureau (EEB), Eva leads the Circular Economy team, which is active in cross-cutting policy areas which influence the transition towards a truly circular economy. The EEB is Europe’s largest network of environmental citizens’ organisations with over 180 members in more than 40 countries.
Prior to working at the EEB, Eva spent over 10 years as an EU policy consultant, working with major companies and trade associations in the Brussels bubble. She has also worked for the European Commission and the UN in Lebanon and spent four years working in China.
She studied economics and graduated with a Master’s Degree in resources, development and growth from Tilburg University in the Netherlands.
Food waste causes loss of materials and energy, environmental damage and negative effects on people's health and quality of life. In response to this, two Italian consumers' associations have decided to provide a series of nationwide services and activities, investing in innovative tools that promote the information needed to curb daily food waste.
