
You are invited to participate in a webinar led by the European Commission, DG ENV, on 8 March 2022, to launch a "Support study for the development of the Roadmap for the reduction of whole life carbon of buildings", .
You are invited to participate in a webinar led by the European Commission, DG ENV, on 8 March 2022, to launch a "Support study for the development of the Roadmap for the reduction of whole life carbon of buildings", .
There is an intense debate about how to close the gap between the current climate policy and the aim of the Paris Agreement to achieve close to net-zero emissions by mid-century. The materials and chemicals that heavy industry produces are essential inputs to major value chains: transportation, infrastructure, construction, consumer goods, agriculture.
Material Economics' study Industrial Transformation 2050 - Pathways to Net-Zero Emissions from EU Heavy Industry starts with a broad mapping of options to eliminate fossil CO2-emissions from production, including many emerging innovations in production processes. It also integrates them with the potential for a more circular economy: making a better use of the materials already produced and so reducing the need for new production.
Each year, humanity consumes resources equivalent to 1.7 planets. Sustainable resource use is therefore essential if we are to achieve our national environmental and climate objectives and the sustainable global development goals in the 2030 Agenda.
RE:Source is a strategic innovation programme co-funded by the Swedish Agency for Innovation Systems (Vinnova), the Swedish Research Council for Environment, Agricultural Sciences and Spatial Planning (Formas) and the Swedish Energy Agency. The programme focuses on research and innovation in sustainable material use.
Within RE:Source, the RE:Agenda describes the innovation area of sustainable use of resources, which aims to support solutions that contribute to the efficient use of the earth’s resources within the planetary boundaries.
Batteries are considered crucial for the transition to a circular and climate-neutral economy. On 10 February, the European Parliament's Environment Committee (ENVI) overwhelmingly (by 74 to 8!) adopted an ambitious report on the European Batteries Regulation covering proposed rules governing the entire battery product lifecycle, from design to end-of-life. This webinar, which will take place on 3 March at 15:00 CET and is organised by TÜV Rheinland, will address durability of consumer electronics with regard to needs/issues for removable and replaceable batteries.
The Circularity Gap Report 2022 draws on five years of analysis to show the power of the circular economy to equitably fulfil our global needs and wants, with radically fewer materials and emissions.
The 2022 report by impact organisation Circle Economy reveals that the throwaway global economy is fuelling the climate crisis, with more than half a trillion tonnes of virgin materials consumed since the 2015 Paris Agreement was signed.
Circular economy solutions can have a huge impact on climate change. This is because 70% of greenhouse gas emissions are related to the production and use of products – from the buildings we live in and the transport we use to the food we eat and the clothes we wear.
Clear Fashion, independant expert of garment evaluation, is a solution that informs consumers on brands' practices and clothes' impact, and enables fashion brands to communicate their scores, in order to bring more transparency in the fashion industry.
Extended Producer Responsibility Schemes (EPR) are increasingly used across Member States to finance proper waste management. The workshop discussed the take-aways, benefits but also shortcomings of EPR Schemes, in order to focus on the various areas of improvements. Particular emphasis was placed on the role played by eco-modulation of fees.
While digital networking is of great advantage for everyday life, the incredible amounts of electrical devices bring with it some particularly ecological risks, especially with regard to the use of resources. This is why the European Commission in the New Circular Economy Action Plan announced a Circular Electronics Initiative. There are still many challenges to be discussed during this workshop.
This workshop brought together experts from various organisations to discuss topics like the undervalued importance of infrastructure in tackling climate change, discuss the markets for secondary resources, the relevance of deconstruction design to enable the renovation wave, and stress value-chains collaboration.
At a moment when the EU stakeholders hold their breath for the EU Textiles strategy to be published, this workshop aims to give a final signal to the policy makers that a high level of ambition needs to be maintained in the upcoming proposal in order to create a watershed moment for the textile production and consumption, and more importantly for its global impact on the society and environment.
This workshop aims to better understand the key ingredients for the successful circular transformation as well as the definition of the optimal profile of the transition broker.
The PUCO2 project, led by AIDIMME, AIMPLAS and INESCOP, uses research and development to combat global warming caused by greenhouse gas emissions. Seventeen companies have taken part in the project, which will also be relevant to producers of adhesives for related sectors, as well as the textile, automotive and toy industries.
Awareness is increasing about the presence of microplastics in our environment and their negative impact on ecosystems, animals and people. The wearing/washing of textiles made from synthetic fibers is one recognised source of microplastics in the environment. Textiles and plastics are among the key value chains in the EU circular economy action plan.
It is possible to reduce or prevent the release of microplastics from textiles by implementing sustainable design and production processes and caretaking measures that control microplastic emissions during use, and by improving disposal and end-of-life processing.
This briefing aims to improve our understanding of microplastics released from textiles from a European perspective and identify pathways to reduce or prevent this release.
Circular design is an important enabler of the transition towards sustainable production and consumption of textiles through circular business models. The design phase plays a critical role in each of the four pathways to achieving a circular textile sector:
This briefing aims to improve our understanding of the environmental and climate impacts of textiles from a European perspective and to identify design principles and measures to increase circularity in textiles. It is underpinned by a report from the EEA's European Topic Centre on Circular Economy and Resource Use available here.
This white paper on Quick Scan Circular Business Models - Inspiration for organising value retention in loops from the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy offers an approach for developing a circular business model. It is based on a classification for existing and future circular business models developed in 2021. It consists of seven basic models geared primarily to the manufacturing industry, although it can also be used in other sectors.
The paper is divided into three parts:
The interactive Quick Scan version can be found here.
Although previous researchers have explored the circular economy practices of different businesses in various contexts, only a few papers have focused on the sustainable preparation and consumption of food in the tourism and hospitality industry. This paper sheds light on case studies from hotels, restaurants and cafés that are located in urban tourism destinations.
This research suggests that catering businesses can implement a number of responsible initiatives by introducing preventive measures and recycling practices to curb food loss and the generation of waste. In conclusion, it finds that there is scope for regulatory authorities and policy makers to encourage hospitality practitioners to minimise food waste.
The submission deadlines for LIFE calls for proposals 2022 have been communicated. All LIFE Calls for proposals 2022 are expected to be published on the Funding & tender opportunities portal on 17 May 2022.
The article Implementation of circular economy approaches in the electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) sector: Barriers, enablers and policy insights by Vasileios Rizos and Julie Bryhn aims to enrich the research in the field of circular economy business models by focusing on the EEE sector.
The study adopts a multi-case study approach and uses a sample of 31 cases developed through the EU-funded CIRC4Life project and the snowball sampling method.
The findings show that despite the various policy instruments in place to boost the CE transition in this sector, gaps exist which require policy attention.
The study suggests actions to facilitate CE practices including knowledge sharing platforms and business partnerships as well as R&D project grants.
The online symposium "Smart Process Systems Engineering 2022: Towards sustainable and circular production processes" on 2-4 March 2022 will cover both engineering and social sciences. You can register and submit an abstract for a flash presentation until 20 February.