This catalogue aims to provide waste management experts and decision makers in the Mediterranean region with an overview of successful practices, solutions and approaches in waste separation, collection, treatment and recycling in the Mediterranean.

It examines five projects spanning this region and covering issues such as employing a circular economy approach for the organic fraction of municipal solid waste management. It also highlights the lessons that should be considered when replicating successes and avoiding pitfalls.

This report explores the potential of circular business models within the electronics industry, examining three models across four industry segments and throughout six lifecycle stages. The data utilized in the analysis stems from diverse sources: research papers, public databases, internal benchmarking, collaboration with external/internal partners etc.

Projections and estimations are grounded in a comprehensive approach, blending historical data extrapolated with logarithmic adjustments. Baseline data for lifecycle stages is constructed from product Life Cycle Assessments, considering both carbon footprint and cost perspectives. The focus is on capturing the significant impact of approximately 20% of products, which are estimated to constitute around 80% of their respective segments.

This International Labour Organization (ILO) report analyses the impact of the transition to low-carbon and resource-efficient economies, providing new insights into likely occupational skill effects in declining and growing industries by 2030 based on the global scenarios of "energy sustainability" and "circular economy". Evidence of good practices collected demonstrates how skills development can underpin the green transition.

This International Labour Organization (ILO) report examines environmental sustainability in the world of work.

It focuses on how climate change and environmental degradation will have an impact on labour markets by affecting the volume and quality of employment, and quantifies the shifts expected to take place within and between sectors. It also models employment shifts by region and sector under a circular economy scenario.

Fast fashion and disposing of clothes at the end of their lives are generally considered to be the main issues in terms of textile waste. However, pre-consumer waste is another major problem. This occurs a few steps further back in the manufacturing process, and deals with all waste materials created in the supply chain when a product is being made.

Unlike post-consumer waste, it is easier to keep pre-consumer waste away from a landfill or an incinerator as the fabric or garment is essentially brand new, despite one or more repairable defects.

So, finding ways to re-use or use up the resources created is the key to creating an endless supply of materials without further depleting natural resources.

At European level, the built environment is responsible for 40% of CO2-eq emissions and roughly 60% of material consumption.

By applying bio-based alternatives to conventional ‘mineral’ construction materials, the environmental impact of the EU27+UK sector can be reduced by 18%.

However, there is a limit to the sustainable wood supply that can be harvested without compromising vital functions provided by forests, and the projected increase in wood consumption is not compatible with the realistic growth potential of harvesting activities. Therefore resource efficiency, bio-based added value or demand for new housing should be carefully weighted in to ensure a sustainable shift, the study concludes.

Contact for more info on this study and Metabolic.

Paid-for publication

This book collates leading-edge research and industry best practice to provide a ‘one-stop shop’ exploring the complex and interconnected issues surrounding sustainability in the sector.

It includes innovative examples from different regions, addressing topics from policies to supply chain issues and materials innovation. Five unique case studies of sustainable businesses provide examples of pioneering practice. The book brings together both academic and industry perspectives on the critical areas that require immediate action to move towards a more sustainable fashion, clothing and textile sector.

Part VI features five chapters by leading authors covering the circular economy in the sector, including a chapter by Professor Jacqueline Cramer.

In recent years, the concept of green jobs has been the focus of increasing attention. The principles of green jobs and green employment are grounded in a variety of evolving concepts such as green economy, green growth, sustainable development and circular economy, which are multi-dimensional and their understanding evolves in both academic and political contexts.

At the EU policy level, the green transition is seen as an opportunity to create jobs in existing and emerging economic sectors. A large number of different approaches to how green jobs can be defined and classified have been put forward. Differences and gaps identified in these existing definitions and frameworks have exposed the need to create a novel, integrated taxonomy for green jobs, which is developed in this report.

In the context of the data needs for EU policies in economic activities related to circular economy, climate change mitigation, climate change adaptation and bioeconomy, in 2019 Eurostat initiated a project implemented by Prognos and DevStat to develop a method that allows deriving key economic variables on these activities, which can be used as a framework also for other transition sectors.

This Prognos study contracted by the European Commission and Eurostat, and published in 2023, is a description of a generic conceptual framework to define various sectors of the environmental economy, identify activities, and analyse data by using different data sources (e.g. national or regional data).

Other documents produced under the same project can be consulted here.

Denmark is already excelling in many areas of sustainability, positioning itself as an ambitious frontrunner in the race to net-zero. It already boasts mostly renewable electricity generation, with targets to achieve 100% green electricity by 2027 and entirely renewable energy by 2050.

The Circularity Gap Report on Denmark reveals that the country’s economy is 4% circular. This figure is defined by very high material consumption - 24.5 tonnes of virgin materials per person per year. This puts the country above both the European average of 17.8 tonnes per capita and the global average of 11.9 tonnes per capita.

The report also lays out five circular pathways for Denmark that have the potential to cut its material and carbon footprints by roughly 40% each.