The fashion sector is awash with certification schemes, sustainability labels and multi-stakeholder initiatives all seeking to steer the industry onto a greener course. Such schemes serve a dual purpose for the brands. As the fashion industry is one of the least regulated sectors in the world, they partially exist as a genuine attempt to move towards sustainability but they also enable ‘greenwashing’.

This report has sought to assess whether certification schemes, labels and multi-stakeholder initiatives are fit for purpose and what role they play in addressing the damage done by the fashion industry. The findings show that the majority of schemes offer a false promise of certification for textiles and a highly sophisticated form of greenwashing.

This report:

• sets out the background to the Circular Electronics project of the Consumer Insights Action Panel (CIAP),
• shares information on the multi-stakeholder circular Electronics Club at the heart of the work, and
• provides an overview of the methodology followed in gathering insights, designing and running interventions, and evaluating results and sustainability of the pilots.

It is designed not only to provide an overview of the project’s activities, but also to share learnings, findings and models that could support potential future initiatives in the field of circular electronics and beyond.

Circularity offers pathways to achieve a more sustainable production and consumption and to provide benefits to society. Although sustainability entails an ecological, economic, and a social dimension, the discourse on social aspects seems to have been less prevalent than on economic and environmental ones. Hence the need to further explore the social impacts of circularity and its potential societal benefits.

The aim of this report is to frame, address and better understand questions related to the social impacts of the transition to a Circular Economy. The report synthesises the gathered insights into key emerging themes and identifies gaps or areas of potential in the field as part of the Consumer Insight Action Panel (CIAP) project, led by the CSCP and funded by Sitra and DBU.

The built environment has a huge impact on the environment. This means that it is a key lever for achieving both the goals set by the Paris Agreement and many other sustainability objectives. Activating that lever will require a long-term transformation of the entire sector.

The circular economy is a way to secure resources, limit impact and promote affordability.

The Metabolic Institute, supported by the Laudes Foundation Built Environment Programme, set out to explore the circularity of the built environment in Europe. The resulting snapshot lays out key challenges, needs and opportunities in this field.

This exploration fed into the process of shaping a new programme starting in May 2022: Accelerating the Circular Economy in the Built Environment.

In the research Youth competencies in the circular economy labour market – A taxonomy of competencies, 50 circular entrepreneurs across Europe were interviewed on the competences that are relevant in their work. The central question is: How should young people be equipped to shift the labour market towards circularity and sustainability?

The results provide an overview of the types of skills, knowledge and attitudes that characterise circular entrepreneurship and leadership. The study concludes with a discussion on the role of youth workers in developing these competences.

This report is the second intellectual output of the Circular Economy - Sustainable Competences for Youth (CESCY) project, co-funded by the Erasmus+ Programme of the EU.

The aim of this study is to report on the status quo of circular economy and sustainable practices implementation at the EU level, as well as in Estonia, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal and Spain.

This status quo is considered from different perspectives – rules, social norms, funding, knowledge and education, knowledge dissemination vehicles and implementation of the circular economy vision – and involves different stakeholders: state (national government, regional/local government and municipalities), public companies, public and private universities, civil society, private businesses, cooperatives, association of companies and transnational corporations.

This is the first intellectual output of the Circular Economy - Sustainable Competences for Youth (CESCY) project.

Ireland is at a turning point for the transition to a circular economy (CE). The 2022 Whole of Government Circular Economy Strategy provides the policy framework for the CE in this country, and the forthcoming Circular Economy Bill is expected to strengthen waste and CE legislation.

Nevertheless, with a circularity material use rate of 2% in 2020, Ireland shows significant scope for progress. This report analyses the state of play and challenges of the circular transition in Ireland and provides policy recommendations for CE policy across levels of government. It is the result of a two-year policy dialogue between the OECD, the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications, as well as a broad range of public, private and civil society stakeholders.

The goal of this study was to investigate the feasibility for Smart Integrated Decentralised Energy (SIDE) systems to contribute to the resilience, flexibility and circularity of the Dutch national power system infrastructure. The energy sector plays a crucial role in tackling the challenge of transitioning into a circular, renewable energy-based economy. For this reason, the Dutch government has decided to quintuple renewable power generation by 2030.

Thanks to recent developments in renewable energy technologies such as batteries, heat pumps and solar panels, but also biodigesters in which organic waste and black water are collected providing an alternative heating source, it is now possible to produce, convert and store energy locally within so-called microgrids.

This research project lists ecodesign criteria for circular fashion and textiles.

It focused on giving consumer textiles a longer lifespan with optimal reuse potential, making disassembly and recovery possible, and exploring upcycling and high-quality recycling. Extending the life of textile products turned out to have the greatest impact in the short term. Quality seems to be the most impactful ecodesign criterion when it comes to improving the sustainability and circularity of consumer textiles as quickly as possible.

The project defined seven product categories, identifying a set of minimum criteria for each. The report looks at existing labels, standards and regulations and the authors hope it will help expand the Ecodesign Directive by adding a textile category.

This report, prepared by the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management, provides an analysis of the Dutch procurement system.

The Dutch Sustainable Public Procurement (SPP) approach embraces six themes, two of which are explored in this study: climate-neutral procurement and circular procurement. Included in these two themes are aspects such as CO₂ and other greenhouse gas emissions, as well as the reuse of raw materials at the highest possible level of value. SPP is a highly topical issue for a steadily growing number of organisations in the Netherlands: action plans are being written, requirements and criteria are being formulated, and tools are being produced. Together, these activities are creating growing demand for instruments that evidence the impact of SPP.