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.
The Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) will require EU business to report on several new sustainability topics, including their circular economy performance. However, only 2% of businesses currently comply with the disclosure requirements on resource use and the circular economy. Is your organisation ready?
Gravity Wave is a social start-up based in Spain. It focuses on working with small-scale fishermen to collect as much as possible of the plastic waste fouling the Mediterranean, from water bottles to a whole load of discarded fishing nets.
The MixMatters project aims to optimise the value derived from mixed biological waste. It will introduce a groundbreaking, integrated and adaptable solution for efficiently harnessing the potential of mixed bio-waste.
The "Waste REcycling Project" (WREP) is a pilot scheme developed by PVC Forum Italia, the national association of producers, converters and recyclers of PVC (polyvinyl chloride), in collaboration with VinylPlus, the European PVC value chain association.
It aims to make the collection, sorting and recycling of PVC waste from demolition/renovation, bulky waste and waste management centres more efficient, using a consolidated and accredited traceability methodology.
The Circular Economy Lab was set up in 2018 by Cariplo Factoryand Intesa Sanpaolo Innovation Center. It is a hub of circular economy competences that aims to help spread the principles and methods of the circular economy and support companies as they go circular.
The Lab is involved in various projects, such as the Iren Startup Award Call4Circular | Circular products and materials. It promotes the circular economy by holding workshops on key topics and by creating networking opportunities for innovative ecosystem players, such as startups, innovative SMEs, universities, research centres and technology transfer centres.
Wood is becoming increasingly important: it is key to energy, construction and decarbonisation, as well as raw material security. In addition, a raft of legislative and non-legislative measures are being prepared by the Czech Republic and the EU on the issue of wood processing and forestry.
Analysising the sector is therefore paramount. After eight months of work, the research team (Think Tank) of the Institute of Circular Economy has published a study on Closing the Loop on Wood: Circular Bioeconomy Opportunities in the Value Chain for Forest Products and Wood in Czechia. It explores the material flow of wood in the Czech Republic and the challenges, weaknesses and opportunities for cross-sectoral use.
The ELLIPSE project seeks to optimise the use of two heterogeneous waste streams of which plentiful amounts are generated across Europe: slaughterhouse waste (bellygrass) and paper and pulp sludge. The project will produce cost-efficient polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) for the agricultural and packaging sectors by co-processing these waste streams with other organic ones such as glycerol from the biodiesel industry and sludge from the dairy industry.
Skanska is a leading construction and development company that has made sustainability a crucial part of its operations. With the assistance of Cyrkl, it has taken on the challenge of deconstructing the Merkuria building, revolutionising the industry, saving materials and helping charities in the process.
Hutoepito has been awarded a HUF 197.85 million non-refundable grant by the Hungarian Ministry of Finance to fund research, development and innovation activities under the Upcycling of closed-cell rigid polyurethane foams project.
The widespread use of polyurethane foams in various industrial technologies produces high volumes of rigid PU foam waste. Proper handling of this is essential for environmental, social and economic reasons.
The goal is to produce upcycled polyurethane foam products.
The researchers first identified the upcycling opportunities of closed-cell polyurethane foam materials and purchased the necessary machinery. Later, they started production of upcycled polyurethane foam blocks and sheets, and now they are developing prototypes.
