Ekofungi is a Serbian company that takes a 100% circular approach to mushroom cultivation. It has pioneered a technology for sustainable cultivation of edible mushrooms using recycled cellulose waste. Each year, Ekofungi grows 130 tons of mushrooms which are either sold fresh or dehydrated and mixed with other vegetables.
The mission of Reet Aus is to minimise the ecological footprint of one of the world's most contaminating businesses – the fashion industry. They do it by industrial upcycling. This not-wasteful way of production is based on a scientific methodology called UPMADE® that has been developed by the designer and founder PhD Reet Aus in cooperation with Stockholm Environment Institute Tallinn Center.
Arup has joined forces with the Ellen MacArthur Foundation to produce a report on the value of circular economyin real estate.
The circular economy offers real estate investors a framework for achieving environmental and social goals while delivering better economic performance. How do real estate business models need to change - apart from eco-design - if circular principles are to scale up in this sector?
The report defines five models to improve financial performance to the benefit of real estate investors and construction clients:
In its publication "Transition time! A circular economy for plastics", the Dutch Sustainable Growth Coalition sheds light on the challenges of plastic, shares innovative cases and makes specific recommendations on how to incentivise action.
In many countries, the government is the single largest purchaser of products, services and works. Green Public Procurement (GPP) enables governments to reduce the environmental impact of their purchases. It also serves as a powerful tool for governments to simultaneously achieve their environmental and development policy objectives.
This report provides an overview of international experience in the implementation of GPP. It focuses on the institutional framework that is needed to support the mainstreaming of GPP practices across governments. The intention is to equip practitioners with a broad understanding of the issues they need to consider in the design and implementation of GPP reforms.
The benefits of transitioning to a circular economy outweigh the disadvantages. However, more efforts are needed to move from conceptualisation to implementation. The transition requires a political commitment and the right business mindset. It also requires prioritisation and investment in innovation, the utilisation of new technological solutions, and the right set of skills and competences.
So far, there has been very limited focus on what skills and competences are needed for this transition and whether Nordic STEM education provides them. This report introduces the basis for a Circular Economy Competence Framework for STEM specialists, including a set of essential technical and analytical skills for creating circular solutions.
The Environmental change project promoted proactive reskilling and upskilling to reap the benefits of the ecological transition. The project was in line with the European Green Deal and focused on the circular economy and sustainable solutions.
Active and intelligent packaging is a new and exciting area of technology, the potential of which has received much attention from the food business operators, retailers and consumers alike.
This position paper aims to oversee the barriers identified for the rapid market introduction of active and intelligent packaging and offer recommendations on lifting these barriers. The examples brought forward in this paper are based on the results and experiences from the GLOPACK project and relevant publications, guides and knowledge collected from industry practice.
Circular Threads aims to paint a picture of sustainability and circularity practices in the fashion and textile industry in Northern Italy.
This study is a starting point for fostering the transition towards circular production models in the Italian textile industry. Researchers have developed a tripartite approach (desk research, questionnaire and circularity assessment) with different levels of granularity to measure the sustainability and circularity of the companies present in this area.
The report highlights how few companies in the fashion and textile industry are adopting circular practices and strategies, and a clear lack of knowledge sharing about the potential opportunities that the circular economy can offer businesses on a systemic level.
Following the successful #EUCircularTalks events, EuroCommerce has prepared a Toolbox for Circular Packaging in the Retail sector. This Guidance aims to offer food for thought for retailers on how to improve the sustainability of their packaging.
