The Circular Economy in the Healthcare Sector project led by Club EMAS in Catalonia aims to identify the main challenges and opportunities of the circular economy in this sector and to shed light on how to overcome the barriers to making the sector more circular.
AIMPLAS has developed a device which demonstrates how the Digital Product Passport for plastic products will work. This tool provides essential information about the traceability, materials, recycling and carbon footprint of products.
The Green Growth project aimed to address the challenges of integrating the circular economy into the European construction sector through comprehensive training and capacity building for trainers.
Co-funded by the European Union's Erasmus+ programme, the project ran from 2020 to 2023. The project developed several key resources to embed circular economy principles into Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET).
The Basque Country feels very strongly about the circular economy. One initiative they've adopted to promote it is the Zirkularrak website promoting locally made circular products.
Recycling flexible PET packaging is tricky because it is made up of layers but in Spain, recycled polyethylene terephthalate (rPET) is the only type authorised for post-consumer recycled content for food packaging.
The BOTTLE4FLEX project has taken up this challenge and aims to develop 100% recyclable flexible skinpack packaging using rPET.
Revivack has set up the world's first system based on blockchain technology that facilitates the individual return of unwanted items to the manufacturer. These items can therefore be recovered in an orderly, transparent and reliable way, contributing to the promotion of the circular economy.
Businesses in Spain and around the world are adopting the circular economy as a new production paradigm. However, while the economic and environmental dimensions of the circular economy have been explored, its social impact (decent pay, gender equality, labour conditions) has been overlooked.
By surveying more than 210 workers in three countries and interviewing 90 stakeholders in Spain, the authors developed an inventory of circular jobs. They found that circular jobs in Spain follow the same pattern as the linear value chain, where women in resale, repair and recycling are the most vulnerable. Startups in resale and rental based on internet platform models have the highest earning quality but also high job insecurity, especially for women workers.
Renewaball introduced the world’s first fully circular tennis and padel balls, designed with recycled materials sourced from used balls collected across European clubs.
This project embodies eco-friendly design by reusing rubber from old balls and using biodegradable wool felt to replace conventional polyester and nylon, which reduces microplastic pollution.
The Horizon Europe POLYMEER project aims to establish a sustainable bio-based value chain for bioplastic products. By efficiently converting wet brewers’ spent grain into high added value materials, it is endeavouring to diversify the array of innovative material solutions capable of replacing traditional plastics.
The report presents the progress the Commission has made in implementing the 2022 strategy for the outermost regions. It shows that the Commission has delivered on its commitment to reflect the outermost regions’ characteristics in legislative proposals, policy initiatives and programmes.
The outermost regions have high potential to develop circular economy solutions. Cohesion policy supports circular economy development there. Both the ERDF and Interreg support waste management and recycling, for instance in Réunion with EUR 18 million of ERDF funding dedicated to the circular economy. Outermost regions also benefit from support under the LIFE programme. Several of these regions have designed circular strategies, such as the Circular Economy Conference of the Azores.
