Europe and the world face unprecedented sustainability challenges, largely as a result of unsustainable consumption. Since similar consumption patterns are expected to continue, technological and efficiency gains are likely to be insufficient to keep environmental and climate pressures within sustainable limits.
A more circular economy in Europe has the potential to reduce environmental and climate pressures and impacts from our consumption, but will require reshaping our consumption and production systems. This report presents trends in European household consumption and its environmental and climate pressures, and explores conditions for and pathways to a transition towards more sustainable and circular consumption patterns in Europe.
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.
The Circular Republic Festival will take place from 15 to 18 November 2023. Join top circular economy visionaries for innovation, networking and inspiration. Showcase initiatives, meet relevant players and be inspired by good practices. Experience keynote speeches, panel discussions, workshops and online collaboration. We want to accelerate the circular economy together!
The ELLIPSE project will address the valorization of two heterogeneous waste streams - slaughterhouse waste and paper and pulp sludge - generated in significant amounts in Europe, to produce cost-efficient polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs).
The technology will impact the European bioeconomy by valorising 20,000 tons of rumen content waste and 50,000 tons of paper sludge per year.
The Re-Shoes LIFE project wants to provide an alternative, circular and sustainable solution for footwear end-of-life management. The European Platform for Sport Innovation (EPSI) will organize the Re-Shoes project launch event on 6 June 2023 in the Azores (Portugal), as part of the EPSI Annual Conference 2023.
The World Circular Economy Forum 2023 will be held in Helsinki from 30 May to 2 June 2023. This global collaboration forum is co-organised by Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra and Nordic Innovation, with international partners. It will attract more than 2 000 leading circular economy players in the world to Finland to find circular solutions that can help our economies fit within the boundaries of nature. Part of the programme will also be accessible online.
Coffeefrom is an innovative project from Italy, the second circular economy project run by Il Giardinone Cooperativa Sociale. It has built a supply chain based on the recovery and processing of industrial coffee grounds. Coffee grounds from the food industry are blended with biopolymers to become a new bio-based material that is a durable and resistant alternative to single-use plastic.
The BioSupPack project aims to deliver novel, cost-competitive and versatile bio-based packaging solutions - based on PHA - that demonstrate high-performance for the packaging of food, cosmetics, homecare and beverage products as well as no environmental damage during & after their use.