The uptake of green and digital technologies will massively increase demand for critical raw materials (CRMs). Since CRM supply chains are heavily concentrated, this exposes the EU to significant CRM supply risks. Several policy options emerge for the EU to address these risks. Domestically, there is potential to produce primary and secondary CRMs, yet significant time and resources will be required to scale up production.

Material substitution and resource efficiency might also play non-negligible roles with enough R&I support. Internationally, both trade policy and international cooperation (including within multilateral fora) hold significant prospects for mitigating supply risks. If properly managed, stockpiling CRMs can also help shield against short-term supply or price shock.

For the EU’s Green Deal to be effective, it is critical to target the root cause of the triple environmental crises of climate change, pollution and biodiversity loss: excessive extraction, production, manufacturing and consumption of material resources.

This excess is not evenly distributed in the world: as highlighted in the report, the EU consumes more than its fair share – levels that are almost double the estimated sustainable consumption levels.

Addressing material resource consumption by establishing an EU Material Resources Law will be critical to meet the fourfold objectives set out in the Circular Economy Action Plan (CEAP) and stay within planetary boundaries. The EU will not achieve its climate change targets without making progress on resource consumption.

The Joint Research Centre (JRC) of the European Commission has just published a report on construction & demolition waste (CDW) which confirms that the circular economy is crucial for reaching climate neutrality by 2050:

- construction & demolition waste accounts for almost 40% of all waste generated in the EU
- the new JRC study estimates the potential for recycling and preparing for re-use of CDW to be roughly 83%
- realising this potential would lead to an additional 33 Mt CO₂e savings annually (equivalent to the combined annual emissions of e.g. Estonia, Latvia and Luxembourg).

The European Commission is taking important legislative and non-legislative steps to ensure CDW is managed in an environmentally sound manner and contributes to the circular economy.

The first step towards circular financing in the Nordics

The circular economy is a resource and energy-efficient economic model, built on high value retention in products and materials. It is suggested as a core strategy to tackle the climate and environmental crises that face humanity. Business models that promote and drive value retention play a key role to achieve a more circular economy, and for circular business to thrive, financing of these circular business models is a must.

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The Transition Group for Circular Finance is a working group within the Nordic Circular Hotspot. It was initiated by RISE (Research Institutes of Sweden) and aims to address challenges and develop solutions for financing circular business models.

This booklet describes selected best practice initiatives for the collection of small waste of electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) and portable batteries implemented within Europe. It is aimed at inspiring producers, producer responsibility organisations and distributors of electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) and batteries, and policy makers in the organisation of similar initiatives.

At the beginning of this work stands the question of what to consider best practice for the collection of small waste of WEEE and batteries in the context of this report. For this purpose the key criteria have been defined (scalability, replicability, etc.) and at least one of them has to be fulfilled by each of these initiatives for it to be included in the collection.

This UNEP report outlines what each stakeholder group can do individually and collectively to reach the shared destination of a circular textile sector. 

This report takes stock of Circle Economy Foundation's achievements over the last decade.

The Foundation aims to accelerate the transition to the circular economy, drawing on an international team of experts based in Amsterdam who flag up practical and scalable solutions to put the circular economy into action. The ultimate goal is to see global circularity double by 2032.

The Impact Report focuses on the Circularity Gap Reporting Initiative, thanks to which Circle Economy Foundation - over the years - has tracked global circularity and highlighted replicable case studies in its Circularity Gap Reports covering countries from Austria to Latin America and the Caribbean. The Initiative continues to bring together global, multi-sector stakeholders from academia, business, government and the

The Circularity Gap Report Munich is the first study measuring the Circularity Gap of a city. It assesses the city’s material consumption, material cycling, consumption-based carbon footprint and other indicators. It uses a consumption-based carbon accounting approach for emissions from goods and services consumed by residents of a locality. On average, each Munich resident consumes 32 tonnes of virgin materials annually.

The study acknowledges the successes of Munich’s circular economy strategy with initiatives like investment in public transport, community gardens and remanufacturing activities, but calls for bolder action to accelerate the circular transition

This study was commissioned by CIRCULAR REPUBLIC and authored by the Circle Economy Foundation.

This catalogue aims to provide waste management experts and decision makers in the Mediterranean region with an overview of successful practices, solutions and approaches in waste separation, collection, treatment and recycling in the Mediterranean.

It examines five projects spanning this region and covering issues such as employing a circular economy approach for the organic fraction of municipal solid waste management. It also highlights the lessons that should be considered when replicating successes and avoiding pitfalls.

This report explores the potential of circular business models within the electronics industry, examining three models across four industry segments and throughout six lifecycle stages. The data utilized in the analysis stems from diverse sources: research papers, public databases, internal benchmarking, collaboration with external/internal partners etc.

Projections and estimations are grounded in a comprehensive approach, blending historical data extrapolated with logarithmic adjustments. Baseline data for lifecycle stages is constructed from product Life Cycle Assessments, considering both carbon footprint and cost perspectives. The focus is on capturing the significant impact of approximately 20% of products, which are estimated to constitute around 80% of their respective segments.