Europe must turn circularity into industrial policy: Euractiv interview with Cillian Lohan

Have your say on the implementation of the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation!

The European Commission's Joint Research Centre has developed a set of methodological reports to support the implementation of the ESPR. Workshops will be held to gather feedback on each of them.

Interested? Then register for this project! It'll run from September 2026 to December 2027.

VALORLEGNO is advancing circular solutions for the Veneto wood value chain

Circular Packaging Challenge 2026: international open call for startups advancing packaging circularity

Circular Packaging Challenge is an international initiative connecting innovative startups with leading companies to address real-world challenges across the packaging value chain.

There are four challenges: the 16 finalists will present their solution, the winners will gain funding and at least two pilot schemes will be promoted and financed! 

Apply by 18 September!

RE-CELL: driving the development of structural batteries made from recycled carbon fibre

Structural batteries made from recycled carbon fibre for use in planes? This project is working on it!

Call for papers on AI for circular economy: Intelligent algorithms for sustainable resource recovery 

The "Frontiers in Artificial Intelligence" journal is calling for research papers on the application of artificial intelligence, machine learning, computer vision, robotics, optimization and edge computing to circular economy challenges.

Submission deadline: 31 January 2027.

Right to repair: repair is set to become a viable option

For many years, buying new was financially and logistically easier than repair. This resulted in large amounts of waste and used up resources at an impressive and unnecessary rate.

This is about to change...

PPWR: the new rules are starting to apply

The Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) entered into force in February 2025 and the rules are being rolled out gradually as from 12 August this year.

The goal is to shrink the resource use and impact of this sector and reduce compliance costs for businesses.

Ban on destruction of unsold clothes and shoes enters into application

European Parliament approves new rules for a more circular EU automotive industry

New public consultation on the joint undertakings to be included in Framework Programme 10

The European Commission is looking for input on the role and functioning of the Treaty-based Horizon Europe European Partnerships and Joint Undertakings.

Do you have experience of these initiatives and views on how they are organised? Then fill out the questionnaire by 16 October!

The 2026 European Semester Spring Package: how does the circular economy come into it?

The package aims to boost competitiveness, secure strategic autonomy, increase resilience and strengthen preparedness.

The circular economy is part of this process.

Scaling circular solutions for a clean environment: From innovation to market uptake

This investor workshop on 24 September will focus on accelerating market uptake of circular innovations contributing to cleaner environments, pollution reduction and resource efficiency.

Using the NYMPHE project as a practical case study, it will generate transferable lessons applicable to other Horizon Europe initiatives developing environmental technologies.

Circularity made easy: From consumer awareness to better everyday offers

Circular living should not depend on individual heroism. This workshop on 27 October will explore how businesses, policymakers and consumer organisations can make circular options simpler, more affordable and more attractive – shifting the focus from changing consumers to changing the systems and offers around them.

Join people from retail, consumer protection and regional transition initiatives to discuss how the better choice can become the easiest choice.

Remtech Europe

This annual international conference and exhibition focuses on land and water remediation markets and technologies, which can bring contaminated land and water back into use.

Taking place on 14-18 September, it is global in scope, spreading know-how and technologies worldwide.

WEEE Forum: From challenge to change - Extended Producer Responsibility in a new policy era

This international event on 17-18 September is organised by the WEEE Forum in cooperation with WEEE Ireland.

It will bring together policymakers, industry leaders, producer responsibility organisations, recyclers, manufacturers and circular economy experts to discuss the future of Extended Producer Responsibility and electronic waste management within Europe's evolving circular economy framework.

10th International Cradle to Cradle Congress  

Also on 17-18 September, around a thousand participants and up to 90 speakers will meet in Berlin and exchange ideas for the circular transformation.

The congress will feature panel discussions with high-profile speakers from politics and science, best practices from business, inspiring keynotes on the transformation of our society and many opportunities for networking.

CCRI hands-on online workshop: How to introduce consumption-based emissions into your circular agenda?  

These workshops will focus on a key implementation challenge identified in the CCRI communities of practice. They will translate those insights into practical tools, methods and examples that participants can apply in their own context.

This session on 24 September will look at consumption based emissions (CBE) which show the climate impact of what cities consume, not just what they produce. It will introduce what a CBE inventory is, what it can (and cannot) tell you, and how cities are beginning to use CBE insights to inform circular economy action.

Youth perspectives on the EU Circular Economy Act - A youth assessment of ambition, gaps and implementation conditions

This position paper by ECESP Coordination Group members Academics for Circular Economy and Generation Climate Europe synthesises youth perspectives on the EU Circular Economy Act.

It concludes that lower material demand, durable product design, reuse, effective collection systems and strong public governance play a key role: recycling is not enough.

Circular by nature: a policy agenda for bio-based materials in a circular economy

The circular economy is increasingly recognised as a pathway to long-term economic resilience and prosperity. However, its  application to date has focused primarily on finite, technical materials, overlooking bio-based materials.

This paper by ECESP Coordination Group member the Ellen MacArthur Foundation intends to shed new light on the application of the circular economy framework to bio-based materials. 

European Reuse Barometer 2025   

The Barometer is Europe’s leading benchmark of reusable packaging models. It compiles economic, social and operational data from reuse programmes across key sectors. In 2025, it went broader and deeper, covering retail, e-commerce, hospitality and transport packaging.

REvive Alhaurín: promoting the circular economy at community level  

REBATTEX: Facilitating reuse of electric vehicle batteries

REBATTEX is a platform which creates the right conditions for stakeholders to buy and sell used electric vehicle batteries.

Each battery is listed with all the information that a potential buyer needs to make an informed choice. As a result, all of a battery's useful life can be exploited before it is recycled.

REEPRODUCE: Dismantling and recycling rare earth elements from end-of-life products

The REEPRODUCE project aimed to establish a sustainable and complete European industrial-scale value chain for recycling the rare earth elements in permanent magnets.

It devised an innovative technique for producing new permanent magnets using environmentally-friendly technologies at a competitive cost and using end-of-life products as a resource.

Funding: Calls for projects and proposals

Here, you can find various calls for proposals and projects for which funding is available. The calls are published in our Financing section and will be removed once the deadline has passed.

For ease of reference, we will provide a list with brief descriptions and deadlines!

euresearch: a list of new and future Horizon Europe calls

euresearch is a tool managed by the Swiss government. It provides information on EU cooperation and funding opportunities for research and innovation under the EU Framework Programme Horizon Europe.

SUSTRACK Toolkit: Supporting Europe's transition to a circular bio-based economy  

Circularity playbook for fashion SMEs

This playbook from the British Standards Institution will show you how fashion and clothing businesses can use standards to support circular design, transparent claims and more resilient operations.

Explore the regulations driving change across the fashion and clothing sector, learn how different business functions contribute to a more circular business model, and find trusted guidance to help plan, implement and scale your circularity journey.

reN · Balear Circular Hub

Three tuition-free master's degrees in digital deep-tech circular economy

3D-CIRCULAR, a project funded under the Digital Europe Programme, is building degrees to train professionals to understand material flows and governance and work with the data infrastructure, AI and traceability systems.

The project will run until July 2029, and three master's degrees are already available. The first intake will start in October 2026 and applications are open until 25 September.

Circular economy in digital systems

Digital Product Passports will be rolled out as from 2027 and many professionals are still building the skills they'll need.

To help address this skills gap, National College of Ireland's Cloud Competency Centre is launching three free, live evening courses. Taking place online, these courses offer practical, industry-focused learning you can apply in your workplace.

Educating for sustainable plastic use and circular economy

The Erasmus+ project EDU4PlastiCircular has prepared an e-learning course designed for managers and employees, higher education teachers and engineering students.

It will help them understand plastic and packaging composition and management from collection to end of life, with a focus on the potential for second life.

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