Ce contenu est disponible uniquement en anglais.

About the EU News:

The GIMED Green Impact Med project aims at boosting the development of green and eco-innovative entrepreneurs in 5 Mediterranean countries (Egypt, Italy, Lebanon, Palestine and Tunisia) by  creating the required environment and improving knowledge base to better access finance and markets, creating jobs and driving the green and circular economy in the region.

With an important investment in green and circular economy committed through the European Green Deal, the European Union is today the frontrunner to become the first carbon neutral economy by 2050. With the aim of keeping you updated on the Union’s strategy to become a more resource-efficient and competitive economy, we will publish a monthly EU news  to share useful news about the for our GIMED community.

GIMED October EU NEWS. 

 The European Circular Economy Stakeholder platform will be renewed:

The transition from a linear to a circular economic model is an essential contribution to the EU’s efforts to develop a sustainable, climate-neutral, resource efficient, resilient, and competitive economy with a strong industrial basis. For the European economy to become truly circular, all stakeholders need to get involved: public authorities, businesses including SMEs, trade unions, consumers, and civil society. The European Circular Economy Stakeholder Platform is a joint initiative by the European Commission and the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC), launched in March 2017. The two institutions are working closely together to promote the Platform as a space for the exchange of ideas and a growing body of information, and to make the circular economy happen faster to the benefit of all. By helping to create new partnerships and scale up circular economy solutions across Europe, the Platform also highlights the contribution that the circular economy can make to the implementation of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. 

As a” network of networks” the Platform brings together stakeholders active in the broad field of the circular economy across Europe. It goes beyond sectorial activities and highlights cross-sector opportunities. It also provides a meeting place for stakeholders to share and scale up effective solutions, best practices, as well as to address specific challenges. The Platform bridges existing initiatives at local, regional, and national level, public or private, and supports the implementation of the circular economy.  The platform is active to make the circular economy a reality by: 

• Spreading the circular economy concept in the Member States, in regional and local governments, and among civil society organisations and businesses. 

• Strengthening cooperation between stakeholder networks to facilitate exchange, good practices, knowledge, and lessons learnt in the circular economy. 

• Identifying barriers (such as social, economic, and cultural) to the transition towards a circular economy with the intention of informing policy at all levels of governance.

A Coordination Group guides the Platform’s activities. Composed of a broad spectrum of organisations with a pan-European reach, with a mandate until 2020 it brings together 24 members selected from civil society organisations, business and trade union representatives, think tanks, research centres and public bodies that have a stake in the circular economy. Following the success of the European Circular Economy Stakeholder Platform in 2017-2020, the European Commission (represented by DG ENV) and the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) will continue managing the Platform jointly. A new call for expression of interest for the new mandate of the Coordination Group 2021-2024 is now open. 

The European Circular Economy Stakeholder platform is also a virtual Platform proving a space to exchange knowledge, good practices and policy initiatives across sectors and countries. The website also keeps stakeholders in the loop with news and upcoming events on the circular economy throughout Europe while simultaneously providing a database of contacts and a discussion forum for direct interaction with other stakeholders. The Platform is growing and, on its way, to become THE reference on circular economy in Europe. Annually the platform is organising the Circular Economy Stakeholder Conference. This event jointly organised by the EESC and the European Commission in Brussels, is an opportunity for stakeholders to meet, nurture their networks, share ideas, and deepen their expertise. This high-level flagship conference has grown year on year, with more than 500 participants from over 45 countries joining to share their success stories and discuss new horizons  last year. 

As we have indicated in our previous news, the Commission has identified the European Green Deal as the EU’s sustainable strategy for growth. The COVID-19 outbreak has exposed the fragility of the current economic model. In the longer term, this will likely translate into greater efforts on diversification and resilience, as well as greater focus on sustainability. In this context, the circular economy proposes an economic model that maintains resources in the economy for longer and brings production and consumption well below the planetary boundaries, minimizing waste. To achieve these objectives and continue with the transition, the Commission has adopted a new Circular Economy Action Plan  for a cleaner and more competitive Europe. The action plan is at the core of the European Green Deal, leading towards a more resource efficient and clean economy that gives to the planet more than it takes, contributing to EU’s climate neutrality ambition.

 In future the European Circular Economy Stakeholder Platform will focus on supporting the implementation of the new Circular Economy Action Plan through stakeholder engagement. Looking ahead to the post-COVID-19 recovery, the circular economy will contribute with increased resilience, job creation and an increased autonomy towards a new structure of the economy. The transition towards a circular economy requires the commitment and involvement of civil society, businesses, the knowledge community, and public authorities. The new Coordination Group will continue delivering on the circular transition and translating policy into action.

How could the GIMED community take part in this platform?

We could take part in the Platform by interacting on the website to look for good practices, policy strategies, voluntary commitments and events, engage with other stakeholders, as well as feeding the website with our own inputs.
We should also follow the annual conference, organised by the European Commission and the European Economic and Social Committee to communicate on our achievements.