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MARCH 2022 UPDATE: This article referred to the 2021 call and dates from July 2021, therefore it is now closed. For updated information, please check the post 2022 CIRCULÉIRE New Venture Innovation & Mentoring Program. CIRCULÉIRE is looking assist circular economy start-ups and businesses that are revenue generating and scaling to - develop their solutions such that they can help make a systemic impact on our economy and consumer behaviour and drive Irelands transition to net-zero carbon circular economy. Our 2021 call for applications to the “New Ventures Innovation & Mentoring Program” has been extended to 5pm Friday 10th September – all submissions (see application forms) via circuleire@imr.ie. If you are curious about whether this programme is for you – join us on Friday 3rd of September 2021 from 10-11am for an “Open House” session to hear from 2020 alumni, The ZeroNet, recently profiled by CIRCULÉIRE on RTE DriveTime, about what the programme entails and key benefits like the value of access to CIRCULÉIRE’s wider industry network and € 5,000 in equity-free funding for your new venture! Register to attend the “Open House” information session by clicking here. Please click on the following links to download "Call for applicants" "Application Form"

We would like to extend a warm thank you to all our members who have provided us feedback regarding the national circular economy strategy consultation led by DECC. This is very important for us to rely on our members’ feelings vis-a-vis current legislations and how they could be improved. The full document is now available onto our members hub. The high-level recommendations made by CIRCULÉIRE to the consultation include: Mainstreaming of CE in national policies Expand objectives to emphasis an industry-led approach to scaling circular innovation in Ireland’s transition Embedding circularity in Ireland’s Industrial Policy more generally in addition to sectoral roadmaps to ensure cross-sectoral nature of circularity is reflected; Clear Circular Economy Targets which are Aligned across Government Plans & Policies Reduce barriers associated to End-Of-Waste, chemicals, introducing anticipatory regulations, an all-island approach to the circular economy. Go to the Members Hub

On Friday 27th November 2020, IMR’s flagship circular economy initiative, CIRCULÉIRE – The National Platform for Circular Manufacturing was officially launched by Minister Eamon Ryan, Department of Environment, Climate & Communications (DECC). Over three hundred people from around Ireland and further afield attended this virtual launch which was hosted by Maia Dunphy and included key notes from: Julie Sinnamon, CEO of Enterprise Ireland, Adriaan Palm, Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Ireland, Freek Van Eijk, CEO of Holland Circular Hotspot, CIRCULÉIRE’s Strategic Partners and IMR. We are delighted to see the momentum behind the transition to a circular economy growing in Ireland evidenced by the strong interest in CIRCULÉIRE’s launch and the event’s coverage in an Irish Times article on the same day (see link below in “Learn More”). CIRCULÉIRE aims to help Irish companies reduce their greenhouse gas emissions and waste generation by supporting them to implement circular business models and capture “circular advantage”. If you would like to know how to get involved, please contact us at circuleire@imr.ie. Learn More

IMR in collaboration with the Department of the Environment, Climate, and Communications (DECC), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), EIT Climate-KIC and Founding Industry Members are pleased to announce the official launch (virtual) of Ireland’s 1st Circular Economy Innovation Network on Friday 27th November 2020. Join us for the Official Launch with Eamon Ryan, Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communication, event compere Maia Dunphy and special guests to learn how you can capture circular advantage for your business with Ireland’s 1st Circular Economy Hotspot. Register Here

Ahead of our official launch on 27th November 2020, CIRCULÉIRE are proud to be featured in the latest Sunday Business Post Special Report on the circular economy opportunity for Ireland which went to press on Sunday 8th November 2020. In addition to the coverage of CIRCULÉIRE – The National Platform for Circular Manufacturing which is Ireland’s 1st circular economy innovation network articles in this special report included: Coming full circle will boost GDP by €1.65bn – on how the government of Ireland are spearheading this transition Wasting no time to find new ways of cleaning up – exploring the positive changes in the field of waste management are a result of local, regional, national and European action plans and directives Circular economy benefits bring business round to sustainability – exploring BITC Ireland’s members circular economy activities. Learn more

CIRCULÉIRE is proud to be involved in Irish Science Week 2020 where we will be participating in multiple events highlighting the benefits of the circular economy. Science Week is celebrating its 25th anniversary from the 8th to the 15th of November 2020. It aims to make science accessible to a larger part of the population by having scientists present their research through a variety of events. This year’s edition is named “Science Week – Choosing Our Future”. On Monday 9th November Romain Couture from the CIRCULÉIRE team will join a team of IMR researchers in a live Q&A called “Geeks Unleashed” with students from over 60 primary and secondary schools from around the country. As part of this engagement, CIRCULÉIRE has developed a virtual workshop called “Generation_Circular” which takes students (aged 12-16) on a journey to understand circular economy and sustainability through exploring the impact of everyday items like a smart-phone. We have 170 middle schools signed up representing nearly 2,500 students! On Wednesday 11th November, Dr Geraldine Brennan will present the case for embedding circular economy principles in the Irish economy as we #BuildBackBetter as part of the 2020 “Choosing Our Future Online Forum” which will facilitate a nationwide is a nationwide, large-scale debate inviting policymakers, experts, and citizens to identify the next steps to be taken during the COVID-19 crisis and what’s next for our society. Learn more

The OECD Programme on the Circular Economy in Cities and Regions supports cities and regions in their transition towards a circular economy through multi-level dialogues to identify challenges and opportunities; peer-to-peer learning and key indicators for decision making and evaluation of the circular economy strategies. Following a global survey and stakeholder dialogues in a range of case study cities and regions, on Wednesday 4th November, at a side event of the 2020 Circular Economy Stakeholder Conference organised by the European Circular Economy Stakeholder Platform, the OECD will launch its’ synthesis report on “The Circular Economy in Cities and Regions” which includes a case study on Ireland. Dr Geraldine Brennan, IMR’s Circular Economy Lead has been invited to participate in a roundtable of innovators from the Case Studies of the OECD Programme on the Circular Economy in Cities and Regions at this virtual launch event. By attending this event, you can: Learn about circular economy initiatives and practices from 51 cities and regions that completed the OECD Survey on the Circular Economy in Cities and Regions Discover the path to a circular economy via the Case Studies carried out in inGroningen (Netherlands), Umeå (Sweden), Valladolid (Spain), and continuing inGranada (Spain), Glasgow (UnitedKingdom) and Ireland Discover the checklist for Action and the OECD Scoreboard on the Governance of the Circular Economy in Cities and Regions Learn more

CIRCULÉIRE, the National Platform for Circular Manufacturing, are proud to have been actively engaged in Irish Bioeconomy Week 2020 and featured in the Irish Examiner for this work. During Irish Bioeconomy Week 2020, which is a national, annual event, CIRCULÉIRE in collaboration with the Irish Bioeconomy Foundation (IBF), presented the key insights from our 2020 Circular Bioeconomy Thematic Working Group process to the CIRCULÉIRE Network. The “CircularBioeconomy2020” webinar shared insights related to the business opportunities in the Irish circular bioeconomy landscape based on a four-month working group process which took place between June and September 2020. “CircularBioeconomy2020” report curates and leverages the knowledge and expertise from the wide-range of panel participants which included academia, consultancies and policy-makers from around the country. Additionally, Irish Manufacturing Research (IMR), the secretariat of CIRCULÉIRE, was also featured during the Irish Bioeconomy Week as part of the EPA’s Green Enterprise Webinar Series 2020 for their SymbioBeer project, which aims at demonstrating the viability of an industrial symbiosis in Longford between Panelto Foods and St Mels Brewery (see Irish Times coverage of the SymbioBeer project here). Learn more

The Department of Environment, Climate and Communications (DECC) is looking for your views on how a new Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) should operate in Ireland. DRS is a system used in other EU Member States and further afield to incentivise consumers to return their beverage containers for recycling or reuse. The DRS being introduced in Ireland is focused on plastic bottles and aluminium cans because too few of these are being captured for recycling by our current system (which could put Ireland in breach of EU legislation) and too many are being discarded as litter. Ireland’s Waste Action Plan for a Circular Economy commits to introducing a Deposit and Return Scheme (DRS) in Ireland. This public consultation is the first step on that journey. Alongside this consultation, DECC are publishing a report which evaluates Ireland’s current collection systems, in the context of new EU targets. Learn more

Green Enterprise: Innovation for a Circular Economy is an annual funding programme to support circular innovation projects demonstrating B2B and B2C circular solutions. The EPA are seeking applications aligned with their focus areas: Plastics; Construction & Demolition Waste; Food and Resources & Raw Materials (electrical & electronic equipment, textiles, furniture). This call closes on the 14th August 2020. Learn More

Dr Geraldine Brennan, Irish Manufacturing Research’s Circular Economy Lead has been invited to contribute to The Mint Magazine’s Special Issue on the Circular Economy (Issue 12 – Dec 2019). The Mint is an online magazine, established as a charity in 2016, dedicated to Promoting Economic Pluralism (PEP) and opening up economics education, research and application to a broader range of perspectives. Take a look at Dr Brennan’s guest article “Zero is Circular: A circular economy is starting to roll towards zero carbon in Ireland” which explores the “circular innovation gap” in Ireland, Interface Flor’s being ahead of their time with the Evergreen Lease Model for carpeting and that successfully scaling circular models comes down to a combination of timing – underpinned by technological advances and shifts in public policy, coupled with evolving norms and consumer acceptance of novel value propositions. Learn More