Search Results

C-Voucher are organising a webinar on their new open funding call looking for European SMEs with a circular idea interested in creating a development plan. C-Voucher is a European organisation that combines design and technology to support SMEs on their way towards a circular economy. This call will awards successful SMEs with: Up to 1 month of support by an industrial designer to create a plan with a road map€15,000 equity free for covering company costs while creating a planMentoring sessions on securing further funding for your project Requirements: Eligible organisations must be SMEs which are legally located within the European Union or an associated country. The project must be aligned with at least one of the circularity solutions that were developed in C-Voucher or it can adopt at least one of the circular building blocks. Learn more

The Innovation Fund’s National Contact Point in the Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment is hosting an information seminar on Wednesday 7 October from 09.30-11.00am. The Innovation Fund is one of the world’s largest funding programmes for demonstration of innovative low-carbon technologies. It is expected that €10 billion will be available to be invested up to 2030to fund new and innovative technology that in the first instance delivers on the avoidance of Green House Gas Emissions. The seminar will provide you with an opportunity to engage with the Department and DG Clima to inform your application to the Fund’s first call which closes on 29 October and to hear more information on the call for small scale projects which is now planned for December . The event will take place as a live Webinar via Zoom , please note the deadline for registration is 5.00 pm Monday 5 October 2020. Learn more

Dr Geraldine Brennan and Damian Coughlan from the CIRCULÉIRE Team will be speaking at WEEE Ireland’s Virtual Seminar on “ Financing the Future – The WEEE Circular Economy” as they mark International E-Waste Day 2020. Line-up includes speakers from DECC; Ecosystem; WEEE Forum; University of Limerick and IMR / CIRCULEIRE. Join from 10:45am-1:30pm on Wednesday 14th October 2020 Learn more

Want to discover the latest on industrial symbiosis and the future of sustainable industrial practices? Join the SCALER event to hear experiences and case studies from successful industrial symbiosis implementation, find out about tools and gain access to guidelines to kick-start resource efficiency. SCALER (SCALing European Resources with industrial symbiosis) is a European project aimed at increasing the uptake of industrial symbiosis. This project develops a set of tools and best practices to help companies implement symbioses to ensure sustainable resource use. The event will be dedicated to knowledge sharing, presenting both best practices from businesses successfully implementing industrial symbiosis practices, along with key tools to help companies kick-start their journey towards resource efficiency and sharing. The event will be divided in two sessions where you can hear from speakers from ISQ; ENEA; A.SPIRE, Cambridge University, International Synergies, Strane Innovation and EIT Climate-KIC : 14:10-15:30 Session 1 – What is the potential of industrial symbiosis in the EU? This session will explore how industrial symbiosis can act as a key model to transition industry from linear to circular. 15:45-17:00 Session 2 – Industrial symbiosis for regional transition This session will explore existing best practices and present key tools to support businesses in their industrial ecology endeavors. Learn more

Bioeconomy Ireland Week is an annual week-long event held each October to highlight and raise awareness of Ireland’s rapidly growing bioeconomy. To mark Bioeconomy Week Ireland 2020, EPA are hosting a EPA’s Green Enterprise: Innovating for a Circular Economy* webinar where we will share the findings of the following three bioeconomy projects: 1. SymbioBeer Irish Manufacturing Research (IMR) is facilitating an Industrial Symbiosis innovation demonstration pilot between St Mel’s Brewery and Panelto Food called SymbioBeer . Here waste bread is being utilised as a substitute for virgin malt to create a new beer and subsequently a new bread was produced using outputs from beer production closing multiple resource loops (bread to beer to bread). 2. Hexafly Hexafly developed an innovative way of breeding insects on an industrial scale utilizing Bio-Conversion technology to achieve maximum extraction of high value protein and oil products for the aquaculture, animal feed and plant nutrition industries. 3. CyberColloids The overall objective of this project was to evaluate the potential to recover and utilise the biomass generated in fruit and vegetable supply chains for the production of new food fibre ingredients This is a free online event which will take place via Microsoft Teams from 10am-11am on Thursday 22nd October. Following the presentations there will be an opportunity for Q&A. To register please email nwpp@epa.ie * Green Enterprise is an annual funding call to support innovators in Ireland to develop and demonstrate consumer and business solutions that will stimulate the circular economy. It is led by the EPA’s National Waste Prevention Programme. Learn more

Are you a programme owner or policy maker keen to advance the transition to a circular economy? Join us in building a circular economy joint programming platform to enable more cooperation! CICERONE is pleased to announce its third and final workshop, “ Cooperation for circular economy research & innovation “, on 22nd and 29th of October 2020 from 14:00 to 16:30 CET . Participants are welcome to choose one of the two proposed date s, which will be identical events. The coordination of objectives and programmes of regional, national and European funding programmes, managed by a new joint platform, will be a fundamental driver for improving circular economy funding mechanisms – and therefore accelerate the uptake of the European Circular Economy Action Plan. This challenge will be addressed in an interactive and hands-on online workshop that will give participants insights into the future platform, and provide the opportunity to shape its services, ensuring they are in line with needs and expectations. CICERONE will be delivering the conference via EIT Climate-KIC ’s learning management system, so that you can access the conference related materials, network with the conference participants and access all practical information related to the activity in one place. 14:00: Introduction (Plenary) 14:15: Session 1 (Break-out) This session will introduce the future platform for Circular Economy Research & Innovation funding, enabling an interactive discussion on the services and model of the platform . The session will be framed through guiding questions, with the support of facilitators, where participants can provide specific inputs to help shape the new EU Circular Cooperation Hub . 15:15: Session 2 (Break-out) This session will explore capacity building needs for public funders and policy makers to efficiently implement circular economy R&I joint programmes. Building on the previous session, we will work hand-in-hand with participants to identify requirements for the platform’s learning services, including a policy toolkit and a Online Massive Open Course (MOOC). 16:15 Conclusion (Plenary) Learn more

Circular Bioeconomy 2020 is the result of CIRCULÉIRE – The National Platform for Circular Manufacturing ‘s 2020 Thematic Working Group exploring the circular bioeconomy opportunities that can deliver significant CO2 and waste reductions in Ireland. During Irish Bioeconomy Week 2020, IMR and IBF will launch the findings to the CIRCULÉIRE Network. This webinar will be for the CIRCULÉIRE Network but panel members from the wider innovation ecosystem who have participated in this thematic working group over the last four months will also join to share their reflections. This CIRCULÉIRE Network webinar will take place from 12-1pm on Wednesday the 21st October 2020. Learn more

Every year, the European circular economy community from businesses, public authorities, NGOs to knowledge communities and civil society organisations gathers to discuss the transition to a circular economy. It is the f lagship event of the European Circular Economy Stakeholder Platform , a joint initiative of the European Commission and the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC). Day 1 of the Conference ( 3 November ), hosted by the Commission, will familiarise you with the new EU Circular Economy Action Plan and discuss its implementation. The potential of the circular economy for a green recovery will also be covered in the sessions. Interact and exchange with the panelists during the plenaries broadcasted from Commission’s Charlemagne building and contribute online to the thematic online parallel sessions. Join the EECSC in the first #EUCircularTalk, a new feature of the European Circular Economy Stakeholder Platform, to exchange on the transition to a circular economy with a high-level Commission’s representative. Day 2 (4 November) of the conference, hosted by the EESC, will focus on stakeholder views in a series of online workshops highlighting successes and identifying new challenges. Eight workshops will cover circular themes ranging from construction to food waste to procurement and roadmapping. Learn more

After its first three-year cycle, CIRCULÉIRE are delighted to announce that it has received continuation funding for 2023 activities Read the official announcement on the website of the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications CIRCULÉIRE – Ireland’s first industry-led circular innovation network – and its secretariat Irish Manufacturing Research are delighted to share the news that we have been granted continuation funding. This announcement was made by the Minister of State at the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications, Ossian Smyth TD, in his keynote address delivered at   CIRCULÉIRE's 2022 Annual Conference held on 23rd November 2022. Minister Smyth, who has responsibility for the Circular Economy and Communications, announced his commitment to provide €1.5million funding to CIRCULÉIRE to continue its activities in 2023 to “foster and enhance circular economy knowledge, capacity building and implementation by Irish Industry”. “Since its inception in 2020, CIRCULÉIRE and its members have been leading the way in circular innovation, supporting manufacturers and their supply chains to embrace circular economy principles. The transition to a circular economy, supported by CIRCULÉIRE, will contribute to Ireland achieving its targets in greenhouse gas reductions by 2030”, Minister Ossian Smyth. CIRCULÉIRE- The National Platform for Circular Manufacturing’s activities are aligned with and contribute to the realisation of the objectives and actions of the Government’s Circular Economy Strategy and the Climate Action Plan. For the last three years, CIRCULÉIRE has been dedicated to assisting manufacturers and their supply chains to switch from linear to circular business models. That has been possible by supporting ten circular innovation demonstration projects, conducting baseline surveys, in-depth circularity assessments, annual thematic working groups, running Ireland’s first dedicated circular venture accelerator and fostering meaningful dialogue between policymakers and industry while supporting our members to reduce waste and associated CO2 emissions. This year, coming to the end of its first three-years-funding cycle, CIRCULÉIRE has shown significant progress in creating circular momentum across the Irish industry. “Since CIRCULÉIRE started its activities in 2020, we have grown from 25 Founding Industry members and we are now supporting over 50 organisations on their circular economy journey. IMR are extremely proud to receive DECC’s funding in 2023, which recognizes the valuable momentum CIRCULÉIRE has generated and the importance of continuing to foster and grow circular economy innovation and implementation” - Dr Geraldine Brennan, Head of Circular Economy, IMR & CIRCULÉIRE Lead. As an example of this engagement, Freefoam Plastics was one of the companies funded by CIRCULÉIRE to lead a supply-chain innovation project. The “ Circular Economy & The Power of Many ” is a pilot construction collaboration take-bake scheme for all the materials that are delivered for the installation of roofline building products. “By being involved with CIRCULÉIRE, we were able to get the assessment done, and the take-back scheme pilot through innovation funding. These activities and engagement brought the circular economy up in the company’s agenda and now it is one of our main strategic initiatives as part of our corporate strategy” - Kevin Cronin, COO, Freefoam Plastics. Another key activity for CIRCULÉIRE members is the annual baseline survey across materials, water and energy which helps companies measure their waste and CO2 reduction performance over time. “Initially, we thought it would be time-consuming, but it is exactly the opposite. CIRCULÉIRE performed a fantastic baseline survey. They worked with probably 15 of our staff and it was a great team effort. Everyone learned and worked together. Since then, we have had good networking, worked on our carbon emissions, and calculated our Scope 3 emissions. It is been a very good journey” - Fergus O’Sullivan, Plant Manager, Aryzta . Watch what CIRCULÉIRE Industry Members have to say about their engagement in our platform: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RtMIYRh0qPg About CIRCULÉIRE CIRCULÉIRE is a public-private partnership co-created by Irish Manufacturing Research (IMR) and three strategic partners: the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications (DECC) , the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and EIT Climate-KIC . Together with industry partners, CIRCULÉIRE aims to assist manufacturers and their supply chains to switch from linear to circular business models. Read more about CIRCULÉIRE here .

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 2020 call for applications to our “New Venture’s Innovation & Mentoring Program” is now open for new ventures that are at a high technology readiness level (TRL) i.e. close to market or recently launched on the market. Applications close on Tuesday 8th December 2020 – submissions via circuleire@imr.ie . Benefits for participating companies include: - Business coaching & trainingMentoring by industry experts and experienced founders - Validate your product/technology and market - Find your product-market fit - Understand how to gain access to MNC and SME supply-chains through CIRCULÉIRE’s network - Access to local ecosystems and infrastructure to drive growth and internationalisation - Get investor ready and establish contact to investors & VCs/funds - Receive € 5,000 in equity-free funding for your new venture Click on the following links to download: “ Call for Applicants ” “ Application Form ”

A key feature of CIRCULÉIRE is our €1.5m ring-fenced innovation fund (2020-2022) which seeks to support industry-led circular economy innovation demonstration projects which will accelerate the transition towards a circular economy in Ireland. Following international peer review, we are delighted to announce the circular innovation demonstration projects which have been awarded funding in CIRCULÉIRE’s 2020 Call for Proposals are both led by Founding Member WEEE Ireland. Below Elizabeth O’Reilly, Compliance & Membership Manager, WEEE Ireland describes the innovation demonstrations that have been awarded funding: “WEEE Ireland are very excited to be kicking off two circular economy innovation demonstration projects in collaboration with the White Goods Association, Fast-Track into IT (FIT), KMK Metals Recycling and Wisetek, funded by the CIRCULÉIRE 2020 Innovation Fund in 2021. These innovation demonstrators will help the transformation of our successful recycling scheme to a more circular one, supporting our 1100+ Irish electrical and battery industry Members on their own circular economy journeys. These innovation projects are in completely different areas – the first one supports the White Goods Sector to develop training programmes and engage more repair engineers in life extension of appliances and therefore waste prevention with a circular economy and e-waste management ethos. The second tackles the challenge posed by waste long life lithium batteries (LLLB), such as those used in electric vehicles in Ireland, and will explore opportunities to manage these in a more circular and sustainable way, including repurposing and reuse of LLLBs in other industrial settings. We have just finished our first year of membership of the CIRCULÉIRE platform and as Founding Industry Members we have found it an invaluable resource us as we face the positive challenges ahead for our Scheme and the electrical and battery industry under new Circular Economy, Green Deal and Sustainability developments in Ireland. We look forward to what 2021 will bring and continuing to collaborate with other industry members in this innovative cross-sectoral network” Congratulations to WEEE Ireland, White Goods Association, Fast-Track into IT (FIT), KMK Metals Recycling and Wisetek and CIRCULÉIRE look forward to opening the 2021 call for innovation projects in the new year!

CIRCULÉIRE are delighted to report that our 2020 call for Irish circular new ventures that are revenue generating and scaling to join our innovation network was a resounding success! We received many high-quality applicants to CIRCULÉIRE’s New Venture & Innovation Program (co-created in collaboration with Tangent ) and had the challenging task of only choosing 5 young businesses to welcome into network. It is our pleasure to announce that the new ventures joining CIRCULÉIRE as part of the 2020 cohort are: Ashleigh Environmental who have developed novel solution to transform and derive value from underused anaerobic digestion feedstock materials; Avoca Seafood Ltd who are improving salmon farming practices through industrial symbiosis; DACS (Digital Array Control Systems Ltd) who have developed a battery management system to extend the useful lifespan of lithium battery packs; IANAV (I Am Not A Virgin) who are developing 3D printed footwear from secondary raw materials. The ZeroNet who have developed a reverse logistics solution to enable product life extension. Congratulations to these ventures and a very warm welcome to the CIRCULÉIRE network!