Place-based circular economy transition strategy
VELTHA’s direct experiences and collaborations with regional authorities in SCREEN and REPLACE projects, as well as in the Policy Lab, lead to the acknowledgement of the local institutions as key players in the promotion of the transition toward a circular economy: in fact, these have a deep knowledge of their territories and the availability of European indirect funding to dedicate to the transition. The strategical framework to promote the transition…
Why institutions matter so much for the circular economy transition?
Veltha supports and promotes the generation of circular economic development strategies that fully empower the local institutions, based on the recognition of regions (or provinces) as the most efficient authority capable of detecting and sustaining the needs of the local stakeholders through the application of bottom-up approaches that are specifically tailored to the local characteristics. In fact, the role of institutions in the local development processes has been studied in…
Is it Circular Economy the latest powerful buzzword?
Certainly, the circular economy has gained momentum and, as noted by Josè Luìs Cardoso, the concept has come to stay. With the environment and the climate at the verge of the risk for catastrophes, the circular economy has already earned the status of a powerful antidote for preventing the worst from happening, or at least for lessening the negative impacts. The circular economy has not only entered the scientific debate…
Our commitment toward the European Week or Regions and Cities
The annual European Week of Regions and Cities is the most important kermesse entirely dedicated to regional policy: practitioners coming from all over Europe reunites in Brussels to showcase best practices and achieved results, as well as to discuss hot topics, this year we want to bring Circular Economy there. In the past 17 years, the event has steadily increased its centrality and visibility, reaching a record number of 9000…
The new circular economy action plan in a nutshell
On the 11th of March 2020, the European Commission adopts the new Circular Economy Action Plan ‘For a Cleaner and More Competitive Europe’ to present its policy actions targeting the progressive abandonment of the mainstream linear economic model to decouple economic growth from resource use. By leading the transition toward a circular economy, the European Union can gain an unprecedented competitive advantage and generate new sustainable and green workforce, while…
Does Europe really need to transition toward a circular economy?
Undoubtedly, the massive burden that the linear economic model poses on the ecosystem has been a fundamental factor in the development of the circular economy proposition, urged by a steady and significant increase of the demand for raw materials and exacerbated by the growing evidence of a changing climate. Natural resources represent the core of the global economy, standing at the base of the current production patterns: these are in…
European Green Deal? Nice Plan! But who will implement it?
The tackle of pressing climate and environmental-related challenges is the most important test that our society needs to jointly address. For this purpose, the European Commission launched a lavish plan to prioritize sustainable economic growth, decoupled from the linear use of resources, through the promotion of systemic changes across economic sectors and within the society. The ambition of the European Green Deal is related to the connection of different fields…