In September, representatives of the City of Ostrava, MSIC and the Pan-European University attended the first international meeting of all Project DeCo partners in Lahti, Finland. The meeting was a great opportunity to learn not only about Finland’s strategic approaches to the circular economy, but also concrete examples of successful companies that follow these principles.
Finland surprised the group by the fact that although it is an innovation leader in many areas, including the circular economy, it is in fact still struggling with high consumption of domestic raw materials. Finland’s recycling rate is only 4%, compared to the EU average of 11%. Yet we can take inspiration from its strategic approach – Finland sees a carbon-neutral circular economy as the key to future prosperity and is setting ambitious targets for 2035.
The meeting included a visit to ISKU, a furniture company that strives for maximum local production and carbon neutrality, as well as Design Week in Helsinki, which provided an opportunity to see innovative approaches to packaging and materials at the Design for a Cooler Planet exhibition. Students from Aalto University presented projects for which they develop and use natural and recycled materials, and showed how these ideas can contribute to a more sustainable future.
The trip concluded with a visit to the Helsinki-Uusima County Council and their Circular Hub, which helps companies and cities to implement circular economy principles. The Hub is an important partner for organisations in the early stages and provides support in defining the commitments associated with the Green Deal for the Circular Economy. It is also behind the development of a ‘handbook’ of local circular economy solutions, interested parties can view it here.
The whole meeting was rich in new insights and inspirations that will help in the further development of circular strategies in the Moravian-Silesian region.
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