The European Circular Economy Conference brought together experts, industry representatives, non-governmental organisations and policy makers from the European Union (EU) to discuss strategies and solutions for the transition to a sustainable circular economy in Europe.

During the conference, initiatives related to the circular economy implemented in different countries were explored, such as the reduction of waste and emissions; the reuse and recycling of materials; the economy of resources and innovation in waste management, key points of the conference to meet the objectives for a more responsible and sustainable economy.

Linnet Solway, European expert, had the opportunity to attend the conference and the different activities that were focused on sustainability, biodiversity and climate. In this context, last Monday 27 March, at the first meeting of the 2023 Circular Economy Working Group of the Eurochile Business Foundation, she told the participating entrepreneurs about the main points that were addressed in this instance so that the European Union can improve certain points on good practices towards to circular economy.

“One of the initiatives, mentioned at the two-day conference, that are under development, is energy reduction and efficiency, decarbonisation that companies have adopted, the use of safe and sustainable chemicals, among other decisions that are part of the commission.  However, there are standards that need to be followed up in the implementation process, as well as the perceived differences in equality with regard to the circular economy between Eastern and Western Europe”, Solway said.

Chilean entrepreneurs and the circular economy

At the meeting were representatives Roberto Ravanales from ICP Ingeniería; Ximena Guerra from Indunext; Sergio Ascenso from VDG Ingeniería; Hugo Muñoz from Ecología en tu Barrio and Juan Saavedra with Hernán Portales from Megaplásticos, who shared in this space different views on what is being done in terms of circular economy in 2023.

In this sense, Sergio Ascenso, representative of VDG Ingeniería, tells us that his expectations of being included in future projects of the foundation, is to be able to make relationships between companies that are related to the business idea that VDG Ingeniería has, and also to have the opportunity to be known and share different points of view with their peers in the field.

While Hugo Muñoz, representative of Ecología en tu barrio, has had the opportunity to include Eurochile in his company, he says that, “I have had the opportunity to generate some instances of participation in various activities that have relevance around what is the circular economy and sustainability. Thanks to Eurochile, I also had the opportunity to attend Ecomundo 2022, which was a positive experience for our company, as well as highlighting the trust and closeness that the foundation gives us to generate creative results in terms of sustainability cases”.

In conclusion, the entrepreneurs have gained knowledge of the different topics that are being promoted in Europe on the circular economy, which will allow them to implement various strategies in their companies to reduce their environmental impact and promote these initiatives in their environment and continue moving towards a more sustainable future.