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Last Wednesday at Eurochile, June 15, within the framework of the project “Optimization and Validation of the System for Recycling and Reuse of Gases in the Wine Industry” executed by the Instituto de Transferencia Tecnológica y Emprendimiento (ITE) with the support of Corfo, a seminar was carried out in which ITE was able to present the details and results of its work to an audience with representatives of the public sector and wine industry such as Consorcio de Vinos de Chile, Concha y Toro, Miguel Torre, among others.

The event featured presentations of five professionals that developed the project: Margarita Sepúlveda, project director, Violeta Torres, project coordinator, Artemio Huenuqueo, electronics engineer, Paola Méndez, PhD in Science and Technology, and Erwin Sepúlveda, Chemical Civil Engineer.

Margarita Sepúlveda, who worked in the direction of this project, valued the opportunity and the support provided by the foundation. “Eurochile has been very important for the collaboration with this project. We believe that there is a potential for development here that needs to be spread, and in that the foundation has played a key role,” said Margarita.

In this context, the ITE professional also mentioned the environmental benefits that the implementation of this project would bring to the production processes of the vineyards. “The main benefit would be the reduction of the carbon footprint. The wineries must compete in a very demanding market, both in Europe and in the United States. This has empowered consumers to demand a product with a lower carbon footprint, so having an alternative that guarantees that would be very beneficial for domestic producers.

As for Violeta Torres, the coordinator of the project, she referred to the economic gains that wine companies would have if they incorporated these new technologies. “First, they would be using innovative and environmentally friendly technology, and second it would reduce costs for them since in their wine production and fermentation processes, they buy CO2 at different stages and then they produce a C02 that is not captured. So, implementing this technology would be an obvious cost reduction,” said Torres.

Ecomondo, organized by the Italian Exhibition Group, is an international event that with 25 years of history has focused on supporting companies to be at the forefront of innovation in circular economy, in topics such as the use of clean energy or recovery raw material.

Andrea Batazzi, representative of MultiRep Services and Ecomondo in Latin America, explains how important it is for the organization to hold the event again in favorable sanitary conditions. In the same line, the representative of Ecomondo highlights the fair as a key platform for the circular economy and for the market of technological innovations related to the “Green Economy”.

This year is the second in-person fair that takes place post-pandemic. What will be different compared to previous years?

The impact of the pandemic did not allow the 2020 edition of Ecomondo to take place, so there was only one digital event. In October 2021, the fair returned in-person, but with a lower participation than 2019, which was a record. In this context, the expectation for Ecomondo & Key Energy 2022 is very high, both for exhibiting companies, Italian and international key players and delegations from more than 50 countries that will visit the fair. It is expected to be a tremendous event with huge participation.

One of the highlights for 2022 is to address the current state of opportunities and difficulties in the implementation of the EU Action Plan for the Circular Economy. What kind of actors will be involved in this matter?

On the subject of the EU Action Plan for the Circular Economy, the 2022 edition will see an important participation of representatives from the public and private sectors and, university. Also, international speakers will be part of the event within the framework of the Program of conferences and Scheduled Events that is being finalized.

Considering that there are countries implementing Circular Economy Roadmaps, Chile published its own in 2021 with ambitious goals for 2040. Will there be workshops or conferences with a special emphasis on this topic?

The Circular economy is at the center of the priority themes and, this year the focus will be above all on the (circular) bioeconomy with the aim of optimizing the business of all sectors committed to the production of renewable organic resources, including food and chemicals.

Thinking that Chilean companies can attend Ecomondo. What expectations can you have with the 2022 version? Any new topic compared to previous years?

Ecomondo is characterized by being an event where innovation is encouraged and in which the possibilities of establishing businesses, connections and alliances between companies and investors from all over the world are real. Regarding novelties, the 2022 edition has new themes such as: Textile Hub, Environmental Protection and regeneration, Food Waste and Start-ups and Innovation Area. Therefore, for Chile and its important business sector, and action on environmental issues, these topics can be of great interest and key for generating a delegation of Chilean companies and visit this year´s fair.

What is the relationship that Ecomondo has with Eurochile? And how important is the work it performs?

Within the framework of the Ecomondo 2022 Promotional Action Plan for Latin America, Multirep Services, a regional consultant for Latin America, received the special commission to select some Latin American institutions that stand out for their performance in the circular economy, renewable energy and environmental issues to sign an Exclusive Collaboration Agreement to promote Ecomondo in Chile. The Eurochile Business Foundation, due to its importance and its historical performance in these sectors, was selected to carry out a Company Mission to the Ecomondo & Key Energy 2022 fair. Just to mention that at the Latin American level, 3 institutions from Peru, Uruguay and Chile were selected. And in this context, the role of the Foundation is essential for the dissemination in Chile of Eco

As part of the international activities that Eurochile carries out, the foundation is disseminating a series of activities that will take place -in face-to-face and hybrid format- in the months of June and July.

The director of International Networks of Eurochile, Manuela Caruz, referred to the importance these type of events are to the foundation. “Eurochile is constantly seeking to strengthen the connections between Chile and Europe, so we strongly believe that in these activities new connections and alliances between counterparts from different parts of the world are generated,” said Caruz.

The first event will be the “Free From Food Barcelona 2022” which is focused on the food sector, especially organic, healthy and vegan foods. The matchmaking event will be held between June 7 and 8, in Barcelona and will bring together potential business partners from around the world.

To participate in the instance, you must sign up and register at the following link.

The second event co- organized by Eurochile is the Digital Enterprise Show 2022, which will take place between June 14 and 16 in Malaga, Spain. During the three days of the event, solution seekers from different industries will be able to connect with technology providers.

Among the sectors present at the event are: Banking and Insurance; Cities and Public Sector; Energy; digital health; Industry 4.0; Retail, e-commerce and logistics; Telco, Media and Entertainment; Tourism and Hospitality and Urban Mobility.

To participate, you must sign up and register at the following link.

Finally, the last matchmaking event is the B2WORTH Torino Fashion Match 2022, an international event of bilateral meetings for fashion that will be held between July 7 and 9 in a hybrid format -online and face-to-face in Italy-, and which seeks to help participating companies to innovate and grow internationally in the fashion market.

To participate, you must sign up and register at the following link.

The matchmaking event began on June last year and will be available until December of this year in remote mode with the presence of companies from all over the world.

The Director of International Networks of Eurochile, Manuela Caruz, valued the opportunity provided by this b2b and explained its importance: “It is an event that brings together good practices and projects in the framework of the circular economy. Undoubtedly, this business encounter not only means a huge business instance, but also an enrichment of knowledge around the circular economy in all the participating institutions, ”said Caruz.

In this context, Caruz pointed out the importance for the foundation of being a co-organiser of this type of event. “These activities are important to us because we support Chilean companies in the connection with Europe so they can explore new markets, generate their own networks of contacts and learn about good practices. And in this case on a subject of great importance to us, such as the circular economy”, affirmed the director of International Networks.

The event has participants from almost 40 countries, including SMEs, start-ups, research centers, universities and entities from the public sector from a number of productive areas such as solar energy, energy saving, productive efficiency, biomass and many more.

Chilean companies have already joined this instance from different sectors and areas. One of the Chileans present at the event is Karina Gómez, who is co-founder of Bases, a collaborative platform for monitoring and plotting eco-indicators in real time that enables sustainable waste management, and which was born in the context of the creation of the Extended Producer Responsibility Law (EPR Law). Gómez explained the purpose of her participation in the business conference.

“My idea is to connect with companies that have a path in the context of the EPR Law, and in the various countries where laws of this type have been implemented, in order to generate technological links or strategic alliances since there is a wide market in the places in which similar policies have been implemented”, declared the co-funder of the platform.

In addition, Karina referred to the importance of these types of events. “I have participated in many activities organised by the Eurochile where knowledge and transfer technology is transferred , and it is very satisfactory. Many of the efficiencies of our platform are related to this type of knowledge transfer experience with other countries that have already had experience with laws such as the EPR,” said Gómez.

As an important input to this matchmaking event, a series of activities around the circular economy are programmed. As an example, next Wednesday, June 29, a webinar will be held

on the circular economy in food and nutrients. To see the agenda of activities, the organization had a section on its website

How to participate?

To participate in the matchmaking event, please register at the following link: https://circular-economy-smes-across-europe.b2match.io/

Then you must complete a profile about your company and who represents it, as well as a brief description of what you are looking for and what you offer. For more information, please contact Manuela Caruz mcaruz@eurochile.cl

The European project ConnectEO- led by the EARSC Consortium- aims to strengthen the companies and beneficiaries of the project in their internationalization processes and strategies, generating opportunities of cooperation between Chile and/or Australia in the European Earth Observation (EO) services and products in the maritime and agricultural sectors.

The ConnectEO Matchmaking Event seeks to promote cooperation between Chilean and European companies in order to improve productivity in the aforementioned areas. “This is a European project that seeks to connect the 19 companies, of different nationalities, with Chilean counterparts for the generation of new contacts, alliance and cooperation between companies and organisations, and enabling the transfer of knowledge and the prospection of the Chilean market for future projects”, stated Nina Morales, director of Business Cooperation.

Through these new technologies, Chilean companies and entities can be significantly empowered, preventing risks, monitoring their crops and managing urban planning that assesses the risk of wildfires and analyzes air quality, among other aspects. . “This is a unique opportunity, and we want to invite all companies in the agricultural and maritime sectors to join the event and connect online with European companies. From now on you can register and generate meetings; In addition, the activity has no cost for the companies. They only have to consider the time difference when requesting a meeting,” adds Morales.

The 19 companies that participate in this instance come from different European countries such as the Netherlands, Italy, Ireland, Spain, France, the Czech Republic, Germany, Estonia and Luxembourg. It should be noted that the companies are divided between those that work focused on the maritime sector and the agricultural sector, or both. These satellite monitoring companies stand out for their proven work in the satellite field. “They are companies that have opted for the development of new technologies and their own products, data analysis for managing natural disasters, satellite technology, artificial intelligence techniques, software, solutions adapted to different industries and oil spill monitoring and forecasting, among others”, adds the director of Business Cooperation.

Participating companies from the agricultural sector include Agcurate, Blue Biloba, Icon Geo, Quantec, Terra Nis, UTW, World From Space and Vana Principia.

For their part, the maritime companies are: Detektia, Unseenlabs, Waves´n See

Companies that work with both the maritime and agricultural sectors are: Orbital Eos, Mayday, Krattworks, Randbee, Santellogic, Space Sur, Spacety and Lobelia.

How to take part?

To participate in the event, you must enter and register at the following link: https://next.brella.io/join/DA1CTG

Then you must follow the steps indicated, complete a profile about your company, a brief description of what you are looking for and in which country your company operates. After that, the system will redirect you to the Matchmaking Event.

To see information in Spanish about the companies, review this document.

For more information, please contact Manuela Caruz mcaruz@eurochile.cl

The event held Friday, May 6, was attended by authorities such as Fidel Espinoza, senator of the region; the Presidential Delegate, Claudia Pailalef, and the Honorary Consul of France in Osorno, Pablo Saint-Jean.

The agreement between Eurochile and Corposorno will strengthen joint work that will seek to design and implement activities that facilitate innovation, investment, and entrepreneurship of SMEs in the region through association with the European market.

At the event, José Aravena, Executive Director of Eurochile, spoke about the main objective pursued by this new agreement, “the idea is to be able to create a bridge that allows direct contact between companies and institutions who are interested in exploring cooperation possibilities with Europe. Conferences and company missions and other activities are also held within the framework of these networks”, said Aravena.

In this context, the mayor of Osorno commented on the relevance of this new alliance between both entities, “growth is not done alone, it is done in community. That is why it is essential that government, private entities and foundations are able to work together on how we advance in the growth and development of an area or region, and I believe that this agreement comes precisely to strengthen that, “said Carrillo.

Tools for internationalization

After the ceremony of the agreement, a discussion panel entitled “How to internationalize through the European Network EEN: Enterprise Europe Network” was held.

The participants pf this panel were Bárbara Baxa, Executive Director of the Red Pyme Mujer; Adela Sánchez, Director of European Projects at CEOE-CEPYME Cantabria and Project Manager of the EEN and Manuela Caruz, Director of International Networks, Eurochile Business Foundation.

The audience was represented by different stakeholders from the Osorno community and was an excellent opportunity to disseminate and explain the benefits that Eurochile, through the Enterprise Europe Network, puts at the service of companies and organisations. In this sense, Adela Sánchez stated the importance of SMEs in this process.

“Special emphasis is placed on the aspect of SMEs because in the end, both in Chile and in Spain, they are the backbone of the economy, and therefore they have the main role, and

due to their small size they are the ones that sometimes have more difficulty in accessing funds and participating in projects,” said Sánchez.

In this context, with the agreement signed, a cooperation process begins that hopes to strengthen the productive community of the region, initiating and consolidating its relationship with Europe.

One of the first focuses of the interview was to reflect on the current situation in Europe due to the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. This is due to the fact that the main activities of Eurochile are related and connected to Europe and, in this context, the director highlighted that the foundation’s activities have not been affected and continue as planned.

Likewise, in the conversation he also addressed the economic panorama that this context produces. “In Latin America there are different effects for each country because all countries are different in aspects such as, for example, fuels. However, Latin American countries are exporters of raw materials, and that has a positive effect. By closing trade with Russia and Ukraine (producers of raw materials) there is a positive effect that has been reflected in a rise in stock markets in this area”, he concluded.

Circular Economy

Regarding Eurochile’s lines of action, the executive director also mentioned issues such as the circular economy and the role of the foundation around it. “The foundation has a very important focus on sustainability and circular economy issues because we think it is a mechanism that should help maintain development, decoupling the extensive use of raw materials or the generation of greenhouse gases,” he said.

In that same context, Aravena stressed the importance that circularity is having in Europe: “In short, this is a new way of growing that is having a high development in Europe, since they have defined it as their way of continuing to develop and fulfill the commitments made at the COP21 in Paris in order to prevent the growth of global warming”.

Regarding the actions of Eurochile in the promotion of this area, the executive director spoke about the experiences of the foundation recently. “Our work has gone hand in hand with contacting regional governments, asking them what their main objectives are from an economic point of view, considering their most important activities at the regional level, and what could be the lines of action action to make these activities more environmentally friendly.

The director explained that this contact has been developed with the regions of Los Lagos, Biobío and O’Higgins focused on different sectors. “This activity had a first dissemination stage where European experts participated – remotely – and ambassadors from Italy, Ireland and Belgium. Now, after this comes a second stage, with a common language, to see more specific actions to advance these issues in the different regions”.

Following this line, José Aravena valued the reception by the authorities on these initiatives. “At the highest level, the governors themselves have described this edge as one of their tasks to fulfill, so they are very aware that they must find another way to develop, as well as very aware that in the future this is going to be the norm, so they have to jump on this bandwagon of circularity.”

Alliance with ENEL

Another aspect highlighed in the program was the agreement signed between Eurochile and ENEL at the end of last year, for which the director of the foundation told what the alliance is about and what it aims at. “At the end of last year we signed a collaboration agreement with ENEL to work on different circularity issues. Specifically, touching on the issue of solar panels, which has been a very important element in the modification of our energy matrix”, highlighted José Aravena.

Finally, the director explained what is sought with this project and what it aims to reach, which, on the one hand, is to face a big problem and, on the other hand, how to incorporate small and medium-sized companies in this challenge, generating opportunities in this business of the future and that generates benefits for SMEs. “The agreement also aims to visualize an environmental threat that this process implies. There are millions of solar panels that will end their useful life, so it is important to know what will be done with them. So what was discussed with ENEL was to find a way to generate an industry where SMEs, in this case in Antofagasta, could disassemble and recover the raw materials that are in those panels.”

To see the full interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4gaPv3876K4&t=1177s