Our scholarship holder Jule Jeschonowski attended the E-Waste World Conference & Expo 2023 in Frankfurt on Friday. The trade fair offered a relatively small and informal setting, which meant that participants often bumped into each other several times.

The E-Waste World Conference & Expo 2023 is an important event for companies in the recycling sector, suppliers of key raw materials, electronics manufacturers and suppliers, and ITAD companies. The aim of the event is to showcase the latest innovations and solutions for a circular economy and sustainable supply chains. Topics such as collection strategies, circular electronics, raw materials, recycling design and sorting solutions will be covered. It will also address urban mining, IT asset disposal and the recycling of industrial, commercial and post-consumer electronic equipment.

Visual highlights included Braun, the only B2C manufacturer where visitors could assemble a razor from its individual parts, and the dinosaur made from circuit boards by Electrocycling GmbH.

Jule was able to make numerous contacts at the fair, and her doctoral thesis topic, ‘Ecodesign of Waste Electrical Equipment,’ met with great interest.

Our scholarship holder Pauline Jegen recently attended the PLATE 2023 Conference in Finland, where she gave a presentation entitled ‘Circular Economy in the Construction Industry: Analysis of the Use of RC Concrete in Precast Production’.

The construction industry and the associated demolition of buildings and infrastructure facilities represent the largest waste stream in Germany. The resulting mineral construction and demolition waste (CDW) can be recycled and used to produce new building materials by replacing natural aggregates. Taking into account the principles of the circular economy, the use of prefabricated parts offers many advantages. At the end of their primary use, they can be reused and do not necessarily have to be recycled. A bottom-up approach is used to analyse material flows and determine how much primary material is available in Germany and how much demand there is.

The scientific value of this research lies in the development of holistic circular economy solutions in the construction industry, with the aim of conserving primary resources such as gravel and sand and reducing CO2 emissions by extending product lifetimes.

On 25 May 2023, the general meeting of the BDE Bundesverband der Deutschen Entsorgungs-, Wasser- und Kreislaufwirtschaft e. V. (Federal Association of the German Waste Management, Water and Recycling Industry) took place. The main focus was on the election of new association leadership. From 1 June 2024, Anja Siegesmund will take over the position of Executive President and thus continue the work of Peter Kurth.

At the subsequent public conference, representatives from politics and business discussed the challenges and opportunities of the circular economy.

One highlight was the presentation by Federal Environment Minister Steffi Lemke on the topic of ‘Circular Economy. Strengths.’ She emphasised the key role of the circular economy in combating environmental disasters, resource depletion, pollution, climate change and biodiversity loss. She went on to discuss developments in the national circular economy strategy and political projects such as the European Packaging Regulation, the revision of the Bio-Waste Regulation, the announced amendment to the Electrical and Electronic Equipment Act (ElektroG), the Substitute Building Materials Regulation and the European Ecodesign Regulation. Finally, she emphasised the importance of a national water strategy in view of droughts in countries such as Italy.

Another highlight was the presentation by Dr Markus Steilemann, President of the German Chemical Industry Association (VCI) and CEO of Covestro AG. He emphasised the importance of new carbon sources, including waste and biomass, for the chemical industry. He urgently called for the recognition of chemical recycling and a ban on the landfilling of plastic waste. In his presentation, he also highlighted the relevance of design for recycling in the circular economy.

Finally, Ingbert Liebing, Chief Executive of the Association of Municipal Companies, emphasised the importance of cooperation between private and municipal waste disposal companies in his presentation ‘Together from waste disposal to circular economy – municipal and private’ and discussed relevant directives such as the Municipal Waste Water Directive, the Commercial Waste Ordinance, the BEHG and EU emissions trading.

The subsequent discussion among the speakers on current political developments in the circular economy was extremely enriching and inspiring. Many thanks to all those involved!

In our regional dialogues at E-world Essen, we spoke with various stakeholders about the challenges and opportunities of the climate-neutral heat transition in Germany and about climate change as a driver of innovative, sustainable business ideas. Germany and North Rhine-Westphalia have set ambitious climate protection targets that require decarbonisation of the energy system and climate adaptation measures. As part of the regional dialogues, young entrepreneurs also discussed their experiences and perspectives in the field of environmental economics in North Rhine-Westphalia.

We would like to express our sincere thanks to everyone involved, including the speakers, moderators and students at Dortmund Technical University, for their commitment and interest in our events. The three days of E-world energy & water provided us with a valuable platform for advancing important topics and showcasing innovative business ideas.

The Climate Protection Act has set climate neutrality by 2045 as its goal. However, the city of Düsseldorf has set itself a more ambitious target: it aims to become climate neutral by 2035.

A key factor in achieving this goal is the expansion of renewable energies. Germany has set itself the target of increasing the share of renewable energies in gross electricity consumption to at least 80 percent by 2030. This is intended to make a significant contribution to combating climate change.

But the question arises: Can we still achieve our climate protection goals, or is it already too late? This important discussion took place during a joint discussion evening organised by the INZIN Institute and the Heimatverein Düsseldorfer Jonges e. V. Experts exchanged their perspectives and ideas in order to find ways to effectively combat climate change.

We would like to thank Prof. Dr. Justus Haucap, Anita Merzbacher, Joachim Umbach and Dr. Ulrich Teich for the stimulating discussion and look forward to continuing our exchange with the Düsseldorf Jonges in the future.

Regional dialogue on ‘Climate-neutral heating transition’ on 23 May, 3 p.m.

The future heat supply in Germany must be climate-neutral, resilient and economical. In our Future Dialogue on 23 May at E-World Essen, we will be talking to stakeholders about the opportunities and challenges of the ‘climate-neutral heat transition’.

The regional dialogue will begin at 3 p.m. with welcoming remarks and an introduction by Dr Peter Markus from the Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Transport of North Rhine-Westphalia, Christina Zollmarsch from Greentech.Ruhr and Prof. Dr Martin Faulstich from the Competence Network Environmental Economy.NRW. A keynote speech by students from TU Dortmund University on the role of local authorities in the heating transition, using two cities in North Rhine-Westphalia as examples, will be followed by a panel discussion with experts from the heating industry.

Location: E-world energy & water, Essen, Hall 4, Stand 218

Regional dialogue ‘Climate change as a driver of innovative, sustainable business ideas’ on 24 May, 3:30 p.m.

The future heat supply in Germany must be climate-neutral, resilient and economical. In our regional dialogue on 24 May at E-world Essen, young entrepreneurs will discuss their experiences, opportunities and challenges when entering the environmental economy in North Rhine-Westphalia.

The regional dialogue will begin at 3:30 p.m. with welcoming remarks and an introduction by State Secretary Viktor Haase from the Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Transport of North Rhine-Westphalia, Christina Zollmarsch from Greentech.Ruhr and Prof. Dr. Martin Faulstich from the Competence Network Environmental Economy.NRW. A keynote speech by Oliver Lühr from the Competence Network Environmental Economy.NRW on the topic of ‘Innovation radar for climate change – impetus for the environmental economy’ will be followed by a discussion round with young entrepreneurs and companies, moderated by Sina Nadi from the Centre for Entrepreneurship & Transfer.

Location: E-world energy & water, Essen, Hall 4, Stand 218

More detailed information on the programme for the two regional dialogues can be found here.

We would also be happy to meet you outside of the regional dialogues at our stand in Hall 4, Stand 218 for personal discussions and look forward to talking to you about forward-looking ideas and projects for the green economy in North Rhine-Westphalia. Greentech.Ruhr will also be there as a co-exhibitor.