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Award scheme highlights environmental as well as social innovation
09/02/2016
Award scheme highlights environmental as well as social innovation
A European award scheme for innovative social projects shows that social innovation often goes hand in hand with environmental innovation. The European Social Innovation Competition gave out its first awards in 2013, and the scheme is now getting ready to open its fourth edition, with a launch...
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Study sets out basis of life-cycle sustainability assessment for buildings
26/01/2016
Study sets out basis of life-cycle sustainability assessment for buildings
Buildings have a huge environmental footprint. Their construction and use consumes about half of the extracted materials and energy used in the European Union, and is responsible for about a third of EU water consumption. Construction and demolition of buildings also generates about a third of the...
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Economy of plastics must go circular, report argues
26/01/2016
Economy of plastics must go circular, report argues
The environmental costs arising from the production and use of plastic currently outweigh the plastic industry's global profits, but a “new plastics economy” based on circular principles is possible, according to a new report from the Ellen MacArthur Foundation and the World Economic Forum. The...
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04/11/2015
EU and Korea identify opportunities to take eco-innovation forward
Europe and Korea can learn from one another to bolster eco-innovation, move closer to a circular economy and deliver on the new global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for 2030, concluded decision-makers from both regions at the 19th Forum on Eco-Innovation held in Seoul, the Republic of Korea...
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Circular economy and the role of eco-innovation
27/07/2015
Circular economy and the role of eco-innovation
The European Union is rich in skills and yet relatively poor in resources, importing six times more natural resources than it exports. With an expanding global middle class, the competition for resources is likely to impact our economy as well as the world’s environment. To address some of these...
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Circular economy could double benefits from eco-innovation, study finds
25/06/2015
Circular economy could double benefits from eco-innovation, study finds
The European Union could be nearly a trillion euros per year better off by 2030 if a current surge of rapidly developing eco-innovations are put into practice within a circular economy framework, according to a study completed for the Ellen MacArthur Foundation. New technologies and business...
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Resource efficiency lessons from south-east Europe
04/11/2014
Resource efficiency lessons from south-east Europe
A recently-concluded project involving partners from Croatia, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Macedonia, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia has published a library of guidance on resource efficiency policies and implementation for municipalities. The guidance is primarily intended for cities in the 16...
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Sustainable usage practices for sustainable buildings  
23/09/2014
Sustainable usage practices for sustainable buildings  
An EU-funded project involving partners from Belgium, France and the United Kingdom has secured a one-year extension to build awareness about how to optimally use highly energy-efficient buildings. The first stage of the The REGAIN project started in 2008, with backing from the EU INTERREG...
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No landfill, no incineration: municipalities commit to zero waste
04/12/2013
No landfill, no incineration: municipalities commit to zero waste
A European initiative involving municipalities, companies and citizens' groups is encouraging its members to commit to the elimination of residual waste, thereby ending landfill and incineration as waste management practices. Zero Waste Europe...
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Regions test indicators of sustainable development
11/06/2013
Regions test indicators of sustainable development
A project backed by the European Union's INTERREG IV C programme has been working to show that an alternative is available. The For decades, the best way to measure the development and progress of societies and nations has been debated. Gross domestic product (GDP) as the main indicator of...
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