On Friday, April 26, 2024, Zaragoza hosted the Circular Economy Day in Aragon under the motto “Towards a Common Strategy.” Organized by the Government of Aragon and CEEI, in collaboration with entities such as the Energaia Foundation and the Club of Rome, this event featured key discussions and presentations related to the RESOURCE project. Key Presentations were given by:

  • Ana Sanz: General Director of SMEs and Self-Employed of the Government of Aragon, presented the Aragón Circular strategy
  • Antonio Valero: member of the Club of Rome International
  • Natalia Chueca: Mayor of Zaragoza
  • Pedro Yus: Coordinator of European Projects at CEEI, provided an update on the RESOURCE project. FELTWOOD – a RESOURCE pilot project, was highlighted as a success story.

The event included two significant co-creation workshops: “Creation of a Sustainable CE Project Pipeline” and “Creation of a New Governance Model to Fund CE Projects”

Approximately 40 participants from various sectors, including Aragonese circular economy companies, financial entities, and public institutions, engaged in dynamic discussions through a World Café format. The discussions focused on four main axes:

  • Axus 1: Criteria for identification and selection of projects to qualify for recognition and aid
  • Axis 2: Needs and demands of companies to accelerate market transfer
  • Axis 3: Financing Sources – tighter sources of financing for medium and long-term projects with a degree of industrial scalability.
  • Axis 4: Opportunities in Aragon by Sectors.

The activities at the Circular Economy Day in Aragon produced key outcomes: identifying project criteria based on environmental, economic, and technological factors; highlighting legislative and market barriers and opportunities for market transfer; exploring common financing methods and motivations for investing in the circular economy; and generating ideas for sector-specific opportunities in Aragon, aligned with the nine “Rs” of the circular economy. The event concluded with a presentation of workshop findings, followed by closing remarks from the Mayor of Zaragoza. The Circular Economy Day in Aragon successfully highlighted the importance of circular economy strategies and provided valuable insights and actionable ideas to support the RESOURCE project and the broader goal of sustainable development in the region.