How Climate KIC is working with cities and regions to scale up circular and competitive European industries
As European industries explore how to leverage sustainability and decarbonisation to become more competitive, circular economy initiatives are showing the way forward. For instance, industrial-urban symbiosis is helping local businesses, city administrations and regional governments tackle interrelated challenges of energy costs, raw materials, and environmental footprint, all while revitalising local economies and increasing community resilience.
At this intersection, Climate KIC is working closely with governments and businesses across Europe, with particular attention to those areas with a strong industrial heritage, where the need for the transition is more urgent than ever. The Hubs4Circularity Community of Practice, one of the initiatives Climate KIC is leading, is building a space for these actors to come together and learn from each other, to create local hubs where full-scale circularity is the norm.
Climate KIC spoke with some of the local authorities implementing these hubs, from Norway and Finland to France and the Netherlands, to understand what challenges they faced, how they overcame them, and what advice they have for other cities and regions looking to undertake their own journey to circularity.
Creating a shared vision for circularity
The Province of Friesland in the Netherlands has developed several examples of industrial symbiosis. One is the valorisation of nutrients from sludge or other bio-residues used in agriculture, reducing the need for harmful fertilisers. Another example is wastewater treatment, where human waste is processed and returned as nutrients for soil. Additionally, district heating is generated from bio-waste collected across the region.
“Our journey towards circular economy started around ten years ago, with a material flow analysis,” says Sander Bos, strategic advisor for circular economy at the Province of Friesland. “It gave us a comprehensive understanding of where and how materials move through the province, helping us identify the areas with the greatest economic and environmental impact.”
Sander’s advice is not to underestimate the need to balance technical knowledge with softer skills. Platforms such as Circular Friesland are creating a space for collaboration, where the local authority works with ecosystem ‘champions’ to create a shared vision and build the needed trust among all actors.
“In the end, industrial symbiosis is about benefitting society, so you should invest in people,” notes Sander. “Create a story, a vision that people can rally around. I think this is one of the best tools at our disposal.”
Community-driven models for industrial symbiosis
Unlike many regions that focus on large industrial hubs, the City of Roubaix in France has developed a bottom-up approach, conducting detailed waste scans and hosting matchmaking workshops to help hundreds of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) share resources. “For example, textile companies provide wool and cotton scraps to local artisans, while breweries donate used barley bags to construction firms,” explains Audrey Petit from the City of Roubaix.
To support small businesses in getting started, Roubaix has established a ‘materials library’: a centralised repository of information on available resources within the territory, helping businesses find materials to reuse, recycle, or repurpose.
“We prioritise less obvious waste streams,” says Audrey. “Most companies don’t need to learn how to valorise their paper waste, because there are already many service providers to collect and recycle this material. The added value of our database is that you can find lesser-known sources, such as wood scraps and tarpaulins.”
Involving citizens from the start is key to success
In Norway’s Møre and Romsdal County, industrial-urban symbiosis is gaining traction, with successful initiatives such as Grønn Hub Tjeldbergodden, where surplus heat from a methanol plant is used in fish farming, and Sirkulare Sunndal, which repurposes surplus water from aluminium production for private housing.
The County’s international advisor Ingrid Gjelsvik and project manager Martin Ose agree that citizen engagement is essential for the success of any project: “There are great examples of community involvement in our region. For instance, in Sunndal, a biogas project received substantial support from local citizens. However, we’ve also seen the opposite. In one case, plans for a biogas plant using waste from farmers and land-based fish farms faced strong local opposition because the community wasn’t engaged early enough, leading to the project being relocated. This highlights the importance of involving the right groups from the start.”
Their advice for a region willing to improve circularity is to start by mapping resource flows and understanding barriers and opportunities. “It provides a solid foundation. We’ve also found that bottom-up initiatives tend to work better. When companies have ownership of projects, they’re more motivated to sustain them in the long term.”
The importance of regional and national circular economy strategies
For regions with a heavy-industry heritage, the urgent challenge is how to support businesses to reduce their fossil-based CO2 emissions. Päijät-Häme in Finland, for instance, is increasingly integrating carbon capture and utilisation (CCU) into its circular economy strategy.
According to Katerina Medkova and Juha Heertsi from the Regional Council, policymakers and public authorities have a significant enabling role: “They set the strategic direction through policy frameworks, both at the local level (with our region’s Green Transition Programme) and nationally, with Finland’s Circular Economy Green Deal. These policies can incentivise funding and research. Public authorities can also help remove barriers to industrial symbiosis, such as standardisation of waste by-products.”
They also found that showcasing tangible benefits, like cost savings or operational efficiency, is key to building a strong business case. “Begin with a single successful example to inspire others. At the last World Circular Economy Forum, we saw a real-time CO2 conversion process on stage – it was really powerful to also spread knowledge among the general public, which at the moment is very limited.”
Are you interested in learning more about industrial-urban symbiosis and joining a community of like-minded professionals? We invite you to join the Hubs4Circularity Community of Practice, a free platform to share knowledge, tools and opportunities to progress together towards industrial and industrial-urban symbiosis and circular value chains.