Supportive policies to increase the circularity of secondary raw materials in the EU
Each year, tonnes of valuable materials are lost to landfills or incinerated for energy instead of being recovered, reused, repaired or recycled. It is a missed opportunity, for the environment and for Europe’s economy, resilience and competitiveness.
Member States have varying quality standards and requirements for embedding recycled content in new products. This inconsistency plays out across material streams: from critical raw materials recovered from urban waste to wood waste available for cascade upcycling, to post-consumer plastics seeking re-entry into high-value production cycles.
Supportive policies that promote material circularity can increase the availability of secondary raw materials, generate demand through policy instruments, such as recycled content mandates and public procurement rules, and thus send market signals triggering investment.
The forthcoming Circular Economy Act (CEA) is a significant opportunity to address this issue. By establishing a unified regulatory framework for material flows, recycled content obligations and end-of-waste criteria, the Act has the potential to lay the groundwork for a genuine single market in secondary raw materials. However, it will only succeed if it turns circularity into scalable, investable and operationally viable business models across the single market.
This webinar is organised by Wood2Wood, a Horizon Europe project tackling the potential future shortage of wood for buildings and products due to traditional waste management practices and contaminated wood waste being tricky to recycle.
It brings together research, policy and municipal perspectives to examine how EU policies can increase the availability of and demand for secondary raw materials, especially from wood waste. The objective is to move beyond policy ambition and ask what is actually working on the ground – and what still needs to change to deliver a true single market for secondary raw materials.
This webinar will take place at 11:00-12:00 CEST on 29 October. Register here.
Additional Details
What You'll Learn
How EU policies can transform discarded materials into valuable resources, strengthen recycling markets, encourage investment and support circular production. Explore recycled-content requirements, public procurement, wood-waste recovery and the proposed EU Circular Economy Act.
Why This Matters
Europe loses valuable resources through disposal and incineration while industries face material shortages and inconsistent regulations. Better policies could reduce waste, conserve resources, create economic opportunities and strengthen supply-chain resilience.
Action Level - LEARN
What You'll Leave With
A clearer understanding of EU circular economy policy, examples of municipal and industry approaches, and knowledge of regulatory changes that could make recovered materials commercially viable.
Best For - Community Leaders, Social Entrepreneurs, Systems Designers, Educators, Journalists / Media, Businesses, Investors / Funders, Local Governments, Policymakers, NGOs / Civil Society
Systems It Connects To - Circularity & Whole-System Design, Personal & Digital Democracy, Clean & Renewable Energy, Food Production & Distribution, ICT & Cybersecurity, Public & Planetary Health, Smarter Cities & Communities, Mobility & Transportation, Ethical Finance, Media & Storytelling, Water, Infrastructure, Supply Chains
Languages - English
Recording / Replay Available? - Unknown
Practical Next Step - Register for the free webinar. Identify one waste material or recycling challenge in your community or industry, then compare the policy solutions presented with opportunities for local implementation.