University Challenge
Challenge 3 - Circular economy as a driver for decarbonization
The circular economy is key to the energy transition. It establishes a more sustainable production and consumption model, in which raw materials are kept in production cycles for longer, promoting the conversion of waste into raw materials for new industrial processes. Cities, rural areas, and industry need to find solutions based on the circular economy to accelerate their decarbonization processes.
These are the areas in which you can develop your proposals, you can choose more than one.
Circular economy to decarbonize industry
What innovative solutions do you propose to adopt circular economy models in industry and reduce the carbon footprint of products manufactured while still ensuring quality?
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New business models based on the circular economy
How can the circular economy contribute to reducing companies' carbon footprint throughout their value chain and what new business models do you propose?
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Interconnection of different sectors to secure supply chains.
How to ensure the supply of raw materials derived from waste recovery from other industries, without losing competitiveness?
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Circular economy as a decarbonization lever
How could the circular economy contribute to decarbonizing different sectors of the economy and ensure that the value of products, materials and resources are retained in the economy for as long as possible?
Ecodesign of a good or service
How to ensure environmental criteria in the design phase of a good or service, with the objective of increasing the useful life, recyclability, and reducing the ecological footprint throughout the product life cycle?
Until now we have applied linear production models, i.e., we extract, produce, consume, and dispose. The society in which we live means that the consumption rate is increasing, it is a fast model, but unsustainable for the planet and leads to the generation of huge amounts of waste that ends up in landfills.
Cities are the main engine driving economic growth, and they can boost the circular economy by responding to urgent needs such as the proper management and use of generated waste.
In rural areas, there is an abundance of resources and a great potential for converting waste into raw materials. Therefore, we must find ways to revalue and optimize these resources and, in this way, create economic opportunities that generate wealth and new jobs in the region.
On the other hand, industry needs to find solutions based on the circular economy, which support decarbonization processes for their products, eliminate costs derived from material waste, and secure the supply chain for critical materials.
It's simple, the first thing to do is to register in Open Room to create a team. At the end of the registration phase, with the teams already formed, you can start to elaborate the proposals for the challenges of your choice.
What if I don't have a team?
You can still register, we will assign you to a team already created at the end of the registration phase.
What are the deadlines?
What should your team's proposal include?
Check out our content section for all the available material on Open Room.
