This panel provides an important platform for Albanian companies in the textile, clothing, leather & footwear (TCLF) and agro-processing sectors to foster strategic partnerships that enhance sustainability, boost competitiveness, and improve access to international markets.

Participants will share practical insights on sustainable production practices, export readiness, and evolving international market expectations.
A key highlight of the session is the contribution of Dr. Johannes Fresener from STENUM GmbH, who brings over 30 years of experience and shares his expertise on successful projects and developments in the textile and agro-processing industries.

At the heart of the session is the Resource Efficient and Cleaner Production (RECP) Clubs model. This peer-learning and coaching approach helps small and medium-sized enterprises improve efficiency through structured group discussions, motivating self-assessment, and mutual support.
Successfully applied in many countries, the RECP Clubs foster peer-to-peer networks, knowledge sharing, and continuous improvement in performance and efficiency — both collectively and individually.

The main objective of United Circles is to accelerate our progress to a fully decarbonised future without waste and with closed water loops. By fostering a problem-solving circularity culture, we address urban waste at its source and across process industries.

United Circles is leading the change by showing how cities and industries can work together to upcycle waste into value-added products. By connecting urban and industrial systems with a set of new technologies and collaborative models (Hubs4Circularity).

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Three Higher Technical Federal Colleges (Höhere Technische Bundeslehranstalten) have now been recognized as “Green Skills Competence Centers.” The GSCC Award was presented by the Ministry for Climate Action (BMLUK) and the Ministry of Education (BMB) in cooperation with the Climate and Energy Fund. HTBL Wolfsberg presented an innovative package of measures.

Jürgen Schneider, Director General at the Ministry for Climate Action, stated:
“Austria is home to top-tier educational institutions, dedicated professionals, and innovative companies that are already working on the solutions of tomorrow – climate action and the energy transition are key components of this effort. The awarded GSCCs are frontrunners when it comes to integrating green skills into school-based education.”

Bernd Vogl, Managing Director of the Climate and Energy Fund, added:
“With a pilot budget of €150,000 and thanks to the close partnership with the Ministry for Climate Action and the Ministry of Education, we have successfully launched a forward-looking project. This initiative impressively demonstrates how cooperation and targeted support can best prepare young people for the challenges of the future.”

The article describes how an RECP program for MSMEs was developed and which methods were used for this purpose.

The following methods were chosen to complement the existing procedures with practical tools:

• • Stage-Gate System – Ensures a sequential, manageable, and resource-efficient workflow.
  • Business Model Canvas – Provides a structured overview of the key elements necessary for a successful business application. Developed by Alexander Osterwalder, this framework visually represents a business model on a single page.
  • Empathy Map – Helps gain a structured understanding of future clients’ needs.

Each method was selected for its specific contribution to enhancing the overall process.

The developed program was implemented in Jordan, and the achieved results as well as the lessons learned are presented in the paper.

The complete paper is available for download here.

STENUM is once again supporting two projects this year to prepare startups in Kenya and India for the circular economy. A specialized assessment framework has been developed, workshops with the startups have been organized, and an intensive coaching program is being offered.

Climate KIC is Europe’s leading agency and innovation community for climate action, bridging the gap between climate goals and their implementation.

Support for Carbon Footprinting, Climate Pact Module, and EMAS Certification as New Highlights

At a celebratory event at the University of Music and Performing Arts Graz, Vice Mayor Judith Schwentner awarded the ÖKOPROFIT seal of approval to 36 companies. Since 1991, this annually updated program has been a cornerstone of the Graz Environmental Office’s initiatives. By offering tailored consulting, cutting-edge knowledge transfer, and regional networking, it helps businesses make their operations more sustainable and climate-friendly. 

A key addition to the program is the incorporation of the Graz Climate Pact as a dedicated module within ÖKOPROFIT, supporting companies on their journey toward climate neutrality. 

“I am always pleased to see so many Graz-based businesses participating in the ÖKOPROFIT program. It’s a strong signal that economic success can go hand in hand with environmental and climate protection, creating lasting value. These companies play a vital role in making our city cleaner, healthier, more climate-resilient, and overall more livable,” said Vice Mayor Schwentner. 

Looking ahead, ÖKOPROFIT companies will continue to receive financial and technical support for developing their carbon footprint assessments. Starting in January 2025, this requirement will be gradually phased in based on company size.

The United Circles project consortium met in Valladolid to kick off an ambitious circular economy initiative, led by CARTIF and funded by the EU’s Horizon Europe program with over €20.5 million. The project focuses on waste reduction, resource recovery, and industrial-urban symbiosis to create zero-waste cities and decarbonized industries.
The industrial-urban symbiosis nodes will be expanded over time in a process of duplication and extension to other countries, such as Hungary, South Africa, Greece and the United Kingdom, in what the call ‘mirror demonstrators’. In addition, the organisations within the project, from Slovenia, Lebanon, Austria and France, will promote the possibility of forming ‘seed demonstrators’ to help develop a network of shareholders in order to obtain sufficient investors to start up the ‘Regional Circularity Hub’.

These demonstrators in Spain, Italy, and Turkey showcase circular solutions: a wastewater treatment plant in Salamanca converting waste into resources, a biorefinery in Italy turning used cooking oil into bioplastics, and 3D-printed buildings in Turkey using recycled construction waste. These models will be expanded to Hungary, South Africa, Greece, and the UK.

The project aims to achieve these general benefits:

• Demonstrate that achieving zero urban waste is prossible in a near-commercial scale environment by recovering resources from waste as secondary raw materials to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
• Reduce freshwater consumption by 50% and reuse 90% of the solid waste from the Salamanca Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP).
• Create healthier urban environments through industrial-urban symbiosis, reducing emissions, utilizing circular and renewable energy sources, and minimizing waste.
• Achieve European and international cooperation to meet the goals of the EU’s “Green Deal”.

Sustainable Production: Impol Seval Reduces CO₂ Emissions

UŽICE/SEVOJNO – On November 22, 2024, Impol Seval presented the results of its project on the “Revitalization of the Aluminum Strip Annealing Furnace V-5/3 to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions.”

This project is part of the “EU for a Green Agenda in Serbia” initiative and is implemented with technical and financial support from the European Union. It is carried out in cooperation with the Serbian Ministry of Environmental Protection, the UNDP, as well as the Swedish and European Investment Banks (EIB). Additionally, it is funded by contributions from Sweden, Switzerland, and Serbia. STENUM supported Impol Seval in developing its decarbonization strategy.

“As a socially responsible company, we deliberately chose to participate in this project – and it has paid off. In addition to the funding, we received a decarbonization study and support in updating our application for an integrated permit, which was signed today – but we don’t want to celebrate too soon,” said Ninko Tešić, CEO of Impol Seval.

In April a 2-day Training on Green BDS & Resource Efficient and Cleaner Production (RECP)
To ensure wider application of Green BDS & RECP in Uzbekistan, the local market of service providers needed to be developed, including sufficient local capacities and skills. Taking into account the request of numerous companies wanting to learn more about Green BDS & RECP methodology, it was decided to organize a 2-day intensive training on Green BDS & RECP for a wider audience.

The purpose of this particular 2-day intensive training on Green BDS & RECP was to provide hands-on experience and advanced training on the application of the methodology in a wider number of companies to companies’ internal teams, and energy and environmental professionals.

As a result of the training program, participants were able to understand how the Green BDS & RECP methodology was applied to manufacturing enterprises and had generated Green BDS & RECP measures and projects for their companies to improve resource efficiency in their production processes. The development of local expertise was one important means for ensuring long-term results with continued Green BDS & RECP adoption.

Participants of the training were trained and familiarized with the different tools (presentations, templates, worksheets, etc.) which allowed them to implement all the Green BDS & RECP audit activities by themselves.

The training program gave the participants the required capacity to develop a practical In-plant Assessment for Green BDS & RECP projects as well as for new projects in the future.

The participants learned:

• What Green BDS & RECP is
• How to assess the efficiency of production processes and identify opportunity areas
• Good Green BDS & RECP practices – energy efficiency, water, and material management
• Green BDS & RECP project development
• Business planning and obtaining financing

Based on a shared challenge to reduce the environmental impact of schools in order to mitigate the effects of climate change, the carbon footprint of schools was calculated in collaboration with teachers and students, and measures to reduce the carbon footprint were identified. An appropriate methodology and didactics were developed and implemented at the participating schools. The results of the project are:

• Methodology for calculating and reducing the carbon footprint of schools and their associated entities Improvement of energy efficiency and reduction of CO2 emissions in the participating schools Promotion of collaboration between schools and businesses, leading to better education of future employees regarding sustainable development Updates to the curriculum regarding sustainable development Continuous reduction of CO2 emissions from schools

The following schools participated in the project:

• Instituto Técnico Comercial Cuatrovientos Sociedad Cooperativa in Pamplona, Spain HTBLA Wolfsberg Sandvik Utbildnings AB, Sweden Technological Technical Institute Bozen, Italy

In the creation of the carbon footprint, the schools were supported by employees of STENUM GmbH and CENTRO INTEGRADO SUPERIOR DE ENERGIAS RENOVABLES, Imarcoin, Spain.