Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Chania (MAIC), September 20-22, 2018
The Communication Manager of the MED GREENHOUSES, Professor Nikolaos Katsoulas, participated in the International Conference CIRCLE 2018 "Challenges for the Islands in the Circular Economy", held at the Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Chania (MAIC) on September 20-22, 2018.
The INTERREG MED Green Development Community organized a Workshop and Business Forum, during which more than 40 B2B and B2G meetings took place. Project coordinator MED GREENHOUSES, Professor Nikolaos Katsoulas, had meetings with representatives of other Community programs INTERREG MED (CREAINNOVATION) and LAGADAS BIOGAS (STAER SYSTEMS). Through bilateral meetings and contacts during the conference, new opportunities for cooperation have emerged, for the development of new projects as well as for cooperation between the projects of INTERREG MED Green Growth Community aiming at optimizing the exploitation of the results of the projects.
CirCLE 2018 ("Challenges for the islands in the circular economy era") aimed to promote the European Union's effort to implement the circular economy in the Mediterranean islands, to spot good practices and create synergies between the various actors, both at policy level and at industry level. The general objective is to bridge knowledge gaps by exchanging ideas between EU policy makers, managers of European funds and programs, financial institutions, large companies and SMEs, academia and research institutions, and the EU co-funding instruments. The aim of the conference is in line with the objective of achieving cooperation between the four-helix operators of the MED GREENHOUSES project.
The conference was organized under the aegis of the European Commission with the support of organizations such as Greening the Islands, with 280 representatives from 21 countries. The agenda of the conference included keynote speeches by representatives of the bodies involved from the EU side (DG ENV, DG REGIO, DG MOVE) and Greece on the current and future challenges for the EU islands.
The main objectives of the conference were: to explain the new framework of the circular economy, to share good practices and to encourage networking and dialogue. The focus of the speeches was on economic and territorial cohesion, skills, and regional co-operation, covering issues such as:
• The challenges and opportunities of the circular economy of the EU islands
• Initiative for green energy islands
• Renewable energy sources
• Water
• Waste management and plastics
• Blue growth
• Island issues
• EU co-financing tools and others
• IT and smart island initiatives