Ecomondo 2023
The 26th edition of the international Italian trade fair on technologies for the circular economy, to be held from 7th to 10th November 2023 at Rimini Expo Center, has announced full capacity already in April.
According to the organizer Italian Exhibition Group (IEG), this year’s Ecomondo is the first edition occupying the entire trade fairgrounds. Also new: the exhibition layout. Aligned with the motto “The Ecosystem of the Ecological Transition”, it presents the “most innovative technologies for sustainable competitiveness” to the market in six themed macro-areas. The spectrum ranges from exploiting waste to make further resources to the regeneration of soil and agro-forestry and food ecosystems, from energy obtained from biomass to the use of waste as secondary raw materials. The scope also includes the entire integrated water cycle and environmental monitoring, protection of the seas and aquatic environments in their essential function for human sustenance and economic activities.
The water supply chain and SAL.VE
According to IEG, Waste as Resource, Sites & Soil Restoration, Circular & Regenerative Bio-economy, Bio-Energy & Agroecology, Water Cycle & Blue Economy, Environmental Monitoring & Control will be the themed exhibition areas at the event. Two sectors would be highlighted from among and alongside these: the specific ‘Water’ area and the new edition of SAL.VE. “In the former, visitors will find the entire water resource supply chain: from capture to restitution and reuse with a focus on digital transformation, which is now a key element in improving its management,” the organizers informed. “In the biennial SAL.VE area, organized in partnership with ANFIA, leading manufacturers will be exhibiting vehicles for ecological waste collection and disposal services as well as urban sanitation. Test drives will be available outside.”
Districts for “beacon” projects
Additionally, there will be space at the Expo Center for three industrial districts for which the Ministry for the Environment and Energy Security (MASE) has given the go-ahead with a contribution to 160 “beacon” projects for the circular economy. “Rimini will therefore feature the WEEE District with a specific focus on repowering technologies and new systems for recycling waste from electrical and electronic equipment, photovoltaic panels and wind turbine blades.” The PAPER District would focus on systems for the paper and cardboard collection, logistics and recycling in cooperation with COMIECO. “Lastly, a themed itinerary will be dedicated to the production of plastics with a focus on recycling systems and marine litter.”
Textile waste, eco-design and supply chain sustainability
The textile industry has been identified as a key value chain for which the European Union has foreseen actions to promote its sustainability, circularity, traceability and transparency. Key factors are eco-design requirements, producer responsibility schemes and labelling systems. “In Rimini, ample emphasis will be placed on the entire supply chain: from production to post-consumption,” IEG announced. “The objective of all stakeholders is to provide answers to these challenges by providing information about ongoing projects and ultimate goals as well as promoting new business models in order to outline the state of the art of textile waste management in Italian municipalities.” There would be a debate and exhibition area with all stakeholders: waste producers, managers, consortia and associations, research and development institutes, textile treatment and valorization plants, without forgetting the secondhand sector.
Bio cities
Ecomondo and K.EY have parted company on the trade show calendar, but the smart city, traditionally the falling point of renewable energies, can also be categorized under ‘sustainability’ and ‘healthy’. “The Circular and Healthy Cities project does just that by regenerating the city, making it greener and more efficient in the way it manages water, food, wastewater and waste.”
Start-ups
As reported, the Start-Up and Scale-Up Innovation area in the new East entrance will be back and further extended. “Companies and investors will have a new and larger platform for dialogue in order to cultivate the new generation of innovative businesses. More than 50 start-ups are expected in Rimini for the 2023 edition.” IEG and ITA-Italian Trade Agency intend to promote the initiative with ART-ER (Territorial Appeal Research, Emilia-Romagna’s regional agency) and Confindustria as their main partners, in addition to collaboration with ANGI (National Association of Young Innovators) to promote all-round innovation.
From fishing and aquaculture to the regeneration of ports and coastlines and seawater desalination technologies: the blue economy will include traditional and emerging economic sectors linked to the development of Italian and Mediterranean marine resources, IEG underlined.
Conferences and events
Ecomondo will offer its community a full program of conventions and conferences organized under the aegis of the Technical-Scientific Committee, directed by Professor Fabio Fava from Bologna University, in collaboration with the event’s main institutional and technical partners, together with the international board that includes experts from the European Commission, OECD, FAO, UfM, EEA, ISWA.
Top topics will be dealt with in trying to transmit even more knowledge transmission to the Ecomondo community: the priorities of the European Green Deal, the circular economy, the regeneration of polluted areas and ecosystems, the protection of soils and seas and the Mediterranean in particular.
Further push toward internationality
The organizers are convinced that the increased involvement in recent years of profiled operators from the Balkan area, non-EU Europe, North Africa (Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia), Senegal, Ivory Coast, Angola, Ghana, Rwanda, the Middle East, as well as Canada, Latin America, the United States and China will continue for the next edition.
“The second edition of the Africa Green Growth Forum will be staged thanks to the contribution of prestigious international agencies, inter-governmental institutions, such as the Union for the Mediterranean and UNIDO, non-profit organizations, including Res4Africa, Business Council for Africa, which will present the technological framework and opportunities for growth and development in the African continent,” IEG wrote.
(Published in GLOBAL RECYCLING Magazine 3/2023, Page 37, Photo: Italian Exhibition Group SpA)
