The Industrial Symbiosis (SI) has been the protagonist of two presentations of the Metalworking, Furniture, Wood, Packaging and Related Technological Institute (Aidimme) in the European Week of Regions and Cities: last October 15, in which the project Tris (Transition Regions Towards Industrial Symbiosis) developed its final event, and on October 21 where the General Directorate of Innovation, University, Science and Digital Society presented S3 as a key to the European Green Deal (Green Deal), with actions developed by Aidimme as exemplifying.

The European Week of Regions and Cities

The European Week of Regions and Cities (#EURegionsWeek), the largest annual event dedicated to regional politics, brings together political representatives, academics and other experts from regions and cities across Europe in Brussels. In 2019, #EURegionsWeek reached the record of more than 9,000 participants and more than 330 sessions. During the week, common challenges for European regions and cities are discussed, and the exchange of experiences and good practices related to EU cohesion policy and related financial instruments is encouraged, while promoting and facilitating cooperation and networking between regions and cities.

The Tris project

At the European Week of Regions and Cities, the Interreg Europe Tris (Transition Regions Towards Industrial Symbiosis) action was presented, led in the Valencian Community by Ivace and Aidimme, which has the participation of five European regions that have defined and launched Industrial Symbiosis plans throughout the period 2016-2021.

The Industrial Symbiosis promotes, between industries of the same or different sectors, the establishment of synergies that can range from the use of a waste from one industry as raw material for another, to the joint use or implementation of a resource, service or infrastructure.

Ultimately, then, the Industrial Symbiosis articulates a cooperative model that seeks to optimize the flows of resources to obtain a greater collective benefit. In this way, IS is the way to apply many of the circular economy concepts in the productive fabric, and it becomes a key factor in cohesion policies and European innovation programs.

The Industrial Symbiosis, a way to the future

Aidimme’s interventions at the two events were focused on Industrial Symbiosis. The Tris project day, on October 15, was developed in three blocks. In the first block, Raising Awareness to influence policy for industrial symbiosis, the visibility and inclusion of Industrial Symbiosis in the political agenda of the participating regions was discussed. Manuel Sánchez, from the Aidimme R&D area, spoke about the important role of industrial associations in the definition and implementation of the Action Plan in the Valencian Community.

In the second block, Tailoring ERDF to support industrial symbiosis, representatives of the administrations of four regions spoke about the use that they have made of the structural funds to promote adequate instruments for the application of the Industrial Symbiosis.

Jordi Sebastiá, Ivace’s external relations manager, presented the materializations of the Tris project action plan, including the adaptation of Ivace R&D and Innovation support programs, the Insylay project, developed by Aidimme, and other actions such as the Symbinet project, also participated by the institute —together with ITC, ITI and Ainia—, and the future Industrial Symbiosis Observatory, also promoted by Ivace.

Finally, the long-term visions of the different regions for the definitive implementation of regional circular economy and Industrial Symbiosis strategies were the ideas on which the third block of The Tris legacy session dealt.

On the day of October 21, after a first intervention by the Minister Carolina Pascual, the general director of Innovation, Sonia Tirado, presented 5 speakers representing ITE, Zubilabs, Ivia, Valencia Port Foundation and Aidimme, for the exhibition of developed projects within the framework of RIS-3.

Alicia Pérez, Section Manager for Process Management and Sustainability at Aidimme, focused her intervention on Industrial Symbiosis, specifically on the Tris, Insylay and Symbinet projects, highlighting the importance of providing companies with tools that allow them to maintain the underused resources for longer in their use phase.