The three R’s of the circular economy (reduce, reuse and recycle) have become the guide of, more and more, entrepreneurs who want to be an active part of a change of model in society. Thus, the startups that direct their activity towards this field have been gaining prominence in recent times.
And the result of this is that there are already 200 startups that make up goCircular Radar, the first map of innovative companies within the field of the circular economy created by TheCircularLab, the open innovation center of Ecoembes. With this tool, the visibility of innovative projects in circular economy is enhanced, At the same time, the collaboration of startups with other companies, administrations or groups is encouraged.
In addition, 32 of these companies – of which 24 are Spanish- they have the goCircular Pass seal, with which TheCircularLab recognizes the work carried out by all of them to develop new projects with great potential focused on the circular economy. The seal, which offers startups the opportunity to stand out in the circular economy sector, was awarded to 16 entities in 2021, the year in which it was launched, for their innovative projects. To them, another 16 have been added this year, Bridepalla, Betanzos HB, Recyl3r, Innovaciones Plásticas del Levante, Pulexlab, FYCH Technologies, Humara, Replastic Solutions, Befc, Co2mmon, Giunko, Recycleye, Relearn, Veridis, UBQ Materials and Lixo.
“The objective with both goCircular Radar and goCircular Pass is to promote and accredit the work carried out by hundreds of entrepreneurs who contribute to progress towards a sustainable model that benefits society as a whole. Innovation, entrepreneurship and technology have become the way to build a sustainable and circular future, but we must not forget that collaboration along this path is essential to respond to the warning that the planet is shouting at us”, affirms Zacarías Torbado, coordinator of TheCircularLab.
From Humaraa Galician startup that has recently obtained the distinction, Laura Rodríguez declares that: “We are very happy to have received this seal, it is an indication that we are on the right track, recognizing the potential of our product to accelerate the transition to a circular economy on a large scale. At Humara we are pioneers in the development of software tools that speed up the design of recycling and waste treatment plants, a sector that has not been digitized much. Being part of TheCircularLab ecosystem will help us reinforce this mission.”
To access the goCircular Pass stamp application, it is essential that startups form part of goCircular Radar, where interested parties are required to offer a portfolio of solutions or products that can contribute to the circular economy, have a high level of innovation in their products or business models and have established less than ten years ago. The registration process is completely free and the information of those startups that decide to join will be available to all those companies interested in collaborating or contracting their services.