This question took centre stage on 30 October 2025 at the transnational CURIOST webinar “Thinking Ahead Together – Circular Strategies in International Exchange”.
The online event brought together over 50 participants from across Central Europe — including CURIOST project partners, company representatives, and experts from the fields of mechatronics, plastics, packaging, and construction — for a morning of shared insights, open discussion, and collaborative reflection.
A European conversation on circular transformation
The webinar opened with a welcome and brief insight into the CURIOST project’s mission: to empower small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to take practical, creative steps toward circular product development.
Through collaboration among partners in seven Central European regions, CURIOST is building a shared understanding of what the green transition means for different industries — and how circular innovation can become a driver of competitiveness, not just compliance.
The webinar featured a keynote by Silvia Beccari, EU Climate Pact Ambassador, who reminded participants that the green transition is not just an environmental duty, but an opportunity for business resilience and innovation.
The speech was both inspiring and pragmatic: circularity is not a side project or a communication slogan — it’s a strategic shift in how companies think, design, and operate. Her message was clear: sustainability is a competitiveness strategy, not a cost.
Sharing experience across projects and borders
In addition to the keynote, project partners from seven Central European countries shared the outcomes of their national workshops, highlighting both the diversity of industrial contexts and the striking similarities in barriers faced — from regulatory uncertainty to a lack of internal motivation for circular transformation.
Despite these challenges, several key drivers emerged across regions:
- cost savings through efficiency and material reuse
- growing consumer and regulatory demand for sustainable solutions
- innovation potential through design thinking and collaboration
The exchange continued with presentations from other Interreg Central Europe projects, which broadened the perspective and showcased how different networks are tackling circularity in their respective sectors: CIREVALC and Plan-C Moving PLastics and mAchine iNdustry towards Circularity.
After that, company representatives and project partners shared their views on what it takes to implement circular strategies in practice.
Topics ranged from internal resistance to change to the challenge of quantifying circular benefits. Yet despite these hurdles, the discussion was marked by optimism and a shared determination to act.
Participants agreed that collaboration and creativity are essential for progress — and that innovation often begins when industries, regions, and mindsets meet halfway.
The interactive session encouraged participants to share experiences and cultural perspectives on circularity. Whether discussing repair, regeneration, or rethinking entire value chains, one message resonated throughout:
Circularity is no longer optional — it’s essential for the survival and competitiveness of European manufacturing.
From talk to action
The event concluded with a wrap-up session summarising the key takeaways:
- The green transformation requires both technological and cultural change.
- Circularity must be integrated into business strategy and design processes.
- SMEs play a crucial role in driving bottom-up innovation.
- Collaboration across sectors and borders accelerates learning and impact.
With this shared foundation, CURIOST is now ready to move from circular talk to circular action.
Over the coming months, the project partners will engage SMEs and small mid-caps across Central Europe in hands-on prototyping workshops, where companies will co-develop circular product prototypes and business models supported by designers, researchers, and sustainability experts — or, as CURIOST calls them, Creative Heads.
These are the people who think outside the box — and sometimes decide to redesign the box entirely.
What’s next
CURIOST will now move from strategy to action!
In the coming months, partners will select and support pilot SMEs and small mid-caps across seven countries to co-create circular product prototypes and business models — bringing theory into practice and turning circular vision into tangible results.