This call addresses research challenges related to the Circular Economy – a priority since the 2015 Circular Economy Action Plan – as well as to reaching carbon neutral industries as set out in the November 2018 Commission Communication "A Clean Planet for all– A European strategic long-term vision for a prosperous, modern, competitive and climate neutral economy".

Research and Innovation implementing these two priorities will significantly contribute to the modernization of industrial processes and to new ways designing products and business models. Results coming out of the project portfolio under this call should demonstrate the economic, environmental, climate and social added-value of decarbonized and circular production systems.

The cross-cutting nature of this call should lead to an improved cooperation and integration between sectors and value chains, and to making circular economy practices more mainstreamed and widespread and contributing to a carbon neutral industry in the medium term.

This call supports the development of innovative productions systems and business models, in which resource efficiencies, waste management and system thinking should be incorporated in the initial design, across sectors that are traditionally resource and energy intensive and/or with significant environmental footprints. The objective is the design and demonstration of profitable and sustainable (circular) value chains of materials, products and services, and of transactions for novel sourcing of required inputs and value-added destinations for nonproduct outputs between industrial facilities (industrial symbiosis). The environmental, climate, economic and social gains should be assessed from a comprehensive full life cycle perspective, including production and recycling processes, materials, and products (cradle-to cradle).

Portfolio approach as to the envisaged impact

In order to strengthen the impact of the activities under the call, clustering of projects around certain activities into portfolios will be facilitated. This portfolio approach will be pursued to establish regular exchange of information between all projects under this call and to clarify thematic links across topics. Where relevant, clusters will be created to ensure optimal coordination between relevant projects, to promote continuous dialogue and exchange of good practices between all actors involved, improve communication and transfer of knowledge and to identify technological and non-technological barriers. Proposals are therefore encouraged to contribute be open to such clustering activities, including coordinated deliverables and joint dissemination or exploitation activities, with other projects selected under this call and under Horizon 2020 - Work Programme 2018-2020 Cross-cutting activities Part 20.

Proposals are invited against the following topic(s):

• CE-NMBP-41-2020 ERA-NET on materials, supporting the circular economy and Sustainable Development Goals (ERA-NET-Cofund) 
• CE-NMBP-42-2020 Materials life cycle sustainability analysis (RIA) 
• CE-SPIRE-01-2020 Tapping into the potential of Industrial Symbiosis (IA) 
• CE-SPIRE-07-2020 Preserving fresh water: recycling industrial waters industry (IA) 
• CE-SPIRE-09-2020 Alternative mineral resources for high volume production (IA)