Newsbyinfosymba

ICLEI Europe is a local and regional government network committed to sustainable development. ICLEI’s expertise lies in facilitating local and regional governments in peer exchange and partnerships, strategy development and action planning, knowledge transfer and capacity building, stakeholder engagement and circular procurement. Additionally, ICLEI has cross-cutting sectoral expertise in governance analysis, bioeconomy, IS and food waste through European projects like Biomodel4Regions, Symsites, P2GreeN, and Hubs4Circularity (H4Cs). By facilitating partnerships between local authorities, policy makers, companies and citizens, ICLEI is creating awareness and building networks to implement IS strategies.

ICLEI is in charge of the identification of four high-potential IS regions across Europe to demonstrate the SYMBA assessment and evaluation methodology. These hubs will serve as key examples of how the IS methodology can be applied to bio-based industries, contributing to the development of local bio-based value chains. ICLEI’s large network of cities and regions will be instrumental in identifying these regions, ensuring geographic diversity, and selecting hubs based on their bio-based potential and commitment to participating in project activities.

Once the regions are selected, the SYMBA consortium will conduct a needs assessment to tailor the SYMBA methodology to the specific needs of each hub. These findings will inform the methodology’s development and ensure its effectiveness in fostering industrial symbiosis within the bio-based economy.

A core component of this process will be capacity-building activities aimed at strengthening local stakeholders’ knowledge and engagement. Key actors, such as local/regional companies, associations, and policy makers, will be mapped using the Asset-Based Community Development (ABCD) approach. ICLEI will organize workshops for community and capacity-building. These workshops will allow industrial representatives, local authorities, and private investors to co-create and validate the SYMBA methodology. Through these collaborative efforts, the project will empower regions to implement and demonstrate industrial symbiosis in the bioeconomy, fostering sustainable local development and reducing environmental impacts.

Policy integration is also a crucial aspect of ICLEI’s approach. A policy review and gap analysis will be conducted to assess regional and national policies, identifying barriers to the adoption of the SYMBA methodology. ICLEI’s past work with projects like H4C ECoP and BIOMODEL4REGIONS will be instrumental in understanding the policy landscape and informing the creation of strategies to remove policy and market barriers. An inception policy and roadmap will be developed to guide the deployment of SYMBA results at the local and regional levels, ensuring long-term sustainability.

Through its strategic leadership, ICLEI will actively engage stakeholders, build capacity, enhance knowledge, and integrate policies that facilitate the transition to a circular economy, all while strengthening its position in the European sustainability ecosystem.