Fecupral is part of the Circular Slovakia platform

With the creation of the platform, the private, public and non-governmental sectors are calling on the need to act for the environment and respond to climate change. The platform is called Circular Slovakia and today it acquires legal personality in the form of an association of legal entities.

Circular Slovakia is a public-private platform to support the transition to a circular economy. The platform brings together business, government, research, non-profit organisations and others to streamline communication and accelerate knowledge exchange. The joint effort will foster awareness raising, new partnerships, exchange of experiences and knowledge, and open a dialogue in removing barriers to the transformation to this new economic model.

Similar platforms are emerging in countries around the world. They bring the benefits of better linking research results with private enterprise and involving all partners in the development of government programmes and legislation. The benefits accrue both nationally and internationally. "For example, the Platform is involved in the activities of the European Platform (ECESP), thus bringing inspiration from abroad to our members and connecting with European events," said Denisa Rášová, the newly appointed chair of the platform.

In Slovakia, the initiative was launched in December 2019, when the founding organisations, the Ministry of the Environment of the Slovak Republic, the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the Slovak Business Agency, the Circular Economy Institute, the Slovak Environmental Agency, PricewaterhouseCoopers Slovakia and the Dutch Chamber of Commerce, committed to the creation of a public-private platform for the circular economy.

"For Ministry of the Environment of the Slovak Republic is the circular economy as one of the pillars of the European Green Deal a key theme. Already today, the Ministry, in cooperation with The European Commission and the OECD are preparing a roadmap for a circular economy in Slovakia. The success of such a comprehensive and cross-cutting concept requires not only cooperation, but also an active approach of the private and non-governmental sector, which is why we greatly appreciate the work of the Circular Slovakia platform." - Mária Fischerová, Director of the Environmental Policy Department of the Ministry of Environment of the Slovak Republic.

As of today, the platform acquires the legal form of an association of legal entities. The following companies and organisations have become members of the Platform:

AfB Slovakia s. r. o. / Academy of Social Economy / Association of producers of soft drinks and mineral waters in Slovakia / BASF Slovensko spol. s r.o. / Baterkáreň / BIOELEKTRA SE / BUSINESS LEASE SLOVAKIA s.r.o., / Business Leaders Forum / Centre for Scientific and Technical Information of the Slovak Republic / CRH (Slovensko) a.s. / CYRKL Zdrojová platforma, s.r.o. / ENVI - PAK, a.s. / Faculty of Management of Comenius University in Bratislava / FECUPRAL, spol. s r.o. / Heineken Slovensko, a.s. / IKEA Bratislava, s.r.o. / ING Bank N.V., branch of a foreign bank / JRK Slovensko s.r.o. / Department of Social Development and Labour, Faculty of National Economy, EUBA / Kaufland Slovenská republika v.o.s. / Komerční banka, a.s., branch of a foreign bank / Košice Self-Governing Region / LB Slovakia Plastics s.r.o. / LES, s.r.o. / Lidl Slovenská republika, v.o.s. / Munch.hu / NATUR-PACK, a.s. / Municipality Veľké Turovce / PANARA s.r.o. / Plzeňský Prazdroj Slovensko, a.s. / Repairably n.o. / SENSONEO j. s. a. / SKC foundry s. r. o. / Slovakia Going Zero Waste / Slovak Academy of Sciences / Slovenská sporiteľňa, a.s. / SK - TEX s.r.o. / TaylorWessing e/n/w/c advokáti s. r. o. / TESCO STORES SR, a.s. / VETROPACK NEMŠOVÁ s.r.o. / VSE Holding a.s. / Všeobecná úverová banka, a.s. / 3E - Institute of Environmental Research and Education

This year the Platform and its members will have a number of activities focused on green financing, green procurement, food waste, co-creation of a roadmap for Slovakia's transition to a circular economy, involvement in educational projects and international cooperation. "Companies will be able to participate in CIRCO trainings that will enable them to create a circular business model and also in roundtables within the international CircularRegions project, which will train train trainers in the circular economy and create a service for companies that want to change their business models to circular ones. This will increase efficiency, bring more stable business and competitive advantage to entrepreneurs," said Petra Csefalvayová, Vice President of Circular Slovakia.

Businesses see a number of benefits in membership. According to Marek Antoňák, CEO at AfB Slovakia, "it is an opportunity to share their experience in employing people with disabilities and refurbishing used hardware as well as to make new contacts in the field of circular economy".From the point of view of Barbara Gerslova, Sustainability Manager for Slovakia, Czech Republic and Hungary, "the form of a platform that represents the public, private and non-profit sector can be an inspiration and a driving force in this field in Slovakia. With the Circular Slovakia platform we share a common interest in raising awareness of the circular economy and identifying opportunities that will lead to the removal of barriers and the transition to a circular economy."