The participants of the circular economy panel began their discussion with an assessment of the current situation. The majority agreed: There is still much to be done. Katrin Habenschaden, Second Mayor of the City of Munich, admitted:
"We've only been focusing on circularity as a whole for a relatively short time. But we're also slowly getting into gear on the city side."
The founder of the Community Kitchen put it more drastically, Günes Seyfarth:
“In Germany, we can always talk well – including about the circular economy – but we often still lack the joy of doing and learning in practice.”
To achieve circularity, one must dare to take new paths and sometimes fail.
Often, there is still a lack of understanding of the entire spectrum required by the circular economy. Germany is the world champion in waste collection and the city of Munich is particularly well positioned when it comes to zero waste, noted Matthias Ballweg, co-founder of Circular RepublicBut sharing models for everyday objects and sustainable product design have not yet reached many people's consciousness. Seyfarth said that this is essentially what's at stake. Every company must ask itself whether it can assume responsibility for its product until its end.
Startups as pioneers of the circular economy
At the BMW Group, Karsten Peddinghaus, Head of Sustainability Activities, is responsible for this. He spoke of a specially designed measurement system with which BMW records the proportion of secondary materials in new vehicles and has consequently set itself ambitious goals in this area. For circularity, it is particularly important to focus on collaborations – including with startups. Benjamin Erhart of UVC Partners also confirmed this. The current pressure for change highlights problems that companies can solve. Startups can contribute their new ideas here and positively influence material flows and recycling processes.
To do this, startups need not only capital, but also the appropriate infrastructure and large corporate partners, according to Ballweg. The industry must move broadly to accept these startups. BMW is trying to do this through various initiatives such as the Startup Garage. Peddinghaus said:
“Not every startup succeeds in becoming a long-term business partner, but accompanying young companies part of their journey can also be a contribution to a better, circular future.”
The final question of the round was where the path to a circular economy still needs to be addressed. In addition to municipal subsidies for sustainable business and municipal initiatives, a greater emphasis must be placed on education on the topic of sustainable development, for example through campaigns, he said. Credit loss.
“As a city, we can be a best-practice example with seemingly small things like sustainable canteens.”
Erhart considered it particularly important to expand developments emerging in the local scene and bring them to the international stage – including with international capital. Nevertheless, the fundamental imperative for sustainability and the fundamental availability of entrepreneurial talent are already there. He emphasized:
“I’m sure it will take at most five years before we see the first Circular Unicorn here on the stage of the Munich Startup Festival.”
