<< Background >>A look at the status quo of the Circular Economy in Europe shows that its contribution to climate and resource protection has been limited so far. The development & rapid implementation of innovative circular business models can significantly strengthen the already promising trends of CE in Europe, open up new value creation potential and contribute to securing the supply of raw materials. Several studies in SMEs have indicated the lack of internal technical skills as an obstacle.[3] According to a study implemented in several EU countries, the CE courses in universities are mostly seen as containing general knowledge, not strictly related to the main scope of study programs, & university graduates’ and employees’ knowledge & skills need to be supplemented.[4] All partners want to get ready for CE transition since they will have to go through the change process that seems inevitable for all SMEs: transformation of their organisations to CE. Partners need to prepare their organisations to implement CE to be ready to help their customers (SME leaders, managers and staff). To do so, partners will need good examples to follow, tools they could implement and sources of knowledge they can use to train & engage their staff in implementing CE and developing CE policies and action plans. Several surveys prove that the same needs have SMEs partners work with. Being asked what CE means to their businesses, 49% of SME owners/senior managers/directors replied they had not heard of it, 25% were not sure what it meant, 17% had some understanding & only 9% understood the term and thought about it in the context of their businesses. Only 28% companies’ representatives would describe the concept as understandable, while for 16% it was meaningful, 15% - inspirational, & for 25% it was confusing. 14% identified applying the principles to their businesses as preventing the businesses from maximising the benefits of a circular economy business model.[5] This is caused by the perception of business modeling as a set of extremely complex processes.[6] The situation is aggravated by the fact that SMEs usually do not have large (sustainability) departments which can actively introduce and implement the change processes within the company. Staff members & managers are not well informed & equipped with skills & knowledge necessary to systematically implement CE concepts. Needs & challenges SMEs are confronted with are obvious & can be summed up as follows: -missing knowledge & understanding of the CE processes in general & introduction and implementation within the company in particular,-lack of awareness for CE benefits & advantages among the SME managers & leaders, -lack of positive & inspiring good practice examples illustrating the transition process & providing recommendations & guidance to SMEs -missing competence frame for CE on the managerial level -lack of materials, information & trainings customized to the requirements of SMEs.L2C Project addresses the problems mentioned above by: -encouraging Partners and SME leaders and managers, who are in a position to initiate & drive change processes, to develop CE Policies and Implementation Action Plans for their organisations & to set examples all SMEs can follow in their sustainability transition, -developing SME leaders’ competencies necessary for successful transition to CE, -encouraging their development as sustainability change agents, & by equipping VET providers with ready made learning structures & tools to support adaptation of their training offer to changing SME leaders & staff skills needs in the area of sustainable development. Target group will be provided with evaluated learning and training elements, processes and tools, customized to the SME managerial level in the area of CE.<< Objectives >>All efforts made by EU countries for sustainability during the last decade have not reached expected goals in waste reduction, furthermore the amount of waste increased. The solution considered more effective nowadays is to encourage organisations and consumers to implement Circular Economy (CE). In March 2020, the European Commission presented an Action Plan for the CE, which focuses on waste prevention and management and aims to boost the EU's economic growth and competitiveness. The EU Parliament agreed on the comprehensive policy recommendations in February 2021.[1] EU framework for sustainable product policy aims to take action to make environmentally friendly products the norm. The new Commission's Action Plan has 3main building blocks: product design measures, consumer empowerment measures and measures for more sustainable production processes. It identifies seven key sectors essential for achieving a circular economy: Plastics, Textiles, Electronics, Food, Water and Nutrients, Packaging, Batteries and Vehicles, Construction and Buildings. Micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) represent 99% of all enterprises in the EU. Two thirds of all employees in the private sector work in SMEs, which contribute more than 50% of the EU's business value added.[2] SMEs are a significant field in which circular economy approaches should be firmly anchored. If you educate circular economy leaders - circular agents - in these SMEs, you establish basic sustainable economic thinking. Eurostat developed an indicator for the EU monitoring framework for CE. The circularity rate is the share of material resources used in the EU which came from recycled products and recovered materials, thus saving primary raw materials from being extracted. A higher circularity rate means that more secondary materials replace primary raw materials, thus reducing the environmental impacts of extracting primary material. In 2019, the EU-27's circularity rate was 11.9%, slightly up compared to the previous year and 3.6 percentage points (pp) up from 2004, the first year for which data are available.[3] So there is definitely a slight improvement in circularity, but it is also clear that there is still a lot of room for optimization. This is exactly where the project comes in. A change in thinking must take place in companies. In the future, the basic principle of the circular economy should be an integral part of all company areas. OBJECTIVES Since SME leaders play a core role within the enterprises, being the driving power for introducing changes and re-calibrating processes, the partnership will focus their aims and activities on the target group of SME managers. Based on the pre analysis as well as intensive consultations within the partnership, partners will pursue 3 main objectives:-Encourage SME leaders to develop CE Policies and Implementation Action Plans for their organisations and to set examples for other SMEs -Develop SMEs’ leaders competencies necessary for successful transition to CE and encourage their development as sustainability change agents -Equip VET providers with ready made learning structures and tools to support the adaptation of their training offers to SME leaders and staff skills needs in the area of sustainable development. A significant advancement can take place if SME leaders have a solid knowledge foundation and appropriate competences and tools to understand, plan and implement the idea of CE. VET institutions can leverage ready-made learning and training elements to attract more SME leaders and support the transition process from the educational side. 1]https://eur-lex.europa.eu/resource.html?uri=cellar:9903b325-6388-11ea-b735-01aa75ed71a1.0017.02/DOC_1&format=PDF2]https://eur-lex.europa.eu/resource.html?uri=cellar:9903b325-6388-11ea-b735-01aa75ed71a1.0017.02/DOC_1&format=PDF3]https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explain<< Implementation >>Accomplishing the objectives will lead to the overall goal of enabling SMEs to become circular economy-oriented organizations by: -inspiring and supporting innovative solutions and practices among SMEs, -mapping relevant skills necessary for implementing CE and -providing SMEs as well as VET providers with appropriate tools, processes and competences. INTERRELATION OF PROJECT OBJECTIVES, ACTIVITIES & RESULTS Encourage SME leaders to develop Circular Economy (CE) Policies and Implementation Action Plans for their organisations and to set examples all SMEs can follow in their green transition. Using storytelling techniques to present the concept of CE and best practices in its implementation in Result1 (R1) will assure internalisation of this knowledge, which will lead to its adequate absorption and transfer to the companies’ context. Case studies collected here will be presented also in R3 using different attractive learning methods (podcast, video, a case study, etc.). LTTA participants will learn from each other about circular economy and design thinking, innovation and change management. The LTTA will encourage the transnational exchange among its participants and therefore a better adoption of circular economy as well as innovation and change implementation inside their organisations. It will allow participants to reflect upon and define the methods for incorporating CE principles into business strategies, which will be later developed to produce Result 2. Develop SME leaders competencies necessary for successful transition to the Circular Economy, and encourage their development as sustainability change agents. This objective will be developed mostly by R3, which will provide general knowledge about CE, best practices from R1, a guide for implementing circular economy in SMEs using the methods and worksheets developed in the LTTA and procedures from R2 to transfer the circular economy to a particular company, plus the Competence framework for Circular Economy Change Agents and an SLP for the development of these competences. Equip VET providers with a ready made learning structure and tools to support the adaptation of their training offer to changing SME leaders’ and staff skills needs in the area of sustainable development. R2: Linear Turns Circular DIY Policy Portfolio will be created using the tools and procedures developed during the LTTA. It will be later presented in R3. CORRELATION OF RESULTS WITH PROJECT ACTIVITIES Activities R1T1-T4 will lead to development of R1: Collection of circular economy success stories. During the LTTA Partners’ and SMEs’ representatives will define the methods for incorporating circular economy principles into business strategies. These will be later developed in the course of implementation of R2T1-T4, planned to create Result 2. The LTTA makes the development of R2 and R3 possible. R3 will be developed by implementing R3T1-T7. While R3T1-T3 will be concentrated on development of learning modules of circular economy-specific knowledge, R3T4 is based on the deliverables of R1 and R2. The Transnational Project Meetings were planned in the months corresponding to implementation of important tasks and/or start/end of development of each Result. 1 European Seminar in Germany and 5 National Infodays in Germany (1), Poland (2) and Italy (2) to share L2C results are meant to introduce L2C Results to a wider audience of.<< Results >>The following list provides an overview of the Results and Multiplier Events of L2C, described in detail in their respective sections: R1: Storytelling – Collection of circular economy success stories from SME R2: Linear Turns Circular- DIY Policies Portfolio and Action Plans R3: Short Learning Program - Learning and transferring process into own business model including: competence framework for Circular Economy Change Agents learning modules of circular economy specific knowledge a guide on implementing Circular Economy in SME using Design Thinking methodology instructions on using methods and tools developed during the LTTA and procedures from R2 to transfer the circular economy in the particular company ‘Going Circular’ LTTA providing knowledge, skills and tools for transition to CE 1 European Seminar in Germany and 5 National Infodays in Germany (1), Poland (2) and Italy (2) to share L2C Results. Through active participation in R2 activities 6 Partners’ organisations and 3 SMEs will develop at least 9 state of the art policies & action plans for introducing CE. Non tangible results: SMEs will learn about CE, the methodology necessary for the transition to it and implement the transition process. Partners’ organisations staff will broaden their knowledge about CE and the tools and methods for the transition towards it, as well as their implementation. RESULTS SUPPORTING PROJECT MANAGEMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION The following results are expected to: a) facilitate project management and implementation, and b) assist in the evaluation of project results: 1 Quality Assurance Plan 2 Quality Assurance Reports.RESULTS SUPPORTING SHARING AND PROMOTION The Partnership will deliver tools and materials for the promotion of project Results. They will be addressed to a transnational audience, in order to: a) inform, promote, and build a solid case for the uptake of results by sectoral stakeholders, and b) stimulate the cross-sectoral adaptation of results and/or the development of corresponding materials in the fields of VET and CE. To this end, all promotional materials will take into account intercultural considerations, and will be available in EN, PL, DE, IT. 1. Project website 2. Online social media pages 3. Newsletters & press releases 4. Printed materials: Brochures/flyers and posters Results expected after project completion: -Success stories will encourage organisations to transit to CE. -DIY Policies Portfolio and Action Plans will allow SMEs for the transition process. -SME leaders will be equipped with knowledge and tools to design CE implementation plans in their organisations and with skills to deliver and promote that change as well as to become the true sustainable development believers -VET providers will be equipped with tools and methods for working with their clients Partners will be implementing CE in their organisations