The mid-term event and fourth partner meeting of the project RUMORE took place on 13th – 14th November 2018 in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. The event aimed at reflecting on the mid-term achievements of the project, at highlighting the lessons learnt so far and at drawing the way forward to making a real impact on the policy instruments of the partner regions.
During the two-day meeting all partners and stakeholders shared experiences and learned about the ambitions of Amsterdam to become a circular city. A sequence of thematic sessions provided all participants with the possibility to widen their understanding and discuss on how to change current linear production and consumption models into circular ones. To get on-the-ground experience, the participants visited selected Good Practices, illustrating different cooperation approaches from the Metropolitan Region of Amsterdam. The Dutch Cuisine Initiative (chefs striving for a sustainable menu), the Green Campus (helping graduates to start up a business on a good idea they have), and Instock (restaurant cooking with surplus food from large supermarkets) just to name a few, all illustrated that local entrepreneurship and urban-rural partnerships are essential for regions to push the shift to a circular economy.
The public part of the meeting was complemented by internal work sessions, where partners and stakeholders discussed on the progress of their policy improvement and the work in their local stakeholder groups. All participants came together in Learning Camps to present and discuss example actions from their Action Plans. The exchange provided valuable feedback but also critical comments, which will support the partners to progress in their Action Plan development process.
Reflecting on the hitherto project work, all partners share the opinion that learning about other regional contexts brings a real added value and opens new horizons. At the same time, the work in the stakeholder group is a unique opportunity for a structured way of cooperation. “The project activities make it possible for us to come closer to local entrepreneurs, SMEs and research institutions working on circularity in the local Agri-Food chain, in order to identify their needs and support them in the realisation of their innovative ideas”, states Mara van der Kleij from the City of Amsterdam and adds that RUMORE is very much in line with the City’s objectives to support start-ups and pioneer new ideas and partnerships between R&D and SMEs. “The search for solutions inspired by the exchange and the close cooperation with local stakeholders will make it possible for us to try new ideas and make policy documents more tailored to the concrete on the ground needs.”
