From Collection to Circularity: European Municipal Waste Companies in Action

After nearly a year of intensive exchange and collaboration, the Community of Practice (CoP) of municipal waste companies has successfully concluded. Running from May 2025 to March 2026 as part of the Circular Cities and Regions Initiative (CCRI) Communities of Practice, the group brought together experts from municipal waste companies and waste management representatives from cities and regions from across Europe to explore how municipal waste companies (MWCs) can unlock circularity at the local level.

MWCs are uniquely positioned at the interface between citizens, municipalities, and material flows. Building on this role, the Community of Practice focused on how they can evolve beyond traditional waste collection towards becoming strategic resource managers that actively enable local circular economies. It included participants from Turku (FI), Tampere (FI), Horsholm (DK), Skanderborg (DK), Geel (BE), Alcoi (ES), Castilla y Leon (ES), Valencia (ES), Izmir (TUR), Jerusalem (ISR).

Throughout the CoP, participants engaged in peer learning, sharing experiences and co-developing solutions to common challenges. The sessions created a trusted space for open exchange—grounded in practical realities and driven by the ambition to scale circular approaches across cities.

Discussions throughout the CoP highlighted that the transition towards circular municipal systems does not solely rely on technological fixes, but rather on governance, incentives, and collaboration.

Engaging citizens and creating transparent incentive structures emerged as essential to improving material quality and reducing costs. At the same time, clear sorting rules and consistent implementation were seen as critical enablers of effective systems.

Strengthening cooperation between municipal waste companies and producer responsibility organisations further supports more coherent and impactful Extended Producer Responsibility schemes.

Overall, the CoP underscored a broader shift: municipal waste companies are increasingly taking on the role of coordinators and facilitators of local circular ecosystems, enabling reuse, repair, and more efficient resource management.

To maintain momentum, the group agreed on a follow-up exchange within six months to assess how implementation efforts have progressed in their respective cities. The knowledge generated as part of the CoP, the connections built, and the practical insights shared will support participants in advancing circular initiatives within their cities and regions, driving future impact in regions and cities.

The CCRI CoP project runs until the end of 2026, with a second batch of Communities of Practice covering topics from circular water management to social impact. The role of the CSCP in the project is establishing a structured and scalable framework for all the CoPs and supporting their implementation.

For further questions and to engage with us, please contact Dr. Shirin Betzler.