"The EU sees the circular economy as an opportunity for resource-poor Europe to secure access to vital resources, maintain global competitiveness and ensure a high quality environment for Europe and the world. To bring about this systemic change, the European Commission proposed a programme of actions that is summarised in the 2015 Circular Economy Action Plan. Since the action plan’s adoption, a legislative framework for a circular economy has begun to take shape.For most people, the idea of circular economy (CE) remains an abstract concept, if not entirely alien. Although the theme of ""ecological change"" is increasingly popular around the world, many are still not aware of the major changes we will have to make to our lifestyle to ensure a sustainable future and ensure long-term well-being.The circular economy is much more than a simple economic theory, it modifies the organization of society itself and is a response to concrete environmental, social and economic problems of this millennium. In a CE, products and materials keep circulating in a high value state of use, through supply chains, for as long as possible in a world of finite resources. Its success will depend on the ability of different actors to make the transition possible by starting to understand that the change in the economic system must take place and it is imperative.All of us must do our part in supporting the transition to a circular economy.Circular Economy as a Development Strategy (CEDES) is a project, created through a strategic partnership between seven countries: Germany, Italy, France, Belgium, Poland, Sweden, Spain and wants to become a reference point for the countries involved on a central theme such as the circular economy to seize the opportunities of the ""circular advantage"".The European Commission has the challenge of shaping our economy and paving the way towards a climate-neutral, circular economy where pressure on natural and freshwater resources as well as ecosystems is minimized. Because of this, CEDES is aligned to this challenge and intends to contribute with international exchange of good practices, experience and knowledge for the creation of a virtual and physical platform in a circular economy as an important tool for the stakeholders and companies interested in change and become ""circular"". Objectives:- promote the exchange of experiences, knowledge and good practices in the field of circular economy.- improve knowledge, skills, and abilities in the circular economy.- increase the sense of initiative and social entrepreneurship with the circular economy vision.- create an online free tool for guidance, support, and advice on circular economy education.- strengthening linguistic, digital and intercultural skills.- Fostering strategic cooperation at international level.CEDES involves the staff of the 7 partner organizations, Trainers, VET teachers, tutors, business consultants, social entrepreneurs, and professionals working in the field of circular economy, institutions and companies working in the circular economy area in the partners' countries and companies working in different sectors of the economy in the partners' countries.CEDES through 7 training activities on the circular economy and 5 transnational meetings will produce as main results “One Stop Shop for Circular Economy and the“ Guidance Document on Best Practices in CE ”.The project methodology will be participatory, coherent with the exchange of experiences and peer learning and the work-based learning approach.The main impact of the project will be the promotion of development of the circular economy in the enterprises and social entreprises in the 7 partner countries. For the partecipant:- Improvement of knowledge & skills in the circular economy approach, the participants are able to put it into practice in their daily work inside the organization partners.- Development of social technologies and counseling skills in aspects related to the circular and blue economy. For the partner institutions:- Improvement of work management skills and international activities.- The partners will have staff with increased knowledge and skills in circular and social economy field.- Development of international relationships.For the enterprises, groups of people and organizations involved in the circular economy sector (stakeholders):- Entrepreneurs will improve their skills in developing the circular economy approach inside their own companies.- Enterprises will be informed about the ways to access funding for their activities based on the circular economy.- Enterprises will be informed about the ways to change their own business towards the circular economy vision.The knowledge acquired for the participants will be shared and put into practice within their own organizations. The main results of CEDES will be maintained even after its conclusion, as tools for development and training in the field of circular economy."

"""Network for the Development of Social Enterprises"" (REDES), is a strategic partnership for innovation KA2 Youth Program, which involves 7 different European countries: Spain, Italy, Belgium, Germany, Sweden, Greece and Portugal. The Project was born as an initiative aimed at strengthening the knowledge of young entrepreneurs in the field of social entrepreneurship, becoming them into actors of change for the creation of a: business network for the development of social enterprise. The initiative is developed in a context in which the economic crisis of recent years has deepened the problems in Europe. Globalization, unemployment, inefficient social services, social inequalities, poverty, migration, etc. force to generate a new vision of development for the whole Union. The European Commission, as part of its policies to promote economic growth, considers social enterprises (SE) as a key element for the European social model and the Europe 2020 strategy sets the goal of making the EU a stable, sustainable and inclusive economy. The SE are inserted in this scenario, as main actors in the development of the European economy, stimulating growth and generating impact in societies through the job creation, social inclusion, use of sustainable energy and natural resources, environmental care, local development, etc. Many studies support these claims under the firm conviction that social enterprises (SE) can help to deal with the crisis and that the promotion of their development can impact on the improvement of society, economy and environment. Goals: - Promote innovation in the creation of SE networks in the countries involved. - Improve skills and knowledge in the field of social entrepreneurship. - Increase the sense of initiative and entrepreneurship. - Create a tool for support, information and networking in social entrepreneurship. - Strengthen linguistic, digital and intercultural skills. - Develop strategic cooperation at the international level. The project aims to involve 35 young entrepreneurs from 25 to 30 years old, coming from the 7 countries of the partnership (5 per country), united to create a business network REDES as an innovation initiative. In this process, young people will interact by proposing actions for the development of SEs with a European vision. The ES Network will operate both in virtual and physical environments. REDES is carried out at a transnational level, because given its characteristics and form of development could not generate the same impact in a national context. The activities to be carried out, begins with national meetings with important business entities for the selection of social entrepreneurs. Subsequently, a cycle of 4 training activities begins, focused on training in SE. In addition, it is planned to hold 3 transnational meetings, for the project coordination and implementation according to the project Work Plan, including an intermediate evaluation and an impact assessment. Two outputs will be created: a Guideline document for SE development (O1) and a video with the Best Practices by country (O2). For the dissemination phase, two ""social change meetings"" have been planned as a strategy for development and change. Young entrepreneurs and stakeholders will be invited, generating a participatory debate about the project. There will be 2 Conferences: a press conference for the presentation and a Conference of Closing the project. The impact will be: PARTICIPANTS: - Improvement of their capacities in social entrepreneurship and put them into practice in their daily work. -Strengthening the spirit of initiative and entrepreneurship with a social focus. - They will be ""social changemakers"" in the creation of the network REDES (physical and virtual). - Better communication in a foreign language. - Increasing the teamwork skills and multicultural setting. PARTNERS OF THE PROJECT: - The network of international relations created, will strengthen the cooperation between partners and public and private institutions interested in the social economy. - Strengthening the quality of work in the field of social enterprises. SE, STAKEHOLDERS: - The SE will have a support tool for their sector: REDES. - Social entrepreneurs will improve their entrepreneurial skills thanks to the services provided by REDES. - SE will have a helping hand to access funding. - It will generate a greater awareness of social entrepreneurship. - The visibility of SEs in each partner country will be improved. In general, the project will focus on promoting the development of SEs by strengthening synergies, links and entrepreneurial networks between individuals, organizations and institutions in the social economy sector, increasing the entrepreneurial culture and making more easy the research of funding. The project will also influence the job creation and economic development with social impact in the countries involved."