IL CIRCULAR VALUE FORUM He lit the spotlight on Genoa, transforming it into Italian capital of the circular economy. Two days full of events, ideas and comparison have traced new routes for sustainable, inclusive and innovative cities, capable of dealing with the environmental challenges of the future
Dal Circular Value Foruma concrete look at the urban circular economy, in Genoa
Genoa was the forerunner in Italy with the first edition of the Circular Value Forum, a national event entirely dedicated to the circular economy in the cities. On 8 and 9 April 2025, over 1,100 people took part in two intense days of conferences, events and meetings distributed between Palazzo Tursi and Palazzo Tobia Pallavicino.
The Forum, organized by Clickutility Team and promoted by the Municipality of Genoa through the project C-City-Genoa Circular citywas included in the Made in Italy national day program. The goal was clear: to create a national comparison platform between public bodies, businesses, universities, start-ups and students.
The success went beyond all predictions. 86 speakers animated the congress sessions, in front of an audience of 450 people. Another 650 participated in collateral activities: Eco-Fashion Show, Career Day, Food Contest and C-City Tour. The enthusiasm also overwhelmed social networks, with almost 100 thousand views of official channels.
The C-City project
The heart of the initiative was the C-City project, which proposes a radical transformation of the urban system according to three fundamental directors:
- Eco-Design: rethinking products, services and business models;
- Long Use: prolong the useful life of products;
- REUSE: reuse materials and components.
The forum included:
- Conferences on intelligent cities and corporate cases;
- An Expo area for start-ups;
- Networking meetings and presentations to investors;
- A themed contest food “Zero Waste”;
- A career day;
- A sustainable fashion show, “Eco-fashion show”.
The conferences addressed key themes such as intelligent cities, Green Jobs, Eco-Design and Esg, with a focus on strategic sectors: energy, construction, fashion, water resources, blue economynutrition and packaging.
Circular economy, innovation and growth
According to Mario Mascia, councilor for economic development and urban planning of the Municipality of Genoa, the transition to a circular economy, if well managed, can generate numerous environmental benefits, optimize the use of raw materials and stimulate innovation and growth. This transformation will make more convenient, durable and innovative products available, improving the quality of life and the well -being of citizens and the environment.
These objectives integrate with the new territorial planning of the Municipality, which aims to contain soil consumption and develop green spaces accessible and harmonized with the urban and peri -urban fabric. The circular economy thus becomes part of an integrated strategy to combat global warming and build a more sustainable society.
To achieve these results, it is necessary to rethink individual products, processes, services and behaviors according to the principles of circularity, gradually abandoning the linear model. The project is placed in this direction C-City-Genoa Circular citywhich was presented to Circular Value Forum and with which the administration intends to guide the circular transformation of the city.
The career day
The themes of the circularity of work and food have been the center of attention. The conferences presented experiences of circular economy in large companies and the opportunities of Green Jobs, in collaboration with theUniversity of Genoa.
The Career Day, organized with the University of Genoa, has turned on the spotlight on the emerging professions of the Green Economy. The companies present illustrated the employment potential of a sector in growth.
Il “Circular Value Forum Food Contest – Zero Waste”
One of the most engaging moments was the “Circular Value Forum Food Contest – Zero Waste”born from the collaboration with the Bergese-Rosselli Institute. Two teams of hotel students have prepared dishes and cocktails starting from food waste, without ever losing sight of the Ligurian gastronomic tradition.
Luca Altemani, of the Marco Polo institute, won the hall test with the cocktail “A10”inspired by the lands crossed by the Fiori motorway.
Elisa Bitossi, of Nino Bergese, won the cooking test with “The rebirth”fish dish created with recovered and revisited ingredients.
Il Food System
A session was dedicated to food system and circular cities highlighted the urgency to act against food waste.
Professor Franco Fassio, ofUniversity of gastronomic sciences Di Pollenzo (CN), recalled that every year a third of the food produced in the world is thrown away. This waste generates 37% of the global CO₂ emissions. He underlined that nature is already circular, and that it is necessary to follow its operation even in the production chains.
Sustainable packaging
The forum then opened a window on the topic of sustainable packaging. Tiziana Milizia, Novamont’s bioplastic development manager, presented the Mater-Bi: a compostable bioplasty, ideal for food packaging that is difficult to recycle. He explained that the films, the packaging coupled paper-bioplasty and compostable capsules today represent a concrete solution to reduce the impact of packaging waste.
Large retailers
Large retailers also made its voices heard. Giovanni D’Alessandro, director of Canale di Basko, told how the company is redesigning its value chain: local suppliers, low impact transport, alternative materials and fight against waste. He said that sustainability is a strategic lever, capable of generating value for companies, consumers and the environment.
ESG principles
At the Bergamo lounge, principles were discussed ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance), more and more central in business identity.
Irma Belardi, head of Ansaldo Energia, illustrated the voluntary reporting path undertaken in 2020. He underlined the positive impact that a company can generate both inside and along the supply chain. Belardi then reflected on the new regulations: the Omnibus decree provides for the postponement of the reporting obligation for some unlisted companies. However, this regulatory simplification could however reduce the commitment of SMEs in environmental sustainability.
Eco-design, long-use e re-use
Il Circular Value Forum He launched a clear message: the circular economy is not only a theoretical model, but a concrete and necessary transformation. And Genoa is strongly applying to be the protagonist.
«It was two intense days – STEFANIA MANO, Sustainability Manager of the Municipality of Genoa commented -,, In which we have collected a heritage of experiences and presented a range of solutions with which to respond to the concrete needs of urban centers and the people who live them every day, in the name of the three pillars at the base of the circular economy which, in the strategy identified by Genoa, are those of eco-design, long-per skewer and re-US “.
