EIT RawMaterials at the European Mineral Resources Conference – EUMICON 2018
26 September 2018 - 28 September 2018
Automated cars, SMART technology, Internet of Things – the technological revolution will bring about a whole new range of products and innovative services in the coming decades. These developments will also have a significant impact on the added value of the extractive industry and its downstream branches. That is why the European raw materials initiative, EUMICON, in partnership with the Federal Ministry of Sustainability and Tourism of the Republic of Austria, is organizing an international raw materials conference in Vienna in autumn 2018, within the scope of the Austrian EU Council Presidency.
The political conditions will also act as a significant driver – or indeed a brakeman. Access to raw materials, circular economy, or robust and fair trade with other regions of the world – all of these factors will also shape the future of the European extractive industry and its value added. We would like to help shape this future a little.
Stakeholder Dialogue
Against the backdrop of rapid and „disruptive” technological change, transforming value-creation chains and challenges in securing know-how, European and cross-industry solidarity is needed.
In preparation for the EUMICON Conference in the framework of the EU Council Presidency, a stakeholder initiative will, therefore, be started that attempts to define concrete answers and innovative solutions to strengthen resource-based value-creation chains „Made in Europe”:
- Which technologies and processes will shape our future?
- How do we secure the know-how for these future technologies?
- What role will mineral resources and intelligent materials play?
- What political, economic and scientific conditions do we need to create?
As part of four high-level workshops in Brussels, Stuttgart, Sofia and Vienna, relevant stakeholders from politics, science, the industry and civil society are invited to discuss innovative solutions using the design thinking method.
Topics
- Politics & Resources
- Human & Technology
- Materials & Industry
- Smart Future & Sustainability
EIT RawMaterials Community at the EUMICON 2018
Metals, minerals and materials are critically important for implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and for achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. To achieve sustainable raw materials supply, mining must be strengthened in Europe, and increased supply from secondary sources must be secured through innovations in recycling. Sustainable supply and consumption of raw materials are important for the move towards a Circular Economy. From a raw materials value chain perspective, three objectives are key in a circular economy: bringing materials into the loop in a sustainable way, keeping materials in the loop for as long as possible, and minimizing waste.
Dr Karen Hanghøj, CEO at EIT RawMaterials, and Peter Moser, Montanuniversitaet Leoben, EIT RawMaterials Steering Committee Chair Innovation Hub (CLC) East, will give presentations at the EUMICON 2018 to strengthen the view towards the importance of Raw Materials for the future of Europe.
The conference is a part of the Austrian Presidency during which the future R&D priorities for the period 2020-2030 will be decided. EIT RawMaterials partners are invited to join the EUMICON 2018 to ensure a high presence of the Innovation Community.