Date: Monday 21 June

Time: 12:00 UK time (BST)

Location: Event hosted online

Overview

Join Professor Fiona Charnley (CE-Hub Co-Director) and Katie Cooke (CE-Hub Project Manager) in a short lunchtime webinar to find out more about the UKRI CE-Hub Funding Call for Feasibility Studies. there will be a short presentation followed by an opportunity to have your questions answered.

The CE-Hub is inviting applications to our first round of Feasibility Studies to accelerate Circular Economy research, innovation and implementation with a specific focus on the five resource flows connected with the UKRI funded National Circular Economy Centres. Research into specific enablers or barriers that are common to multiple centres, resource flows and / or sectors are also encouraged and could include, but are not limited to:

Metrics and Indicators,
Product and Service Design,
Business Models including citizen adoption,
Digital Technology,
Procurement,
Finance,
Skills and the future of work.

The total funding available for this call is £200,000 and we want to fund as many high-quality applications as possible. Feasibility Studies will be funded to a maximum of £50,000 at full Economic Cost (fEC). Funding will be awarded at 80% fEC (total project value cannot exceed £50,000) Projects can be between 6 and 12 months in length and must be completed before the end of November 2022. Applications where a portion of the project costs are met by industry funding are also welcomed.  

As the CE-Hub is funded by UKRI, our focus is on fundamental ideas that have the potential to be developed into future funding applications or concepts that can be implemented to accelerate circular economy implementation. Therefore, proposals should address challenges at low Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs 1-3) and be aligned with at least one of the five Circular Economy Centres.

Background

The total material requirements for the UK economy is over 1bn tonnes p.a. dominated by construction minerals, biomass, fossil fuels and metal ores; approximately 15% higher than 2001. The UK also generates an estimated 200 million tonnes of waste p.a. 12% higher than 2010. Additionally, according to a recent study the production of goods and services are a significant contributor (45%) to carbon emissions. The proportion of resources that are recovered, re-used or recycled after a first use life has been estimated to be <10%, meaning their embodied value and materials are lost, whilst placing increasing demand and pressure on virgin materials and scarce resources.

The CE is a simple, yet compelling framework based on a set of clear principles that decouple resources from economic growth through innovation and entrepreneurship. Analysis has indicated that scaling up circularity provides a multi-billion economic opportunity, driving up resource productivity, driving down material costs, improving resource security and reducing negative externalities and their human and environmental costs.

Application Process

Awards will be made via a short written application, followed up by a pitch to a multidisciplinary panel including representatives from industry and UKRI. Successful applicants will be expected to participate in CE-Hub events and will be required to present project updates at the NICER Programme annual conferences. In addition, there is a requirement that presentations on the successful projects are made at a kickoff meeting to be held online. We expect our feasibility study teams to form a core part of the CE-Hub community.

Selection Criteria

The following criteria will be used by the review panel when assessing proposals:

Multidisciplinarity,
Involvement of Early Career Researchers,
Involvement of Industry and / or Government Stakeholders,
Commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion,
Demonstration of Circular Economy Principles across scales, disciplines and industrial sectors,
Potential for the development of future funding applications,
Potential to lead to strong dissemination materials,
Pathways to accelerate the impact of the research to ensure rapid transfer to industry, government and other end users.

CE-Hub Feasibility Study Webinar - Information for applicants