October 30, 2025 – At the Berlin Global Dialogue 2025, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen emphasized the pivotal role of the waste and recycling industry in securing Europe’s strategic independence. In her speech, she announced the new European initiative RESourceEU, designed to safeguard the supply of critical raw materials while promoting a sustainable circular economy across the European Union.
Von der Leyen underlined that the circular economy extends far beyond ecological goals – it has become a geopolitical necessity. By utilizing secondary raw materials, the EU aims to reduce dependence on third countries and foster new industrial value creation within Europe. “Europe cannot continue as before. We learned this lesson the hard way with energy. We will not make the same mistake with critical raw materials,” she warned.
Amid tightening Chinese export controls on rare earths and battery materials, von der Leyen highlighted that the EU must increasingly rely on recycling, reuse, and sustainable resource management. The goal of RESourceEU is to establish an almost closed European raw material system by 2030. This includes investments in research, new international partnerships, and the creation of strategic raw material reserves. Materials such as lithium, cobalt, and nickel are expected to circulate more strongly within European value chains in the future.
With this strategy, the European Union aims not only to keep resources in circulation but also to create new jobs and strengthen its economic and security sovereignty. “Europe must leverage its geo-economic weight – to protect its interests and enhance its competitiveness,” von der Leyen concluded.
About EKO-PUNKT
As a dual system focused on resource conservation and circular economy solutions, EKO-PUNKT helps companies keep valuable materials in circulation. Through innovative recyclate supply solutions, EKO-PUNKT enables the reintegration of high-quality secondary raw materials into new production processes – directly contributing to Europe’s resource security.
In addition, under its circular contracting framework, EKO-PUNKT offers tailored models that ensure the economic and legal reliability of recycling processes – from packaging licensing to material recovery. In doing so, EKO-PUNKT builds practical bridges between regulatory requirements and the sustainability goals of industry.
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Author
EKO-PUNKT GmbH & Co. KG
Vanessa Herzog
Waltherstr. 49-51
51069 Köln
T +49 221 964897-62
M +49 160 6184350
vanessa.herzog@eko-punkt.de
Source: www.euwid-recycling.de Dorothee Palla, EUWID Recycling & Waste Management
Image credit: KI-generiert mit DALL·E über ChatGPT (OpenAI)
