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Newsboard
Overview of networking and funding opportunities
We often hear that businesses and organizations active in the e-waste, electronics circularity, and related sectors struggle to find the right networking and funding opportunities. To cater to this need, we have created a newsboard, where entrepreneurs, investors, policymakers, academics, and experts can find relevant events and opportunities.
Upcoming networking opportunities
World Circular Economy Forum 2026
🗣️ Circular economy: Transition for people and prosperity
📅 15-18 September 2026
📍Gandhinagar, India + Online
🔗 Website
WEEE Forum's International Conference 2026
🗣️ Two‑day conference on the future of extended producer responsibility in an evolving European policy landscape
📅 17-18 September 2026
📍Dublin, Ireland
🔗 Website
Annual conferences
Chemicals Management for Electronics Conference
🗣️ Regulatory updates and hot topics in electronics
📅 Varies each year
📍Brussels, Belgium + Online
🔗 Website
Circular Valley Convention
🗣️ Innovative business models for the circular economy
📅 Varies each year
📍Düsseldorf, Germany
🔗 Website
World Circular Economy Forum
International Electronics Reuse & Recycling Congress
IFAT Saudi Arabia
🗣️ Environmental technologies in the areas of water, recycling, and circularity
📅 January each year
📍Riad, Saudi Arabia
🔗 Website
ChangeNOW
European Circular Economy Stakeholder Platform's Annual Conference
IFAT Delhi
🗣️ Environmental technologies in the areas of water, recycling, and circularity
📅 April each year
📍Delhi, India
🔗 Website
LOOP Forum
Rethinking Materials Summit
Bavarian Battery Congress
IFAT Eurasia
🗣️ Environmental technologies in the areas of water, recycling, and circularity
📅 May each year
📍Istanbul, Turkey
🔗 Website
IFAT Munich
🗣️ Environmental technologies in the areas of water, recycling, and circularity
📅 May each year
📍Munich, Germany
🔗 Website
E-Waste World Expo & Conference
🗣️ 4 Tracks: E-Waste World, Battery Recycling, Metal Recycling, ITAD & Circular Electronics
📅 June each year
📍Frankfurt, Germany
🔗 Website
IFAT Brazil
🗣️ Environmental technologies in the areas of water, recycling, and circularity
📅 June each year
📍Sao Paulo, Brazil
🔗 Website
The Battery Show
Zero Waste Forum
🗣️ Leaders and initiatives shaping the zero waste movement
📅 June each year
📍Istanbul, Turkey
🔗 Website
IFAT Africa
🗣️ Environmental technologies in the areas of water, recycling, and circularity
📅 July each year
📍Johannesburg, South Africa
🔗 Website
IFAT India
🗣️ Environmental technologies in the areas of water, recycling, and circularity
📅 September each year
📍Mumbai, India
🔗 Website
Critical Minerals Expo North America
🗣️ 3 Tracks: Critical Minerals, Battery Recycling, E-Waste World
📅 October each year
📍Atlanta, USA
🔗 Website
Electronica
Pollutec Lyon
🗣️ Innovative solutions to accelerate the ecological transition
📅 October each year
📍Lyon, France
🔗 Website
Ecomondo
Future Battery Forum
International Conference of the Global Framework on Chemicals
Annual events
Climate Weeks
🗣️ Accelerating global and local climate action
📍Minneapolis — early February
📍Colorado — late March to early April
📍San Francisco — late April
📍Austin — late April
📍Washington DC — late April
📍Boston — early May
📍Sacramento — early May
📍Zurich — early May
📍Toronto — early June
📍Cincinnati — mid-June
📍London — late June
📍Pacific Northwest (Seattle, Vancouver, Portland) — July
📍New York City — late September
📍San Diego — early October
📍Mexico City — October
📍Munich — late October
📍Houston — mid-September
📍Medellin — late September to early October
United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP)
🗣️ Bringing governments together, while also mobilizing the private sector, civil society, industry and individuals to tackle the climate crisis
📅 Mid- to late November each year
📍Varies each year
🔗 Website
Past networking opportunities
Global Electronics Association and ISC3 workshop
🗣️ For electronics industry stakeholders to identify sustainable and circular innovations
📅 24 April 2026
📍Brussels, Belgium
🔗 Website
Current & upcoming funding opportunities
Open Call from Austrian Innovation Ministry
🗣️ R&D funding for technologies promoting a competitive and sustainable economy
📅 Applications close 17 September 2026
📍Austria
🔗 Website
Open Call from Horizon Europe
🗣️ Funding for recovering critical raw materials from e-waste (through improved collection, sorting, and recycling)
📅 Applications close 17 September 2026
📍Europe
🔗 Website
Open Call from RIVCircular
🗣️ Funding for projects focusing on the development and/or deployment of technologies in the circular economy area
📅 Applications close 17 September 2026
📍Select European Regions
🔗 Website
Survey of Spanish companies interested in IPCEI CAM
🗣️ Public funding opportunity for actors in advanced materials, energy, mobility and electronics
📅 Applications close 18 September 2026
📍Spain
🔗 Website
Open Call from LIFE 2026
🗣️ Funding for projects promoting recovery of resources from waste and circular economy
📅 Applications close 22 September 2026
📍Europe
🔗 Website
Open Call from the Raw Material Partnership
🗣️ Funding for transnational research and innovation projects across the raw materials value chain
📅 Applications close 22 September 2026
📍Europe
🔗 Website
Survey of Italian companies interested in IPCEI CAM
🗣️ Public funding opportunity for actors in advanced materials, energy, mobility and electronics
📅 Applications close 22 September 2026
📍Italy
🔗 Website
Survey of Polish companies interested in IPCEI CAM
🗣️ Public funding opportunity for actors in advanced materials, energy, mobility and electronics
📅 Applications close 30 September 2026
📍Poland
🔗 Website
Open Call from the EIT Regional Innovation Scheme for Raw Materials Value Chain
🗣️ Funding for projects focused on exploration, sustainable mining, processing, circularity, recycling or substitution that develop new technologies, products, services or business models in the raw materials value chain
📅 First cut-off on 24 June 2026 and second cut-off on 16 October 2026
📍EU
🔗 Website
Open Call from RI.CIRCO.LO
🗣️ Funding for Lombardy-based SMEs working on electronics and WEEE (including solar panels), batteries and accumulators, and the recovery of phosphorus and other CRMs
📅 Applications open from 6 October to 5 November 2026
📍Lombardy Region
🔗 Website
Joint Call from ORMAT2026
🗣️ Funding for businesses in the batteries and metal recycling value chain
📅 Applications close 31 December 2026
📍France
🔗 Website
Joint Call from Nordic Innovation for Preparatory Projects for the Raw Materials Partnership
🗣️ Funding for projects that facilitate collaboration, support consortium-building, and proposal preparation for the EU co-funded RAMP and similar calls
📅 Applications close latest by 14 June 2028
📍Nordics
🔗 Website
Second Open Call of the European Circular Innovation Valley
🗣️ Funding to scale sustainable solutions for circular economy across Europe
📅 Applications not yet open
📍Select European Regions
🔗 Website
Past funding opportunities
Net Zero Challenge 2026
🗣️ Funding for circular economy & waste management projects in Emerging Asia
📅 Applications close 31 August 2026
📍Vietnam & Asia
🔗 Website
Survey of Finnish companies interested in IPCEI CAM
🗣️ Public funding opportunity for actors in advanced materials, energy, mobility and electronics
📅 Applications closed 16 August 2026
📍Finland
🔗 Website
Open Call from the Advanced Materials for a Sustainable European Future (MAT4EU) Project for Advanced Materials Innovation
🗣️ Funding for SME projects on: (1) product innovations supporting European autonomy; and (2) mastering green and digital transformation
📅 Applications closed 6 July 2026
📍EU
🔗 Website
Survey of Austrian companies interested in IPCEI CAM
🗣️ Public funding opportunity for actors in advanced materials, energy, mobility and electronics
📅 Applications closed 13 July 2026
📍Austria
🔗 Website
Survey of Belgian companies interested in IPCEI CAM
🗣️ Public funding opportunity for actors in advanced materials, energy, mobility and electronics
📅 Applications closed 15 June 2026
📍Belgium
🔗 Website
Survey of Slovenian companies interested in IPCEI CAM
🗣️ Public funding opportunity for actors in advanced materials, energy, mobility and electronics
📅 Applications closed 15 May 2026
📍Slovenia
🔗 Website
ISC3 Innovation Challenge 2026: Sustainable Chemistry & Electronics
First Open Call of the European Circular Innovation Valley
🗣️ Funding to scale sustainable solutions for circular economy across Europe
📅 Applications closed 16 March 2026
📍Select European Regions
🔗 Website
The Clean Fight New York
🗣️ Funding to help international solutions for the built environment scale in New York
📅 Applications closed 30 March 2026
📍New York City, USA
🔗 Website
Support & funding opportunities for startup founders
Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy
🗣️ Non-dilutive funding for clean energy technologies
📅 Multiple application cycles
📍USA
🔗 Website
Breakthrough Energy Fellows
🗣️ Non-dilutive funding from $50,000 to $500,000 for early-stage climate innovators
📅 Multiple application cycles
📍USA
🔗 Website
DBU Green Start-up program
🗣️ Provides up to €125,000 as a non-repayable grant to founders to develop environmentally friendly, innovative and economically viable business models
📅 Multiple application cycles
📍Germany
🔗 Website
DOE Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer programme
🗣️ Provides up to $1.6 million in funding for climate tech startups across Phase I and II
📅 Multiple application cycles
📍USA
🔗 Website
Echoing Green Fellowship
🗣️ Impact fellowship with capacity building, capital, and community
📅 Multiple application cycles
📍Global
🔗 Website
Elemental Impact
🗣️ Non-profit climate investor backing companies from pre-seed to Series C
📅 Multiple application cycles
📍Global
🔗 Website
European Innovation Council Accelerator
🗣️ Accelerator for tech startups & SMEs developing (with grants of up to €2.5 million and equity investments that can reach €10 million)
📅 Multiple application cycles
📍Europe
🔗 Website
Eurostars
🗣️ Program for tech SMEs collaborating with international partners
📅 Multiple application cycles
📍Europe
🔗 Website
Green Future Fellowship
🗣️ Provides up to £3 million in funding to green tech founders in the UK
📅 Multiple application cycles
📍UK
🔗 Website
Horizon Europe
🗣️ €93.5 billion in funding supporting breakthrough technologies and sustainability in Europe
📅 Multiple application cycles
📍Europe
🔗 Website
European Union Innovation Fund
🗣️ Clean tech program (with individual grants ranging from tens of millions to over a billion euros)
📅 Multiple application cycles
📍Europe
🔗 Website
New South Wales Clean Technology Innovation Grant
🗣️ Provide up to AUD$ 5 million for Australian businesses piloting lab-proven clean technologies
📅 Multiple application cycles
📍Australia
🔗 Website
NSF America's Seed Fund
🗣️ Provides up to $305,000 for climate tech startups for Phase I
📅 Multiple application cycles
📍USA
🔗 Website
Third Derivative & New Energy Nexus's Global Climate Tech Accelerator
🗣️ Connecting hard tech startups to investors and corporate partners
📅 Multiple application cycles
📍Global
🔗 Website
Support & funding opportunities for female founders
Women TechEU
🗣️ €75k grants in non-dilutive finance for women leading deep tech startup companies in Europe
📅 Multiple application cycles (until 14 June 2027)
📍Europe
🔗 Website
SCALE'HER Project
🗣️ Strengthening women-led start-ups in strategic digital and deep tech markets across Europe
📅 Ongoing project running until 31 December 2027
📍Europe
🔗 Website
HERFUND Project
🗣️ Support for women-led startups and companies in Europe
📅 Project ended on 28 February 2026, but resources are still accessible
📍Europe
🔗 Website
Cartier Women’s Initiative
🗣️ Annual international entrepreneurship program that aims to drive change by empowering women impact entrepreneurs
📅 Awards & fellowships have different deadlines
📍Global
🔗 Website
Would you like to engage with The E-Waste Column in person? You will find details on the events we are attending and speaking at here. If you would like to set up a time to meet with us in person at one of the future events we will be attending (in order to discuss synergies, a potential collaboration, or opportunities to sponsor and co-fund our work), we welcome you to get in touch.
