GTI Conference: Making the circular economy a reality on islands. Palermo, 15/10/2019.

Greening the Islands conferences to focus on making circular economy and sustainable tourism a reality on islands.

Palermo this year will host the 6th international conference and the 4th Greening the Islands national conference under the title “Making the circular economy and sustainable tourism a reality on islands: business models and financing opportunities”, organized in collaboration with CPMR (Conference Peripheral Maritime Regions) Islands Commission, on October 15th.

The international event will open with the presentation of the first report of the Greening the Islands Observatory, providing an updated analysis on the status of the circular economy and sustainable tourism on European islands featuring a deep-dive on the cases of Crete, the Italian Egadi archipelago and the German island of Helgoland. A debate will follow on the results of the study and opportunities for public and private financing with particular reference to the projects and initiatives identified on these islands.

The second part of the event will involve European institutions and industry associations in a discussion about National Energy and Climate Plans (NECPs) and the role of islands in these plans. The event in Palermo represents an important step in the multilateral islands dialogue with European institutions that was launched by the CPMR Islands Commission and Greening the Islands with the support of the Committee of the Regions in Brussels on June 18th. CPMR Islands Commission and Greening the Islands joined forces to call for closer collaboration as a key step towards promoting low-carbon solutions on European islands and for involvement of island governments and the private sector in designing and implementing NECPs.

This year’s Greening the Islands international conference is organized in the framework of the General Assembly of the CPMR that will see the participation of over 100 regional and island governments and will be followed, on October 16, by a CPMR seminar on the circular economy. Greening the Islands will take part in the CPMR seminar to which all participants in the GTI conference will be invited.

Ahead of these sessions, the 4th Greening the Islands National Conference will offer an update on the Italian situation. It will review all the incentive tools and tenders made available by the government, starting with the Minor Islands Decree of the Ministry of Economic Development (feed-in tariff for renewables on non-interconnected islands) and calls for innovative pilot projects, and funds from the Ministry of the Environment for energy efficiency and mobility projects. A debate will follow on their functioning, possible business models and investment opportunities for citizens, businesses and private funds and their impact on tourism and the economy of islands.

The 5th edition of the Greening the Islands Awards, chaired by an international jury, will also take place, spotlighting the most innovative projects carried out on islands in the fields of energy, mobility, water and waste.

For information about the agenda, sponsorship opportunities and registration, see here.

16 July 2019

Greening the islands