How can companies succeed through the circular economy? Above all, by working together. Under the motto “Circular Valley – Succeeding together”, the Circular Valley Foundation will once again bring together leading figures from business, politics and society at the Circular Valley Forum on 13 November 2026 at Wuppertal’s Historic Town Hall. The focus will be on how companies, industries, regions and countries can develop and implement concrete solutions for the Circular Economy through collaboration.

A special guest at this year’s forum will be Jessika Roswall, EU Commissioner for Environment, Water Resilience and a Competitive Circular Economy. She made clear how important the circular economy is to her in a speech at the European Policy Centre last year: “Moving from a linear, wasteful economy to a circular, sustainable one is a political priority for the EU – and personally for me,” she said. “Today we also need to place the conversation in a much wider context – our security, our resilience, and our competitiveness.”

The Circular Valley Forum will explore how this political priority can translate into concrete cooperation and economic value creation. After all, the circular economy cannot be achieved by individual players acting alone. Products, materials and raw materials move along complex value chains – and it is precisely here that the key opportunities for closing loops arise.

Collaboration instead of going it alone

The forum will therefore focus on successful collaborations. Discussions and panel sessions will bring together representatives from different companies and industries. How do companies work with suppliers, customers, recycling companies and other partners? How do these partnerships give rise to new business models and solutions? And how can cooperation work across industry and national borders?

The forum will showcase the full breadth of industry. Different sectors and value chains will demonstrate that collaboration can take many different forms – from cooperation between companies and their suppliers to new partnerships between industry and the recycling sector, as well as cross-border collaboration.

“Circularity can only succeed if we think and act beyond the boundaries of individual companies, industries and countries. That is precisely what Circular Valley stands for: bringing people and organizations together to develop solutions and turn them into concrete projects,” says Dr. Carsten Gerhardt, Chairman of the Circular Valley Foundation.

Business, politics and society in dialogue

Alongside business, the Circular Valley Forum will also bring together perspectives from politics and civil society. Representatives from state and local government will contribute their views on the political framework conditions. Social and international perspectives will also be part of the programme, including contributions from Bishop of Essen Dr. Franz-Josef Overbeck and Yoshitaka Tsunoda, Consul General of Japan.
The forum thus takes a broad view of collaboration that goes beyond the business community. “Succeeding together” also means bringing together different forces within society: business and politics, companies and civil society, regional players and international partners.

With Jessika Roswall, the European dimension will also be firmly in focus. The EU Commissioner has been responsible for Environment, Water Resilience and a Competitive Circular Economy since December 2024. Her participation underlines the growing importance of the Circular Economy for Europe’s competitiveness and resilience.

The Circular Valley Forum has thus developed into a key meeting place for the international Circular Economy community. Last year, more than 1,200 leading figures from business, politics, science and society gathered at Wuppertal’s Historic Town Hall. In 2026, too, the forum will provide a platform for exchange, new partnerships and concrete ideas.