Urban Lunch Talk #48 - A Project Perspective: From Barriers to Opportunities in Scaling Urban Circular Solutions

How can collaboration between civil society and the public sector accelerate the scaling of circular solutions in cities?  

Across themes such as nature-based solutions, circular construction, and sustainable food systems, projects often face similar non-technological challenges: fragmented governance, weak coordination, misaligned institutional and cultural practices, and limited trust among stakeholders. These factors can slow the transition from promising pilots to wider impact. 

This Urban Lunch Talk explores insights from the three DUT projects CirCoCreation, NATURO, and SURFIT, highlighting common barriers, and also practical ways forward: co-creation, participatory platforms, inclusive governance, and stronger links between top-down policy and bottom-up community action can help align actors, systems, and levels of governance. 

Drawing on communicative, institutional, societal, and economic alignment dimensions, speakers will share project-based experiences, remaining challenges, and recommendations for public authorities. The session is relevant for practitioners, policymakers, and civil society actors working to scale circular solutions in complex urban contexts.