IFAT Munich 2026

In our IFAT Munich 2026 series, we bring you four conversations recorded live at the world’s largest trade fair for environmental technologies. Over 3,300 exhibitors and more than 142,000 visitors came to Munich to discuss water, waste, and raw materials management. We picked four highlights that connect the circular economy to industrial policy, economic competitiveness, startups, and technology.

The series starts with a question that runs through all four episodes: how can Europe secure its access to critical raw materials while building a competitive circular economy? From EU regulation and supply chain resilience, to the economic case for circularity in Germany, to the startups and technologies working on it.

What you’ll hear across the series: 

• Circular Sovereignty Forum: Can Europe secure the critical raw materials it needs without stepping back from global trade? With Susanne Kadner, Co-Founder of Circular Republic and Director at UnternehmerTUM; João Merico from the Ellen MacArthur Foundation; and Roland Gauß from EIT RawMaterials.
• Where Circularity Pays Off: The BDI and BCG presented their study “Growth, Competitiveness and Resilience,” which lays out the economic case for circularity at the national level. With Claas Oehlmann, Managing Director of the BDI Circular Economy Initiative; Alexander Meyer zum Felde, Partner and Global Lead Circular Economy at BCG; and Nadine Braun, Head of Circularity and Environment at E.ON.
• Circular Economy Startup Landscape 2026: Circular Republic published its annual startup landscape report. What does the data say about where circular economy startups in Europe are heading, and where is the money going? With Leonhard Teichert, Programme Lead at Circular Republic, and Bruno Rudnik, Managing Partner at SEF Ventures.
• Best Startups in Critical Raw Materials and Automated Disassembly: The Circular Technology Award, launched by Circular Republic and Knorr-Bremse together with the Heinz Hermann Thiele Family Foundation, recognized four startups: R3 Robotics on AI-powered robotic disassembly of EV batteries, Hiro Robotics on automated disassembly of electronic waste, HyProMag on rare earth magnet recycling, and DEScycle on modular critical raw materials recovery. With Matthias Ballweg, Co-Founder of Circular Republic, and Oliver Klug, Chief Strategy and Transformation Officer at Knorr-Bremse, plus the four winning teams.