The third ECOSYSTEX Conference took place from 29 September to 1 October in Gothenburg, Sweden, bringing together experts, innovators, and industry leaders to discuss the latest technologies and business models for textile circularity.

Over two days, the 160 participants engaged in plenary and interactive breakout sessions, fostering lively discussions, networking, and collaboration opportunities across the textile sustainability community.

The event was supported by six ECOSYSTEX member projects — PESCO-UP, SOLSTICE, tExtended, BioFibreLoop, WhiteCycle, and Hemp4Circularity — which showcased their project results and hosted dedicated interactive sessions.

Onur Celen and Mine Türkay Kankıran (KORTEKS) attended the event on behalf of SSbD4CheM, presenting the project to fellow participants and exploring opportunities for collaboration. Their participation helped strengthen connections within the ECOSYSTEX network and provided valuable insights for future project developments.

The Final Conference of the PRIORITY COST Action gathered more than 150 participants at the Technical University of Leoben – Montanuniversität for a four-day program dedicated to the scientific, technical, and societal challenges posed by micro- and nanoplastics in the environment.

From 2-5 September, the event brought together experts, researchers, policymakers, industry, and civil society to conclude PRIORITY’s collaborative achievements. Participants contributed through thematic sessions, oral and poster presentations, networking activities, and dedicated opportunities for early-career researchers. The conference offered a great opportunity to strengthen Europe-wide and international cooperation on plastics pollution.

One of the key moments of the conference was Session 4: Networking with External Projects, chaired by Stefania Federici and Aleksandra Tubic.
This session provided a platform for external projects addressing micro- and nanoplastics or related environmental challenges to showcase their objectives, methodologies, and achievements. By facilitating interactions across different initiatives, the session aimed to enhance collaboration, foster synergies, and amplify the collective impact of ongoing research across Europe and beyond. Representatives were encouraged to share their dissemination strategies, expand their professional networks, and explore new avenues for joint work in the growing field of micro- and nanoplastics research.

Our project coordinator, Milica Velimirovic (VITO) represented the project at the conference. She contributed to the scientific program wiht the general poster presentation of the project, highlighting its objectives and progress related to Safe-and-Sustainable-by-Design (SSbD) methodologies for chemicals and materials. Her participation helped raise awareness of the project’s approach, foster potential collaborations, and strengthen connections between the SSbD4CHeM project and the broader PRIORITY community.

One highlight of the event was the opportunity of meeting one of the members of our External Advisory Board, Melanie MacGregor, from the Flinders Universty!

On March 13, 2025, Wood K plus took part in the  KC Fachtagung [Conference on Materials] – Focus on Fiber Composites held in Linz, Austria. The event, organized by the Upper Austrian cross-sectional network of the industrial plastics sector (Business Upper Austria), brought together approximately 40 industry stakeholders to discuss the latest developments and applications of fiber-reinforced plastics.

This year’s conference explored a wide spectrum of materials and their forward-looking applications, ranging from mobility and construction to other sectors where fiber-reinforced composites are essential. Key topics included recyclability, design for recycling, and the integration of recycled and bio-based raw materials. Experts from both industry and research institutions presented new insights and visions aimed at driving sustainable and innovative use of fiber-reinforced composites in relevant sectors.

Our colleague Dr. Claudia Pretschuh from Wood K plus contributed to the conference with an oral presentation on “Developments in the Area of Fiber-Based Composites by Using Natural Fibers”. The presentation highlighted key developments from the automotive case study of the SSbD4CheM project, which specifically targets the development of composites reinforced with natural fibers, cellulose fibers, and wood particles for use in automotive interior applications, and focuses on the Safe and Sustainable by Design (SSbD) principles.

Dr. Pretschuh outlined the SSbD approach followed by the project, emphasizing several steps such as:

• Step 3 – Safety aspects: Addressing safety aspects related to the use phase, with a particular focus on volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions from automotive interior materials.
• Step 4 – Sustainability aspects: The sustainability dimension is taken into account through a life cycle assessment (LCA) approach, in collaboration with the University of Leiden, also partner in the project.

Additionally, foam injection molding was presented as a potential solution for creating ultra-lightweight thermoplastic compounds. 

The event provided an excellent platform for networking and exchanging perspectives. Following the presentation, Wood K plus engaged in discussions with Magna Powertrain regarding the potential of natural fiber-based composites. Magna expressed interest in further material testing, simulations, and results from ongoing LCA studies. Additionally, future discussions are planned with Borealis to explore material applications and LCA aspects further.

Participation in this conference underscores Wood K plus’s commitment to advancing sustainable material solutions in the automotive sector and beyond.