Dear members and friends of the EIT RawMaterials Innovation Community,

I want to share the key highlights of the major achievements of our organisation that also marked my first six months in the office and an exciting journey with the EIT RawMaterials team and partners.

This year, the Raw Materials Summit 2020 was held online. It was a great opportunity to connect over 600 participants, including our partners, start-ups and alumni, from Europe and across the globe to discuss the future of the raw materials industry driving the circular economy and supporting the EU Green Deal.

Another milestone for us was the successful foundation of the European Raw Materials Alliance (ERMA). The launch of the Alliance was supported and endorsed by 62 members of the European Parliament and by more than 200 industry partners and associations. EIT RawMaterials received the mandate to manage the Alliance, which contributes to a great success factor of our financial sustainability strategy. The next step is a kick-off meeting with partners and stakeholders of ERMA, which is planned for 23 November 2020.

We have also presented ERMA at a number of events, including meetings with stakeholders from the industry, the EU as well as from European associations, e.g. Eurometaux, European Aluminium and others. On 12 November, I will discuss the importance of the European Raw Materials Alliance in an online event at the European Parliament co-hosted by Members of the European Parliament, Anna-Michelle Asimakopoulou and Maria da Graça Carvalho, with interventions from other Members of the European Parliament following the ERMA presentation. These events demonstrate EIT RawMaterials’ increasing positive impact in and the support from the industrial and political fields.

Moreover, EIT RawMaterials was appointed to lead the Higher Education Initiative (HEI) for the EIT involving the EIT Community. This initiative will help to increase entrepreneurial and innovation capacity, as well as will improve higher education integration initiatives into local, regional, and European innovation ecosystems. EIT RawMaterials was granted EUR 2.3 million for the pre-pilot year of 2021, which proves the level of recognition on the EIT and the European Commission’s level.

As part of the EIT Crisis Response Initiative to help mitigate the social and economic impact of the unprecedented and challenging time, the EIT RawMaterials has been granted EUR 9.8 million to support more than 60 high-potential ventures as a part of the Booster Call in response to the COVID-19 crisis.

In addition, the General Assembly Fall 2020 held on 3 November welcomed new members of the EIT RawMaterials Community: Orion Engineered Carbons GmbH, Sandvik SRP AB, Swatch Group Research and Development, MEAB Chemie Technik GmbH, Occami B.V., Terranigma, amongst which our supported start-ups FLAXRES and ROSI joining as associate partners. I am looking forward to our cooperation driving innovation, education and entrepreneurship along the raw materials value chain.

To conclude, I would like to thank the EIT RawMaterials team, our partners’ community and stakeholders for your expertise and dedication that has led us to these key milestones and great achievements! I sincerely hope you and your loved ones are well and in good health and I am looking forward to seeing you soon!

Best regards,
Bernd Schäfer
CEO, Managing Director