The Environmental Fund supports environmental policies in pursuit of sustainable development goals, national and international commitments, and in particular those related to climate change, water resources, waste, nature conservation, biodiversity and transition to the circular economy.

In 2017, the fund opened a € 1 million call for the circular economy, supporting 20 feasibility plans. A call focused on the implementation of new ideas is expected in 2018.

The fund finances entities, activities or projects that fulfill the following objectives:

The Green Growth Coalition (GGC), created in 2014, represents a voluntary commitment (Green Growth Commitment) by private, public, and civil society stakeholders to move towards a green growth economy in Portugal.

The GGC working groups started their activities in 2016, focusing on sectors or themes, which are central for circular economy, decarbonisation and territory value. They include: industry, cities and regions, mobility, energy and climate, waste, agriculture and forestry and public procurement.

SIFIDE is an instrument to support R&D and innovation development by SMEs. It is an incentive scheme designed to increase business competitiveness through corporate tax breaks on R&D expenditure. In 2016, the government introduced an additional bonus to this tax break if the R&D project includes an eco-design approach.

Workshops organised by the Portuguese Ministry of Environment as part of its Eco.nomia circular economy initiative. They serve as a platform to raise awareness about the transition towards a circular economy, its implications in economic development and macro objectives, such as climate change. The themed workshops are tailored to the audience (e.g. finance sector, SMEs, agricultural sector, etc.) and open to the public free of charge.

The programme is a collaboration between Vinnova, Sweden's innovation agency, and the transportation industry, and includes resource-efficient production as one of the five focus areas. The proposals must relate to the production of vehicles, drivelines and vehicle components. It covers new products and production systems as well as increased flexibility as goals.

The overall budget of the programme is SEK 10 million (~€ 1 million) for 2017-2019, and a minimum of 50 % co-financing by private partners is required.

The Circular Economy Programme provides support to innovation and investigations related to Sweden's transition to a circular economy. The main priority is given to industrial symbiosis projects.

The overall budget of the programme is 10 million SEK (~€ 1 million) for the period 2017-2019, and a minimum of 50 % cofinancing by private partners is required.

The Swedish Energy Agency operates a funding programme for energy (and resource) efficiency focused on the pulp and paper industry. It supports projects in the following four main areas:

• Process development
• Efficient use of raw materials and byproducts
• Synergy between processes/production steps
• Organisation for higher efficiency

The programme runs from 2015 to 2019 with the total allocation of SEK 100 million (~€ 10 million).

The Green Jobs Programme fosters and improves green employment. It supports projects which address two thematic areas:

Support for ecodesign projects aims to encourage product and service designs with a lower environmental impact throughout their life cycle: more durable and easier to maintain, repair, upgrade and remanufacture.

Projects aimed at the redesign of existing products or services, the design of new products or services, as well as innovation in the business model are eligible for financing.

Budget: € 120 000 a year (2018 - last call)

Funding: 60 %; up to € 20 000 per project

Available in the Basque country

The Basque Clean Technologies List is a fiscal instrument to promote sustainable development in SMEs and facilitate the application of Basque environmental policy, through technology transfer and implementation of equipment with better  environmental performance.
Innovative clean technologies are included in a periodic Clean Tech List, providing tax deductions for investing in equipment on the list.

Budget: 10 MM € / year.