Opening of “BRANTNER- Erdenreich”,
the largest composting plant in Austria

Statement by Minister Leonore Gewessler on the
2. BRANTNER INNOVATION CHALLENGE 2021

GFC-Global Fibre Congress / Dornbirn 2021
PLATFORM FOR INTERNATIONAL EXCHANGE OF EXPERIENCE

15 – 17 September 2021

The organizer of the annual Dornbirn-GFC (Global Fiber Congress) is the Austrian Fiber Institute based in Vienna. Visitors had the opportunity to choose between 96 lectures. Two virtual lecture halls formed the platform for the presentation of the lectures from industry and research.

Reinhard Backhausen in the section “Q&A and discussion” on Thursday, Sept. 16, 2021, minutes 10:30:38 – 10:59:33

Leadersnet.at/ÖAG

“We shouldn’t necessarily be thinking about
when and how we can live on Mars.”

(Quote Reinhard Backhausen)

At the Austrian-American Society’s “Super Tuesday,” representatives from Coca-Cola, Nespresso, Greiner, Reclay and Reinhard Backhausen, among others, discussed how the circular economy is changing our lives.

Marc Joainig, Christian Abl, Rainer Newald, Marianne Neumüller-Klapper, Christa Kummer, Reinhard Backhausen und Stefan Grafenhorst
© LEADERSNET/D.Mikkelsen

On September 14, the Austrian-American Society (ÖAG) once again hosted a “Super Tuesday”. The topic of the evening was “Circular Economy – How the circular economy is changing our lives”. On the panel, moderated by Christa Kummer, were Reclay Group Austria CEO Christian Abl, Textile Consultant Reinhard Backhausen, Greiner Global Head of Sustainability & Corporate Affairs Stefan Grafenhorst, Coca-Cola Hellenic Public Affairs & Communications Director Marc Joainig and Nespresso Austria Operations & Sustainability Director Marianne Neumüller-Klapper.

Panel discussion ÖAG / Circular Economy

How the circular economy is changing our lives

On Sept. 14, 2021, a panel discussion was held at the Austrian-American Society, which was also broadcast live on the Internet.

The concept of the circular economy is regarded as the economic model of the future. It supports companies and enterprises in preserving values, conserving resources and increasing profits at the same time. ÖAG invited experts from Coca-Cola, Greiner AG, Nespresso, Reclay and Reinhard Backhausen textile & circular consulting to the panel.

The panel discussion was made up by:

• Christian Abl, CEO Reclay Group Austria
• Reinhard Backhausen, Reinhard Backhausen textile & circular consulting
• Stefan Grafenhorst, Global Head of Sustainability & Corporate Affairs Greiner AG
• Marc Joainig, Public Affairs & Communications Director Coca-Cola Hellenic
• Marianne Neumüller-Klapper, MSc., MBA, Operations & Sustainability Director Nespresso Austria
• Moderation: Christa Kummer

Statements Reinhard Backhausen at the following minutes:

07:05 – 07:40 (Introduction by Christa Kummer)
10:40 – 13:34
40:40 – 44:35
53:10 – 55:00

Sustainability and circular economy
in the value chain of the fiber and textile industry
REINHARD BACKHAUSEN IN INTERVIEW

CIRCULAR ECONOMY IN THE FIBRE AND TEXTILE INDUSTRY

Reinhard Backhausen is a thought leader in the circular economy and advises renowned companies worldwide, and specialises in the textile industry. Syngroup Managing Director Walter Woitsch opens the conversation with him, with a simple case: A men’s cotton shirt weighs about 20 dag and we assume it costs 80 euros today. Currently, the price for 1 kg of cotton on the world market is about 80 cents. On the other hand, the price per kilo for the shirts in our example is 400 euros.

With such impressive value add, where do the greatest levers for the more careful use of resources lie? In logistics? Work in progress, as cotton and other primary materials for various processing steps have travelled around the world at least once. What role does technology play and does the processing industry have any real influence? What is the role of politics, trade and consumers? What are currently the big issues that can accelerate or slow down the path towards a circular economy?

Podcast Advent Calendar
of the Austrian Trade Association (ÖGV)
“24 days, 24 people, 24 stories”
December 2020

In conversation:

Reinhard Backhausen
Consultant & Management Consultant for Circular Economy and Textile Industry

“Reinhard Backhausen is a passionated entrepreneur with great enthusiasm, optimism and high innovative strength. He comes from a family of industrialists and managed the traditional BACKHAUSEN company for 30 years, a weaving mill for high-quality upholstery and curtain fabrics founded in 1849. This company employed over 200 people and exported to 40 countries around the world. Reinhard Backhausen was also president of the Austrian Textile, Clothing, Shoe and Leather Industry Association for many years and was also on the board of the European Textile and Clothing Industry Association EURATEX in Brussels. Since 2008, he has been intensively involved in the topic of CIRCULAR ECONOMY and was also a pioneer in this field with the company Backhausen with the philosophy “cradle-to-cradle”! Since 2013, he has been advising top management with his consulting company for the international textile industry and other industries, specializing in business development, marketing, strategy and the implementation of the circular economy. Reinhard Backhausen is a passionate family man, has been happily married to a Finnish woman for 35 years and has 2 grown-up children. He loves outdoor sports and has also enjoyed playing the piano since childhood.”

Statement by Minister Leonore Gewessler on the
1. BRANTNER INNOVATION CHALLENGE 2020

Broadcast by OKTO-TV
recorded at the Austrian Trade Association
June 2020

A conversation about climate change, the SDGs and the EU Green Deal – and what this means for companies. Moderation: Ursula Oberhollenzer, Managing Director blue cube & Vice President at ÖGV, Head of Sustainability Department, Guests: Helga Kromp-Kolb, meteorologist and climate researcher Reinhard Backhausen, expert for circular economy.