DBU Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt - Circular Economy Funding

Enriched Foundation · Found: 2026-03-11 13:08

DBU funds environmental technology, research and communication with focus on circular economy. Includes CirculAid initiative, mechanical plastics recycling, and open-topic grants for circular economy projects. Awards German Environmental Prize.

Source: https://www.dbu.de/themen/foerderinitiativen/circular-economy

Funding Details

Funder

DBU – Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt

Funding Goal

Advance the transition from a linear to a circular economy through innovative environmental technology, research, communication, and business model development — particularly for SMEs and research institutions in Germany.

Funding Amount

Not specified on the page. DBU applies its standard funding guidelines (Förderleitlinien).

How to Apply

Applications submitted via DBU's online application portal at dbu.de/foerderung. Applicants must follow the current DBU Förderleitlinien (funding guidelines), available as PDF on the DBU website.

Target Region

Germany (primary); some international project tracks exist separately

Contact

Dr. Maximilian Hempel (Head of Environmental Research): +49 541 9633-300 | Dr. Volker Berding (Circular Economy & Resources): +49 541 9633-310 | Dr. Melanie Kröger (Circular Economy & Resources): +49 541 9633-312 | Dr. Michael Schwake (Environmental Technology): +49 541 9633-212

Last Checked

2026-03-11 16:33

Application Checklist

Eligibility

• Applicant must be a small or medium-sized enterprise (KMU) or a research institution — NGOs and large corporates are not the primary target
• Cooperative projects between KMU and research institutions are explicitly preferred; involvement of additional partners (e.g., large companies) is possible
• For the CirculAid sub-call: applicant must operate in the healthcare sector (manufacturers, hospitals, clinics, care homes, medical training institutions)

Project Scope

• Project must address circular economy topics: resource efficiency, material cycles, R-strategies (reduce, reuse, recycle, etc.), or circular business models
• For the textile circular loops sub-call: project must target cross-company solutions for closing textile material cycles

Required Documents

• Application must comply with DBU's current Förderleitlinien (funding guidelines) — download required before submission
• Submit application through DBU's online application portal; review guidelines at dbu.de/foerderung before applying

Constraints

• International projects are handled through a separate track — the main circular economy initiative primarily targets German-based activities

Summary

The Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt (DBU), Germany's Federal Environmental Foundation, runs a dedicated Circular Economy funding focus area under the banner "#DBUcirconomy – Initiative for the Economy and Society of the Future." The program supports project grants and PhD scholarships aimed at accelerating the shift from linear "take, make, waste" industrial models toward circular, resource-efficient alternatives. The DBU recognizes the circular economy as one of the key levers for sustainable transformation, aligning with the EU Green New Deal and German coalition commitments. The project funding is primarily open to small and medium-sized enterprises (KMU) and research institutions. Cooperative projects between KMU and research institutions are explicitly encouraged, and participation of larger companies as additional partners is permitted. Within the #DBUcirconomy initiative, two specific sub-calls are active: one on cross-company solutions for textile circular loops (continued from 2022), and one called "CirculAid" targeting circular economy in the healthcare sector. Beyond these targeted calls, DBU funds open-topic circular economy projects under its general project funding guidelines, including areas like plastics recycling, resource efficiency, sustainable product design, and digital solutions for circular systems. A PhD scholarship program addresses circular economy questions from social, legal, economic, natural science, and technical disciplines. DBU also operates a Green Start-up funding track for environmental start-ups. The German Environmental Prize (Deutscher Umweltpreis), one of Europe's most prestigious environmental awards, is also administered by DBU — though it is a prize rather than a grant program.

Historical Context

The textile circular loops sub-initiative was originally launched and then continued from 2022. The #DBUcirconomy initiative is an ongoing multi-year program. DBU is one of Europe's largest environmental foundations and has funded over 10,000 projects since its founding in 1991.

Why it was added

Major German foundation directly funding circular economy and plastics recycling projects

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