The team

Matthias is the President of RREUSE and the Managing director of Re-Use Austria, the Austrian NGO for social economy re-use enterprises and re-use- and repair networks and of VABÖ, the Austrian Federation of Municipal Environment & Waste Advisors. His main activity is to promote the implementation of regional re-use & repair networks with focus on social and solidarity economy, networking and lobbying for re-use, repair and other aspects relating to a sustainable lifestyle. Matthias has been a RREUSE Board member for over a decade and was unanimously elected President of RREUSE in 2020.

Antigone is the director of the Ecological Recycling Society, a national NGO in Greece, promoting waste prevention, re-use and recycling. She has over 20 years of experience in the field of sustainable waste management at the local, national and international levels, and how this links to job creation. Antigone has been a board member of RREUSE since 2004 and was RREUSE President from 2013 till 2020. Antigone is now Honorary President and acting Vice-President of RREUSE.

Carmen is AERESS technical director.  AERESS is the Spanish network for social and solidarity economy enterprises active in re-use and recycling. Their activities aim at social transformation and work integration of people at risk of social exclusion.

Her background includes law, conflict resolution, gender studies and collaborative law.

In 2016, Ivan won the “Pride of Croatia” award due to his help in the field of employing people with disabilities.

Ivan’s hobbies include music (Radiohead), basketball and traveling.

Founded in 1994 by secondhand shops, BKN’s mission is to support its members in representing their interests and facilitating the exchange of knowledge and information.

To help their members professionalise, BKN created a quality label called ‘100%Kringloop’. This quality label or certificate is important when interacting with governments and administrations, in particular when dealing with public tenders.

Since 2014, Nesrine joined the nonprofit sector working for Les Ateliers du Bocage, Adie and Envie. Nesrine is currently New projects Director for Fédération Envie, a French umbrella organisation created in 1984 and gathering 50 members dedicated to social reintegration through circular economy activities.

Jean-Marc is the Director of RESSOURCES, the Belgian Federation of Social and Circular Enterprises in the sector of re-use of goods and materials. A sociologist by training, Jean-Marc also completed a master’s degree in management. Before joining RESSOURCES in early 2019, he worked for 15 years in the international solidarity sector. After 5 years working at Oxfam-World Shops, he then took up various positions with achACT/clean Clothes Campaign, a platform of organisations aiming to respect the rights of workers in the globalised clothing industry.

Harri was born in 1971 in the legendary town of Nokia. He studied Political Science at Jyväskylä University and then pursued a Master’s degree in leadership and management studies at Helsinki University of Technology. Following this, Harri spent a few years conducting academic research in regional economics and development.

One of Harri’s interesting personal highlights was during the 90’s: he was teaching English in Bratislava (Slovakia) and Finnish for Asylum seekers in Lappland, Finland.

For the last 20+ years, Harri has been working in the field of re-use, recycling, employment, social enterprise and other scrap/secondary material businesses.

Thomas is the managing director of the umbrella organization FairWertung e.V., the German network of social economy reuse companies and used textile collectors.

FairWertung wants to bring more transparency to the collection, recovery and recycling of used textiles. FAirWertung sees itself as a driver of a textile circular economy and a more sustainable textile economy.

Thomas main activity is the promotion of textile clothing donations, local reuse cycles and the representation of the interests of non-profit clothing collectors.

Eva Verraes likes to put things into motion. As director of HERW!N, she has been representing, strengthening and connecting the 100 members in the collective of social circular entrepreneurs for more than 13 years.

Because what if entrepreneurs can change the world? What if together we can tilt towards a socially just society that’s mindful of the planet’s limits? From making, using and discarding to sharing, reusing and processing goods. A circular economy with one common vision: creating jobs for people who are struggling. That is our mission, reclaiming work, materials and encounters.

Eve is the Chief Executive of Emmaus Europe, a network of social organisations that uses reuse activities as a revenue source to support its action to fight homelessness and poverty. Founded in France in 1949, Emmaus is now present in 20 countries.

Eve is a big fan of Europe and will never forget the 2 years she spent in Lithuania just before they joined the European Union. She also found many ways to act for a more ecological and social society by working in the French parliament and in international NGOs as well as in local municipalities.