Remi Chauveau Notes
Young changemakers across Europe are transforming waste into tools of renewal—blending creativity, sustainability, and purpose to build a future where nothing is thrown away, and everything has value.
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🌍 Young Minds, Circular Futures: 5 Upcycling Projects Redefining Sustainability in Europe ♻️

27 June 2025


🎧 Soundtrack of the Shift: “Alright” by Supergrass

This song doesn’t just play—it propels. “Alright” pulses with the same spirit that drives these young upcyclers: bold, inventive, and unapologetically alive.

“We are young, we run green…”

And they do. From Irish farms to Estonian labs, from Spanish shores to Dutch workshops, these youth-led projects are running green—literally and figuratively. They’re not waiting for change; they’re making it, with joy, grit, and a touch of rebellion.

“Alright” becomes more than a soundtrack—it’s a mirror. A reminder that sustainability can be spirited, that transformation can dance, and that the future can feel as good as it looks.

Let it play as you read. Let it move you forward. Let it remind you: we’re not just surviving—we’re creating something better, together. 🌱

🎶 🌱 🚀 ♻️ 🧵 🛠️ 🌊 💚 🔊 Alright by Supergrass



Across Europe, a new generation is not waiting for permission.

They are rolling up sleeves, gathering scraps, and building futures from what others leave behind.

These are not just upcycling projects—they are acts of imagination, resistance, and care.

From Irish pastures to Baltic labs, from Mediterranean harbors to Dutch workshops, young changemakers are proving that sustainability isn’t a trend—it’s a craft.

🌿 1. Alice Murphy – Milking It (Ireland)

In Enniscorthy, Alice Murphy saw the overlooked: single-use milk filters piling up across Ireland’s 17,000 dairy farms. She turned them into warmth—calf blankets, insulation, and hope. Add in salvaged tents from music festivals, and you get a design that stitches together agriculture, culture, and circularity. Her project, Milking It, earned her the European Young Upcycler Award through the EU’s Upcyclart initiative.

🔗 Read more about Alice’s project

👚 2. Rediscover Fashion – Youth Circular Design Labs (Ireland)

In a former boiler house in Ballymun, Dublin, the Rediscovery Centre hums with new life. Here, young people gather to transform textile waste into fashion that speaks—of identity, resistance, and renewal. These labs are more than workshops; they are spaces where discarded fabric becomes statement, and where circular design becomes second nature.

🔗 Visit Rediscover Fashion

🧫 3. Gelatex – Eco Textile Innovators (Estonia)

In Estonia, a team of young scientists looked at gelatin waste—a byproduct of the meat industry—and saw possibility. Gelatex is their answer: a biodegradable, vegan leather that’s soft, strong, and scalable. It’s not just a material—it’s a manifesto for a future where fashion doesn’t cost the Earth.

🔗 Discover Gelatex Technologies

🐬 4. Fishnet Fashion – Ocean Rescue (Spain)

Off Spain’s coast, ghost nets once drifted silently, endangering marine life. Now, thanks to Ecoalf’s youth-led initiative, they’re pulled from the sea and reborn as sunglasses and accessories. Each piece carries the salt of the ocean and the soul of a second chance.

🔗 Visit Ecoalf’s official website

👷‍♀️ 5. UPP! – UpCycling Plastic (Netherlands)

In the Netherlands, UPP! is building circular plastic factories that turn low-value plastic waste into durable, 100% recyclable products—planks, poles, and outdoor furniture. Their mission is local, scalable, and deeply human: empower communities to close the loop and reclaim what was once considered worthless.

🔗 Explore UPP! UpCycling Plastic

These aren’t just projects. They’re proof. That creativity can be regenerative. That youth can lead. That waste can be rewritten.

#CircularCreativity ♻️ #YouthForThePlanet 🌍 #UpcycleRevolution 🔄 #WasteNotWonder 💡 #FutureMakers 🌱

Brainy's Green Nook

Circular by Nature, Radical by Design
Here’s a subtle insight woven beneath the surface of this article: Each of the five projects doesn’t just upcycle materials—they upcycle systems. Whether it’s festival waste, ocean debris, or overlooked farm equipment, these young innovators aren’t simply solving environmental problems—they're gently redesigning how we relate to value, waste, and community. Unspoken but deeply present is a shared ethic: care over consumption, creativity over convenience. That mindset shift—quiet, cultural, and generational—is the true revolution.

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