Province of South Holland brings together an innovators network to accelerate the circular transition.
Strong turnout at acceleration event
On October 28, 2025, over 90 parties from the Innovators Network Natural Residual Flows gathered at the Provincial House in The Hague. Under the motto ‘from natural residual flows to valuable raw materials: continuing together!’ entrepreneurs, governments, knowledge institutions, and social organizations reflected on 5 years of cooperation and looked ahead to the next phase in the circular transition.
Many valuable residual flows currently still end up on the compost heap or are incinerated. This must change on the way to a circular economy by 2050. To accelerate innovation, the Province of South Holland initiated the Innovators Network Natural Residual Flows in 2020.
A growing group of highly committed entrepreneurs, civil servants, and researchers have been working together for 5 years. They consider natural residual flows from public areas as new raw materials. Breakthrough projects around roadside mowing and dredging have made significant progress in chain cooperation, procurement and tendering, ecological roadside management, and tackling pollution.
New step: signing of the GreenHub South Holland implementation agenda
During the event, the implementation agenda of the GreenHub South Holland was ceremoniously signed by the aldermen of Bodegraven-Reeuwijk, Nieuwkoop, and Lansingerland, the Water Board of Schieland and the Krimpenerwaard, the Province of South Holland (Execution Domain), and various entrepreneurs.
The GreenHub is a concrete step towards valorizing roadside mowing and other green waste into useful building materials and soil products.
Meindert Stolk, Deputy of Economy and Innovation: “With the innovators network natural residual flows, we have shown that cooperation works. Entrepreneurs, governments, and knowledge institutions have found each other in the conviction that natural residual flows are full-fledged raw materials. Now it is time to anchor this movement in policy and practice so that circular working becomes the norm.”
From experiment to breakthrough projects
The meeting marked an important moment for the innovators network, which has existed since 2020 and led among other things to the establishment of the Circular Dredging Consortium Foundation (CBC) and the GreenHub South Holland.
These breakthrough projects show how innovative cooperation leads to tangible results: from circular applications for dredged material to high-quality processing of roadside mowing.
Evaluation: a successful South Holland approach
Evaluation by knowledge institute DRIFT shows that the South Holland approach works: the province plays an active, facilitating role and acts not only as a grant provider but as a partner in the transition.
This approach strengthened cooperation between parties and initiated first steps in policy and practice adjustments.
Looking ahead: acceleration only possible together
During the so-called deepdives, attendees formulated concrete calls to action for the coming years. Central was the call to continue investing in cooperation, knowledge sharing, and scaling up successful initiatives.
Acceleration is only possible together and this remains the guiding principle of Circular South Holland in the next phase.
