Circular economy at Maker Faire Rome 2026: waste becomes a resource
Nothing gets thrown away
From 23 to 25 October 2026, at Gazometro Ostiense in Rome, the Sustainable Development & Circular Economy area of Maker Faire Rome shows how recycling, reuse, repair and new materials are changing the way we produce and consume. Makers, startups, universities, research institutes and schools bring processes you can follow from start to finish, hands-on workshops and solutions for water and energy.
Plastic recycling: from waste to new object
Open-source recycling labs come from several Italian cities with self-built machines: shredders, injection presses, CNC milling machines. You follow the whole cycle, from sorting by polymer to the finished panel or object. Alongside mechanical recycling there’s chemical recycling: a patented process that, at ambient temperature and pressure, breaks PET, polyesters and mixed textiles back down into their basic building blocks.
New materials: waste that goes back into circulation
Coffee grounds, grape pomace, glass, tyres and electronic waste turn into polyphenols, biomaterials, design objects and jewellery, with short workshops too. Research widens the field:
- with P.Ri.S.Ma.MED 2, the University of Siena turns aquaculture shells into a scrub you can try;
- with Project Tsireya, Sapienza University of Rome makes filament from discarded fishing nets for a prosthesis to be used in water;
- the University of Rome Tor Vergata develops sensors made from e-waste for smart food packaging;
- the University of Trieste builds a Moth sailing boat from composites made with plant fibres and recycled polymer.
Repair, sort, consume less
Repair is the first step of the circular economy. At the soldering bench, open to visitors of all ages, you build a small working circuit from scratch and take it home, learning to solder and to find faults. Computer vision and deep learning guide a bin that sorts waste by itself, while open-hardware meters show, circuit by circuit, where your home’s electricity goes. And an insulated box finishes the cooking with no extra energy.
Water, air and energy: research at the fair
The University of Salerno, with Solar Clean Water, removes dyes from water using photovoltaics and a material recovered from steelmaking. The CNR presents a 3D-printed generator that draws water from the humidity in the air, and the University of Parma foams that purify air and water with light. With Sapienza you manage a simulated renewable energy community, guided by artificial intelligence. ENEA tracks microplastics in aquatic environments, and at the fair you can also discover technologies for biofuels, CO₂ capture and renewables.
Schools, families and MakeITcircular
High schools bring 3D-printing filament made from bottles, biodegradable plant-based polystyrene, paints made with eggshells and filters that catch the microfibres from your washing machine. For the little ones there are ENEA’s games on waste and food waste, and Sapienza’s BioSparkle, an interactive table on biomaterials and energy. On 23 October, on the main stage, the MakeITcircular contest rewards solutions that reduce the environmental footprint of products and services.
