Zurich Center for Sustainability Leadership at EcoSuiza: Sustainable Innovation for Argentina
At the EcoSuiza sustainability forum in Buenos Aires, ZCSL colleague Nico Pfändler presented the REPIC project focused on climate-friendly wood value creation in northern Argentina. The conference is organised by the Swiss-Argentine Chamber of Commerce and addresses current topics in sustainable business, including circular economy and climate change.
The event was held with the support of the Swiss Embassy in Argentina and brought together participants from the ZHAW as well as representatives from Zurich Insurance, Holcim and ABB, among others.
Pfändler joined the event via video link. At the core of his contribution was the REPIC project "Adding value to wood from sustainable forests and cascading use of wood residue", implemented in the Argentine province of Jujuy. There, wood waste that was previously mostly burned is converted into valuable products through pyrolysis. The residual heat generated in the process is used for professional wood drying. This approach reduces emissions, strengthens local value creation and opens new perspectives for sustainable wood processing.
The project team is set to reach an important milestone this month: the pyrolysis plant will be completed and a drying chamber installed on site. This marks the beginning of the next phase, in which the technology will be tested in practice and further developed for regional use.
By engaging in events such as EcoSuiza, the ZHAW Zurich Center for Sustainability Leadership strengthens international knowledge exchange and promotes impactful sustainability solutions.