WATER ENVIRONMENT AND BEYOND (WE&B) SCCL

Their core work

WE&B is a Spanish cooperative (SCCL) focused on water management, circular economy solutions, and climate resilience in the built environment. They work on practical challenges like wastewater treatment, water reuse, nutrient recovery, and energy extraction from water systems. Their projects consistently bridge the gap between water infrastructure and broader sustainability goals — connecting water services with housing, agriculture, and urban climate adaptation. They bring a social innovation lens to technical water problems, designing governance models and co-creation processes alongside engineering solutions.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

WE&B's early H2020 work (2016–2017) centered on broad water-climate challenges and nutrient recovery — AfriAlliance tackled Africa-EU water innovation at a strategic level, while RUN4LIFE addressed specific wastewater-to-fertilizer technology. From 2018 onward, their focus sharpened toward circular economy applications in buildings and cities, adding social innovation, co-creation, and governance dimensions. The progression shows a clear shift from purely technical water treatment toward integrated, systems-level thinking — combining water, energy, waste, and social design within the housing and urban sectors.

WE&B is moving toward integrated urban water-energy-waste circularity with strong governance and social innovation components — a profile well-suited for future smart city and nature-based solutions consortia.

How they like to work

WE&B operates exclusively as a consortium participant, never as coordinator, which suggests they contribute specialized expertise rather than managing large projects. With 78 unique partners across 22 countries from just 4 projects, they work in large, international consortia — averaging nearly 20 partners per project. This broad network means they are well-connected and experienced at integrating their work into complex, multi-actor initiatives.

Despite only 4 projects, WE&B has collaborated with 78 distinct partners across 22 countries, indicating participation in large international consortia. Their Africa-EU project (AfriAlliance) extends their reach well beyond Europe, giving them unusual geographic diversity for an SME of this size.

What sets them apart

WE&B combines technical water and wastewater expertise with social innovation and governance design — a rare mix among water-sector SMEs. Their cooperative legal form (SCCL) reflects a genuine commitment to participatory approaches, which shows up in their project work on co-creation and community-driven circular economy models. For consortium builders, they offer the ability to handle both the social acceptance and technical implementation sides of water and circular economy projects, bridging a gap that purely technical partners cannot.

Highlights from their portfolio

• AfriAlliance
  Largest single grant (EUR 519,702) and the only project with an Africa-EU scope, demonstrating global reach unusual for a Spanish cooperative SME.
• HOUSEFUL
  Best example of their integrated approach — combining water reuse, biogas, bio-waste, and social innovation within the housing sector under a circular economy framework.
• REWAISE
  Most recent project (running to 2026), signaling their current strategic direction toward smart, resilient water economies with governance innovation.