Jasmina Karba, Undersecretary of Slovenia's Ministry of Environment, Climate, and Energy

What is your vision for Slovenia’s transition to a circular economy model, including your ambitions and desired outcomes in this domain?
The government needs to encourage all stakeholders and act as a role-model in bringing about the change. It necessitates governmental initiative and leadership along with a wide participatory approach so that we involve all relevant stakeholders to reflect their needs and perspectives. And here the results of transformation do not appear very quickly, so you need to plant the seed and very patiently move with the transformation over years, maybe even decades to be able to witness tangible outcomes. The intricate nature of these issues, where outcomes aren’t swift, straightforward, or easily discernible, poses a formidable challenge for decision-makers, particularly politicians and then also for practitioners.
What in your opinion is feasible? What is missing and what is the role of the Deep Demonstration in it?
The essence of a Deep Demonstration programme transcends the mere presentation of its outcomes. As important as it is to create the tangible set of interventions that make up the portfolio, the really crucial element to the whole endeavour is the process – a collaborative journey allowing stakeholders to come together so we can look at a specific challenge from all perspectives. And that’s also one of the things that is difficult, that requires energy, that requires good organisational skills, that requires a structured approach to get somewhere when you have this multilateral dialogue, which should be the biggest lesson that will be taken from the programme.
What would you like to achieve with the portfolio and the deep demonstration?
I would like to see things truly move in the direction of a circular economy. And sometimes you just need a push from outside, and if you say that this is a result of working with an organisation like Climate-KIC, whose expertise is recognised outside of our own borders then somehow it gets more attention. These transformations need an innovative way to approach governance. And we have discussed with various stakeholders about the portfolio itself and what would be the best governance structures and I think we already have some ideas that we can implement.
What are your reflections about working with a portfolio of innovative actions?
The portfolio is an instrument for identifying systemic solutions, and its complexity is proportional to the scale of this ambition. Once you understand the underlying principles and steps of portfolio development, it seems like a very logical and straightforward process. However, there remain certain facets within the process that warrant enhancement in subsequent iterations of the portfolios. This is particularly pertinent within the context of orchestrating a comprehensive transformation toward circularity across the entire nation—a journey that appears foreseeable yet demands constant meticulous refinement. Finally, I think the strength of the Deep Demonstration methodology is the process itself, as it brings experts to discuss and challenge different opinions.
What sort of leadership is needed to achieve such transformation, with the portfolio approach?
Managing the portfolio needs strong, dedicated and goal-orientated leadership and a range of stakeholders from the sector coming together with their expertise to collectively develop portfolios of innovative actions to turn into circularity. In Slovenia, we have experience in orchestrating programmes of actions with shared responsibilities, such as like the Deep Demonstrations portfolio, across various domains. I believe effective management is feasible when stakeholders show clear interest and when decision-makers signal that the realisation of actions serves the public interest. The involvement of diverse stakeholders in the transformation process is essential and fundamental, given the nature of the endeavour. Therefore, the direction of the portfolio management will heavily rely on their active engagement and cooperation.