German Environmental Award 2025 from the DBU goes to Zinq

For more than 30 years, the German Environmental Award, which is presented annually by the German Federal Environmental Foundation (DBU) and endowed with a total of 500,000 euros, has honored achievements that contribute to the protection of the environment or lead to a significant reduction in pollution in the future. The Zinq management duo shares the prize with Swiss climate researcher Prof. Dr. Sonia Seneviratne. "With Planet Zinq, we are consistently converting our production and products to a circular economy in order to become climate-neutral, but also to remain sustainable," says Dr. Birgitt Bendiek, Managing Director of Zinq Germany. At the same time, Planet Zinq serves as a blueprint for small and medium-sized enterprises. "Planet Zinq shows that energy- and resource-intensive companies can successfully transition to a circular economy. The approach is based on established standards and enables a transformation on several levels without overburdening the organization and employees," says Zinq CEO Lars Baumgürtel.

Zinq focuses on circular transformation and a circular economy

For the circular transformation of the company, all energy and material processes are specifically considered in eight fields of action in order to make them more efficient and effective. The goal is triple-zero climate neutrality - i.e. zero CO₂ emissions, zero waste and zero pollution. With Planet Zinq, Baumgürtel and Bendiek have launched the "Race to Triple Zero" anchored in the EU Green Deal, focusing on products with circular quality. As in previous years, the German Environmental Award will be presented by Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, this year on October 26 in Chemnitz.