European Week for Waste Reduction: save the date!

by Silvia Musso



Today, July 20th, the save the date of the European Week for Waste Reductions has been launched.

After the success of the first edition, with more than 400 validate actions, the Nation Steering Committee (Ministry of Environment, Province of Turin, Rifiuti 21 Network, Federambiente, AICA, Legambiente, E.R.I.C.A. Soc. Coop., Eco dalle Città), is glad to invite public administrations, associations, enterprises and schools to participate to the second edition of the European Week for Waste Reduction, that will be held in November 20th to 28th.

So save these dates!

For those people who haven't heard before, the Week develops on the LIFE+ program of the European Commission with the purpose to raise institutions' and consumers' awareness on the waste prevention strategies and politics activeted by the European Union, which Member States have to pursue, to acknowledge the New Waste Directive, 2008/98/EC).

To participate to the Week, becoming “project developer”, it is necessary to fill up and submit to the Steering Committee a participation form that will be available on the official websites of the Week (www.ewwr.eu e www.menorifiuti.org). Proposals, if answering to the European criteria, will be validated by the Committee and will receive the official denominations of actions for the European Week for Waste Reduction together with the communication tools and he possibility to use the European logo.

We remember that the actions have to be aimed to the waste prevention and not to recycling or sorting activities.
Useful tips and information are available on the official websites where it is also possible to find an archive of news and pictures about the last year's activities.

About this, we'd like to remember, among the winners of the last edition, “Bienvenue à Poubellec’h” Special Prize of the Jury. In that occasion the Communauté des Communes de la Presqu'île de Crozon, a consortium of municipalities of Bretagna (France) organized an original communication campaign based on the creation and preparing throughout the cities' streets of special green and white signals with the indications of good prevention practices.
«When we thought about doing an event for the EWWR - Ségolène Gueguen, responsible for the project, explains - we wanted to inform every body even people that usually don't care. The idea was to put information in streets and shops where every body would see it».
The action was particularly effective thanks to the many activities organized for the whole week (treasure hunt , films, guided tours), and to the involvement of many actors: «we had to contact shops owners to install the tools and informations in their shops, we also involved the hospital, the town council, the post office; associations and schools teachers, 2 month before the EWWR asking them to do some art work with and about wastes to decorate the city», and especially to the clear use of images: «Good image and few words. The idea of the surprise and make the thing funny is important: we didn't want to make people feel guilty».

What are you waiting for? Do not hesitate: start to think to sustainable waste prevention actions. The National Committee and Europe are waiting for your proposals!