Waste prevention starts long before something becomes waste. It starts with the choices we make about what we buy, how we use products, how long we keep them and what we do with them when we no longer need them. The 2008 Waste Framework Directive of the European Union established basic concepts related to waste management, including definitions of waste, recycling, and recovery, as well as the theoretical framework of the waste hierarchy. This system ranks waste management strategies from the most to the least environmentally favourable, with the most effective strategies at the top. The European Week for Waste Reduction puts waste prevention at the heart of the waste hierarchy. The familiar 3 “R” strategies — Reduce, Reuse, Recycle — provide a simple starting point. But preventing waste requires us to look beyond these three actions and rethink the entire way we produce, consume and use resources. The 10 Rs: a better framework to prevent waste The 10 Rs of the circular economy help us explore the many ways of keeping products and materials in use for longer, while reducing the need for new resources. In order of preferability (highest to lowest), these are: Refuse, Rethink, Reduce, Reuse, Repair, Refurbish, Remanufacture, Repurpose, Recycle, Rot/Recover, they invite us to ask a more fundamental question: “Do we need to consume this resource in the first place and, if we do, how can we keep its value for as long as possible?” The higher the R, the more we prioritise the prevention of material waste in the first place. By reducing waste, higher R strategies are therefore better at preserving the value of material resources and products, whereas lower R strategies lose more value. This demonstrates the marriage of economic and environmental benefits within a circular economy and invites us to always consider whether higher R strategies can be achieved. R0 – Refuse Before purchasing or using something, pause and question the need. Can you refuse the product itself or its packaging? Can you make them redundant by using something else entirely? For example, do my vegetables have to be packed in plastic again or can’t we leave it out and thus save resources completely? R1 – Rethink Rethink how you fulfil your needs – can you borrow or share a product instead of buying your own? Renting and product-as-a-service models are an important way to conserve resources. R2 – Reduce Use fewer resources and generate less waste. Choose durable products, avoid unnecessary packaging and consumption, and make conscious choices about what you really need. R3 – Reuse Give products a second, third or tenth life. Choose reusable alternatives to single-use items, buy second-hand, share, swap, donate or pass products on to someone who can use them. R4 – Repair Keep products in use for longer. Repair what is broken and keep it maintained so that it can be used again for its original function, while learning skills that many have forgotten. R5 – Refurbish Restore and bring an old product back up to date to continue using it. Refurbishing old phones, furniture, or buildings is an important way to extend use while conserving resources. R6 – Remanufacture Used but functional parts of an old product can be remanufactured into a new product with the same function and as-new-condition. For example, using certain parts from a used vehicle engine into a new car engine. R7 – Repurpose Give products a new function. When something can no longer serve its original purpose, can it be adapted or transformed into something different, instead of becoming waste? R8 – Recycle Keep materials in the loop when higher-value options are no longer possible. Recycling is essential for recovering valuable materials to process into new products, materials or substances, but it comes after prevention, reuse and other ways of extending the life of products. R9 – Rot/Recover Rot means valorising nutrients through composting and the reprocessing of organic material. However, Recovery refers to the incineration of waste for energy recovery and should only be considered when keeping the product or material in use is no longer feasible. The EWWR does not accept actions on waste incineration. The EWWR encourages everyone — citizens, educational establishments, public authorities and organisations, businesses and associations — to move up the hierarchy and focus on the actions that prevent waste before it is generated. Because the best waste is the one that never becomes waste in the first place.

As part of the European Week for Waste Reduction (EWWR 2026), the 1st Kindergarten of Eleftherio-Kordelio in Thessaloniki, Greece, is organising a five-day educational initiative entitled “Three Generations, One Planet: Giving Things a Second Life!”

Inspired by this year’s theme, “Resource Sufficiency”, our initiative aims to raise environmental awareness among preschool children and their families by promoting waste prevention, responsible consumption, reuse, repair and creative repurposing.

The project brings together three generations — children, parents and grandparents — through hands-on workshops, interactive games, intergenerational learning and collaborative activities.

Our main goal is to demonstrate that many things we consider waste can still be valuable resources, and that we can improve our everyday lives without constantly buying new products.

The programme consists of five thematic workshops and one ongoing outdoor environmental project.

Our Activities

1. Christmas Memories from Old Fabrics – An Intergenerational Workshop

23 November 2026

In collaboration with the local Open Care Centre for the Elderly (KAPI), children and senior citizens will participate in a creative Christmas workshop.

Using leftover fabrics, old buttons, ribbons and other reused materials, they will work together to create handmade Christmas decorations.

Grandparents will share memories and traditional practices from a time when repairing, reusing and transforming everyday objects were part of daily life.

The decorations will be used to create our school’s “Christmas Tree of Second Chances”, demonstrating that festive celebrations can be meaningful and beautiful without unnecessary consumption.

2. The Great Family Mission: Save Our Resources!

24 November 2026

Parents and children will participate in an interactive environmental game organised around four challenge stations.

At the first station, families will choose products with less packaging. At the second, they will discover new uses for everyday objects. At the third, they will explore simple repair activities. At the fourth, they will prepare an environmentally friendly school snack with minimal waste.

Each completed challenge will provide a puzzle piece. At the end, all teams will combine their pieces to reveal the message:

“Use Less, Care More!”

This cooperative game will encourage critical thinking, teamwork and more responsible everyday choices.

3. Don’t Throw It Away – Transform It!

25 November 2026

During this family upcycling workshop, children and parents will transform old cotton T-shirts into reusable shopping bags.

Families will bring clean T-shirts that are no longer being worn and discover how a simple item of clothing can be given a completely new function.

Adults will assist with the cutting and assembly, while children will participate in age-appropriate creative tasks.

The finished bags will be taken home and used in everyday life, helping families reduce their dependence on single-use shopping bags and extending the useful life of textiles.

4. The Toy Swap Festival – Happiness Without Money!

26 November 2026

Families will be invited to bring toys and children’s books in good condition that they no longer use.

Our kindergarten will organise a symbolic “Shop Without Money”, where children and parents can exchange items instead of buying new ones.

Before the exchange, children will participate in a role-playing game called “Do I Really Need It, or Do I Just Want It?”, exploring the difference between needs and wants.

The activity will promote sharing, responsible consumption and the extension of product lifespans, while highlighting that happiness and play do not always require new purchases.

5. Christmas with Less Waste, More Joy!

27 November 2026

Our initiative will conclude with a community celebration involving children, parents, teachers and members of KAPI.

An exhibition will showcase the handmade Christmas decorations, upcycled bags, reused materials and the results of our environmental activities.

Families will participate in an interactive game called “The Wheel of Green Promises”, where each family will choose a simple waste-prevention habit to adopt at home.

These commitments will become part of a collective “Family Agreement for a Planet with Less Waste”, encouraging the continuation of sustainable habits beyond the EWWR.

6. Bottle Bricks: Building Our Sustainable Outdoor Learning Corners!

Ongoing activity: 23–27 November 2026

Throughout the entire EWWR week, children, teachers and families will collaborate on an outdoor environmental project aimed at transforming reused plastic bottles into useful elements for our kindergarten playground.

Our goal is to create low, non-load-bearing partitions using clean, reused plastic bottles arranged on securely supported rods, helping define different outdoor learning and activity areas.

These areas may include an outdoor reading corner, a creative play area and a nature exploration corner.

Children will take part in collecting, sorting, counting, comparing and arranging the plastic bottles, developing mathematical, environmental and collaborative skills.

Parents and teachers will support the preparation of materials and the design of the outdoor learning spaces. Any permanent installation will be carried out only after the necessary technical safety assessment and approvals, with safe supports and no exposed rods or sharp edges.

This ongoing activity will demonstrate how materials that would otherwise become waste can be creatively repurposed to enhance our school environment, reducing the need for new materials.

Our message: “Old Bottles, New Possibilities – Together We Create a Greener Playground!”

Educational Objectives

Through our six activities, we aim to:

• Help preschool children understand the importance of reducing waste and protecting natural resources.

• Encourage reuse, repair, sharing and creative repurposing before purchasing new products.

• Promote responsible consumption and awareness of the difference between needs and wants.

• Strengthen cooperation between children, families, teachers and senior citizens.

• Preserve and share traditional knowledge about resource conservation.

• Develop creativity, problem-solving, teamwork and environmental responsibility.

• Transform our kindergarten into a more sustainable learning environment.

Expected Results and Environmental Impact

We expect our initiative to contribute to waste prevention by extending the useful life of textiles, toys, books and plastic bottles.

We will document the number of participants, the handmade decorations created from reused materials, the T-shirts transformed into shopping bags, the toys and books exchanged and the plastic bottles collected and repurposed.

The project will strengthen the relationship between our kindergarten and the local community, encouraging families to adopt sustainable habits in their everyday lives.

The outdoor learning corners, subject to technical approval, will provide a lasting educational outcome and a visible reminder of the value of resource conservation.

Our Environmental Message

“We don’t always need more things. We need to make better use of what we already have!”

By bringing three generations together, giving everyday objects a second life and transforming waste-prevention ideas into meaningful action, we aim to inspire children and families to become active participants in building a more sustainable future.

Small hands, big changes – one planet, one shared responsibility!