We are happy to announce the new thematic focus of the 15th edition of the European Week for Waste Reduction. The Steering Committee met and discussed possible interesting topics that could be promoted in all the EWWR countries. It has been a tough decision: this is a very active moment in terms of regulations and important changes that are being implemented at European and national levels to push forward a circular economy and to promote waste prevention.

The thematic focus of the EWWR 2023 is PACKAGING! This topic follows the recently published proposal of the European Commission on packaging, which regulates the use of packaging and pushes forward the reduction and reuse of materials. 

Why Packaging?

Taking some numbers from the proposal of the European Commission on Packaging, this waste stream is one of the main users of virgin materials and accounts for 36 % of municipal solid waste. Packaging increased in recent years faster than the gross national income, which leads to soaring CO2- and other emissions, and the overexploitation of natural resources, biodiversity loss, and pollution. Data from Eurostat shows the increased use of packaging that it’s designed in a way that inhibits recycling. Furthermore, the increase in e-commerce markets generates more and more packaging that it’s often unnecessary and could be prevented. The EWWR campaign will do its best to inspire actions to prevent the use of packaging and to encourage the reuse of materials.

What’s happening now?

We will soon publish factsheets, articles, guidelines, and other materials to raise awareness on this thematic focus to continue fighting for a world with less waste. You can start planning your action for this edition and do not hesitate to get in contact with your national or regional coordinator and us. Remember that you can always choose to focus the action on another topic related to waste prevention but we strongly encourage you to follow us and dive into the thematic focus!