Repair & ReuseZagrebZagreb Plastic Prevention Plan: ban single-use, refill the cityFrom city buildings to hospitality venues Zagreb adopted a Plastic Prevention Plan as part of the ERIC project: one of the most comprehensive municipal plastic policies in the Western Balkans region. The plan bans single-use plastics across all city-owned buildings and institutions and combines that with public infrastructure to make reuse the easy default. Measures already running - New and repaired public drinking-water fountains installed across the city to cut single-use plastic bottle purchases - Single-use plastic items removed from select city-organised events - Support for hospitality businesses switching to reusable packaging What you can do - Use the public refill fountains instead of buying bottled water - Ask event organisers in Zagreb whether the venue is single-use-plastic-free - Talk to your neighbourhood association about advocating for more refill points in your district Why it matters Policy without infrastructure fails. Zagreb pairs the ban with visible reuse alternatives: showing that a city of almost one million can shift habits at scale. Source & repost Shared here so you can get inspired or find action already happening near you. Solarpunker does not own or organise it. - ERIC project: Zelena Akcija - ERIC - City waste portal: Zagreb komunalne usluge - Report chapter: ZWE State of Zero Waste Municipalities, 5th editionplasticreuserefillpolicy
CommunityViladecansViladecans Plastic Prevention Plan: binding measures already runningA ZW candidate city taking plastic seriously Viladecans, a municipality of 70,000 on the southern edge of Barcelona, is a Zero Waste candidate city and a participant in the EU ERIC (Elevating Reuse In Cities) project alongside Torrelles de Llobregat. In 2024, Viladecans became one of the first Catalan cities to approve and begin implementing a binding Plastic Prevention Plan: a document that commits the municipality to specific, measurable plastic reduction measures already underway. What the plan includes - Reduction of single-use plastics in municipal events and public spaces - Promotion of reusable alternatives for takeaway containers in local hospitality - Procurement criteria requiring plastic-free options for city contracts - Monitoring and annual public reporting on plastic reduction outcomes How to participate - Attend Viladecans municipal events: they are piloting reusable tableware and cup systems - Ask local restaurants and bars about takeaway reuse options promoted under the plan - Follow Rezero for the ERIC project updates on reuse infrastructure in Viladecans Why it matters Binding plans with implementation already started are rare: most cities stop at commitments. Viladecans's plan, combined with its ERIC project participation, makes it one of the most concretely active zero waste cities in Spain right now. Source & repost Shared here so you can get inspired or find action already happening near you. Solarpunker does not own or organise it. - Rezero: rezero.cat - ERIC project: Elevating Reuse In Cities - Report chapter: ZWE State of Zero Waste Municipalities, 5th editionplasticpreventionplanpolicyreuse
CommunityTorrelles de LlobregatTorrelles de Llobregat: certified and plastic-free by planA certified Zero Waste city with a binding plastic prevention plan Torrelles de Llobregat, a small ZWE-certified Zero Waste municipality in Catalonia, took its commitments further in 2024 by approving and starting to implement a binding Plastic Prevention Plan: following the same model as candidate city Viladecans. Torrelles also participates in the ERIC project alongside Viladecans, creating a productive pair of municipalities that share tools, funding, and lessons. What Torrelles shows - Small certified municipalities can lead on plastic prevention without large budgets - Certification and plastic prevention planning are complementary: not sequential - The ERIC project provided both the methodology and funding that made the plan viable What you can do - Visit Torrelles as a case study if you are working on Zero Waste strategies in your own municipality - Contact Rezero to access the Torrelles and Viladecans plastic prevention planning tools - Follow the ERIC project for replicable reuse infrastructure models applicable to any small city Why it matters Certified cities that continue innovating: instead of resting on certification: keep the Zero Waste movement credible and dynamic. Torrelles's plan shows that even very small municipalities can set binding plastic reduction targets. Source & repost Shared here so you can get inspired or find action already happening near you. Solarpunker does not own or organise it. - Rezero: rezero.cat - ERIC project: Elevating Reuse In Cities - Report chapter: ZWE State of Zero Waste Municipalities, 5th editioncertifiedplasticpreventionplaneric
CommunitySkiathosSkiathos Zero Waste candidate: plastic prevention and the ERIC projectA tourist island taking on plastic: with EU support Skiathos, one of the Sporades islands and a major summer tourist destination, is a Zero Waste candidate municipality working with ECOREC on a Plastic Prevention Plan under the EU ERIC (Elevating Reuse In Cities) project. The plan, in development as of 2024: addresses the particular waste challenge of an island that receives hundreds of thousands of tourists each summer, many of them arriving on dayboats, generating concentrated seasonal waste. What the Skiathos programme covers - Plastic Prevention Plan being developed with ECOREC and the ERIC project framework - Collaboration with the municipality on waste stream analysis and reduction targets - The Zero Waste Rota programme trains dayboat operators to educate tourists on waste disposal at sea and on remote beaches not accessible by road Why it matters Greek tourist islands generate disproportionate waste relative to their permanent populations. A working plastic prevention plan in Skiathos would give every other Aegean tourist island a concrete template: and the ERIC project means European funding and methodology back the effort. How to engage - If you visit Skiathos, follow guidance on dayboat operators' waste practices and separate waste correctly at island facilities - Follow ECOREC for the Plastic Prevention Plan's public consultation stages - Ask your own municipality's environmental office whether ERIC project participation is available Source & repost Shared here so you can get inspired or find action already happening near you. Solarpunker does not own or organise it. - National coordinator: ECOREC – Ecological Recycling Society - ERIC project: Elevating Reuse In Cities - Report chapter: ZWE State of Zero Waste Municipalities, 5th editionplasticpreventionplantourismeric
Repair & ReuseNairobiGjenge Makers plastic waste bricksBuilding materials from shredded plastic waste Gjenge Makers (Nairobi, Kenya) turns plastic waste into affordable building materials, shredding and pressing discarded plastic into bricks and pavers that Impacc reports as seven times stronger and 50% lighter than concrete. What you can do - Source pavers or bricks for community paving, school yards, or yard paths - Organise neighbourhood plastic collection drives that feed local recycling processors - Visit or tour the workshop where possible to learn small-scale production lines How to participate - Enquire about products and collection partnerships via the Gjenge Makers portfolio page Why it matters Plastic litter becomes public infrastructure when makerspaces pair collection with honest engineering, strength tested, weight reduced, cost accessible. Source & repost Shared here so you can get inspired or find action already happening near you. Solarpunker does not own or organise it. Source: Impacc · Portfolio: Gjenge Makers.plasticrecyclingbrickscircularKenya
Repair & ReuseMexico CityLess Plastic Guide: Oaxaca coastal hotels and fisheriesCut single-use plastic where tourism meets the Pacific On Oaxaca's Pacific coast, roughly two tonnes of plastic enter the sea daily where waste infrastructure is thin. GIZ (on behalf of the German Environment Ministry) works with municipalities, hotels, and fisheries through the Less Plastic Guide, practical alternatives to disposable products. Participating hotels cut plastic consumption by about one third; lessons feed Mexico's national circular-economy strategy. What you can do - Hoteliers and restaurants on the Oaxaca coast: request the Less Plastic Guide and audit single-use items room by room - Travellers: favour accommodations that publish plastic-reduction steps - Other coastal towns: replicate the tourism–fishery workshop model with your regional environment ministry How it works The guide lists swap-in products and awareness steps; PROCEP pilots improved separation and collection with local governments before plastic reaches rivers. Why it matters Tourism economies can shrink marine litter at the source, not only after beach clean-ups. Source & repost Shared here so you can get inspired or find action already happening near you. Solarpunker does not own or organise it. Source: GIZ Story Portal · Story: For clean coasts and healthy oceans · Project: Protecting Mexico's coastal regions.plasticOaxacatourismfisheriescircular-economy
