“Cities can, and should, become the incubators and vectors for scaling up reuse in Europe. They certainly have a leading role to play in the fight against plastic waste. However, we still lack a better understanding of the conditions that enable reuse to flourish in these communities. Our ERIC project will provide concrete answers to this question, helping to inspire and guide the replication of reuse models in cities around the world.”
Manon Jourdan, Implementation Officer at Zero Waste Europe and ERIC Project Coordinator
In July, a coalition of frontrunner European cities and progressive businesses will launch an open manifesto calling for a bold overhaul of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) systems under the upcoming EU Circular Economy Act.
Current EPR systems are failing to address the root causes of the waste crisis. They remain stuck in outdated, end-of-pipe solutions that neither incentivise true waste prevention nor support reuse at scale.
Our message to EU policymakers is clear:
We need EPR systems that prioritise waste prevention, enable reuse, and hold producers accountable for the full lifecycle of their packaging.
✍️ Cities and progressive businesses can endorse the manifesto now and join the call for meaningful change.
If you have any questions, please contact Manon Jourdan, [email protected]
Elevating Reuse in Cities (ERIC) is a two-year project launched in April 2022 that aims to support 18 to 30 EU municipalities to embed waste prevention locally, through the creation of Plastic Prevention Plans (PPPs) that target and implement reuse actions within their direct sphere of public control – which includes public events, buildings (e.g. municipal facilities, gyms), spaces (e.g. streets, squares, parks) and through procurement tenders.
ERIC involves local implementation of activities by 10 member organisations of Zero Waste Europe.
Main strategies and outcomes:
Join the conversation on social network:
#CitiesAndCommunities | #SingleUseFreeCities | #BeyondSingleUse | #LessSingleUseMoreReuse | #ERICproject
Zero Waste Europe gratefully acknowledges financial assistance from the Plastic Solutions Fund. The sole responsibility for the content of this project lies with the authoring organisations. It does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the funder mentioned above. The funder cannot be held responsible for any use that may be made of the information contained therein.