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"Action fraction, or the puzzle of a very round idea" - report from our workshop at the Royal Baths

What does pre-compost smell like and what does regranulate smell like? Where do I dispose of a spice packet, medicine or a broken iron? How do you fix a lid? What does the seedling symbol on the packaging mean? Answers to these and many other questions were sought during our workshop.

During our workshop, parents and children together solved 12 puzzles revolving around the idea of the circular world. Together, they moved between specially prepared stations with individual tasks, matched different elements, practised careful observation and verified their knowledge of selective collection. In the end, we joined forces to discover together the story of the circular economy. We found out that rubbish is not unnecessary waste, but important, often strategic raw materials that should circulate through the system and be reused again and again to create new items.

Each participant in the workshop "Action fraction, or the puzzle of a very round idea" received a gift - our original educational game.

The workshop was conducted as part of the Re:generation, supporting the restoration of the Royal Baths ecosystem and implemented by UNEP/GRID Warsaw and Interzero Packaging Recovery Organisation. This is one of the public education campaigns, financed with funds donated by the company's customers to build environmental awareness in society. We encourage you to find out about other activities of the Environmental Education Team, such as Eco-friendly without the frills, EcoPakwhether Turning point.

Would you like to find out more? Contact us at edukacja@interzero.pl

Sustainable office space? It's possible with the Office Zero Waste service!

Are you a commercial property manager or owner? Are you an Environmental Specialist, Green Officer or Sustainable Manager and want to make a change in the office that benefits the working environment and the environment?

You should get to know our Zero Waste Office service!

What does it consist of?

Office Zero Waste provides comprehensive support to help you create a green and environmentally friendly workplace. Our offer includes an audit, during which we will carefully analyse the functioning and structure of your office. We will also review your internal documentation and provide you with a concrete report containing recommendations and ready-to-use solutions to help you move towards a more sustainable future. In addition, we offer education and communication activities aimed at your employees, as well as access to consultations with our experts to support you at every stage of the process.

When you choose the Zero Waste Office service, you will receive comprehensive support in green transformation and in achieving your environmental goals. We will tailor the scope of activities to your expectations, the specifics of your work and the size of your company.

Details of the offer can be found at the link: https://biurozerowaste.pl/

Photo: Mikolaj Tym

New initiative by Interzero and Mom's Project - education centre A turning point in fashion and the fight against greenwashing

We live fast, produce fast, consume fast. Fast fashion (fast fashion) conquers hearts and achieves high profits without regard for social and environmental consequences. Every year, 92 million tonnes of textile waste ends up in landfills and only 1% is recycled. At the same time, for young people, appearance and fashion are a means of self-expression, of building identity. How do we find our way in a world where manufacturers often pull the wool over our eyes with ecological slogans and countless marketing techniques bombard us with their messages? The Turning Point EcoCentre comes to the rescue - the place where change begins.

About fast fashion at FSO

The theme of Turning Point is the environmental impact of fast fashion and packaging. The themes and delivery of the innovative educational activities were tailored to the interests of teenagers. Through an engaging narrative, teaching through discovery and solving puzzles, teenagers gain practical knowledge of ecology.

- The opening of an environmental education centre in the former FSO car factory is a symbol of the green transformation taking place around us. As the Interzero Group, we focus our pro-environmental activities primarily on reducing the waste of natural resources, closing raw material cycles and managing waste. Our ambition in relation to environmental education is to talk about the challenges of civilisation in an accessible, engaging and interest-inspiring way. Turning Point, of which we are a patron and partner, is an example of this. I am very pleased that we were able to get involved in this initiative," says Monika Grom, vice-president of the Interzero Group in Poland.

Riddle rooms

There are four thematic rooms at the Turning Point. One of them has been developed substantively by Interzero experts. Upon entering it, visitors receive a message from the future and a task related to waste sorting. The main purpose of this part of the story is to explain the impact of correct waste sorting on recycling and closing the cycle of packaging and raw materials.

- At Turning Point, we are creating a fashion for ecology. We do this through activating teaching methods that have proven successful in previous projects with the Mamy Projekt, such as the Eco-experimentarium exhibition and online games. This time, we are venturing into the not-so-distant future, showing today the reasons why textiles will be included in the selective waste collection system from 2025. We want to educate through experience and thus change behaviour, stimulating reflection and responsible attitudes, which is why the slogan of the Turning Point is 'You are the change'," says Katarzyna Kacz, manager of educational projects for children and young people at the Interzero Group.

In each of the four thematic rooms of the Turning Point, groups of students seek answers to questions related to the environmental consequences of the garment industry's actions. After completing all tasks, they meet with an animator in a special dialogue zone, where they discuss the conclusions of this fashion and packaging journey.

- Reports trumpet the fact that young people have heard about climate change but don't have enough knowledge or tools to understand its consequences, so they often take a passive attitude towards it. "If I'm going to die anyway, let it be in fashionable shoes," one teenager told us during interviews. This was the impetus for creating an alternative form of environmental education. Games, collaboration, good graphics, multimedia and expert knowledge conveyed in an interactive form are the ingredients of the recipe for Turning Point. We have been designing innovative tools for environmental education for 10 years, and creating an interactive EcoCentre was Mama Projekt's biggest dream. Come and see for yourself how it turned out," invites Małgosia Żmijska of the Mamy Projekt collective.

The EcoCentre Turning Point is located at 88 Jagiellońska Street, in the former FSO gate (now FSO Park). Registration for the free workshops is conducted via the website www.punktzwrotny.com. It will host less waste workshops, inspirational meetings and clothes swaps at weekends. It is also possible to rent the space of the EcoCentre.

It's time for the Turning Point! 🚀🌱 You're welcome!

Clean up the Poniatowka - Interzero at the World Cleanup Day finale

World Cleanup Day is a cyclical event that we have been celebrating globally since 2008. For the past five years, Let's Do It World, the world's largest pro-environmental social movement, has been responsible for its organisation. The organisation is accredited by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA). The event sees citizens from 190 countries around the world unite and collectively clean up their local neighbourhoods for a better and cleaner future for the entire planet.

The Polish final of the campaign, co-organised by the Planet Heroes Foundation, took place on 23 September. Interzero appeared at the event as a partner of the action - our employees not only supported the cleaning of Warsaw's Poniatówki, but also prepared an educational outdoor game about waste sorting. In addition, our original 'Action Fraction' memo game was waiting for the participants of the meeting, which will help them consolidate the knowledge they have acquired about which fractions of waste should go into which fractions.

Let's play and learn together how to separate waste properly.

Visit us at the POLECO 2023 trade fair in Poznań!  

You are cordially invited to Interzero stand (Pavilion 5, Stand 49) at the International Environment Fair POLECO, which will take place between 17 and 19 October 2023 on the grounds of the Poznań International Fair. As part of the event, we will be showcasing a selection of eco-equipment supporting the closed loop economy (such as: Sielaff Bottle Collectors, the PEL BriteBin solar bin or the Oklin composting machine) and the Interzero Waste Platform. We encourage you to visit our stand - our experts will be at your disposal.

Our full range of eco-equipment is available on the website: https://ekourzadzenia.interzero.pl/

This year's fair will feature exhibitors from Poland, Austria, Finland, the Netherlands, Germany, Italy and Sweden. The organisers have prepared a wide range of lectures on waste management, waste processing, new technologies or water management. The full agenda for the event is available at https://poleco.pl/pl/

Admission to the event for industry professionals is free - registration is encouraged at the link below: https://rejestracja.tobilet.pl/pl/poleco-2023-rejestracja-dla-profesjonalistow/ 

See you at the Interzero stand! 

World Cleanup Day - Interzero's collaboration with Planet Heroes

16 September marks World Cleanup Day - the biggest environmental holiday of the year. On this day, rubbish collections are organised all over the country and events are co-organised for residents in major cities together with local authorities.

Interzero was awarded the title of partner of the World Cleanup Day initiative in Poland. As part of the event, we invite you to our stand at the picnic in Warsaw. We will prepare for you a family outdoor game on the theme of recycling, raw materials and correct waste sorting. The youngest ones will also be able to use educational materials prepared especially for the occasion.

A cleanup of the capital on the occasion of World Cleanup Day is planned on Poniatówka beach at 10 a.m., 16 September. The Warsaw Beach Cleaners, who are regularly involved in cleaning up the Vistula beaches and forests, encourage all Warsaw residents to take part in this action.

Action details HERE

1,000 lives of one cup - Carlsberg Group and Interzero in the "1 instead of 1,000" campaign

Understanding the environmental problems we face is key to solving them. What products we choose, how we use energy or how we separate waste has an impact on the state of the environment now and in the future.
Environmental education helps us to understand why these choices are important. We can support environmental education by participating in workshops, lectures and outreach activities, or we can educate others ourselves. And this, as Interzero, is what we continually strive to do.
Festivals attract hundreds or even thousands of participants, which means huge amounts of disposable cups used only once and thrown away. These cups, often made of plastic or polystyrene foam, end up in rubbish bins or thrown on the ground, leading to huge amounts of waste.

Together with the Carlsberg Group, we are creating the '1 instead of 1,000' project, which raises awareness of how our everyday decisions are shaping a more sustainable future. One reusable Brooklyn mug can replace as many as 1,000 disposable cups. This eco-friendly mug was featured at the SBM FFestival in August and will travel to more events of its kind.
Participants at the Warsaw festival were not only able to use the aforementioned reusable cups, but could also listen to panel discussions on ecology and the future of packaging, as well as do something for their minds - go to a yoga workshop or talk to a psychologist.

Environmental education and involvement in campaigns that promote green behaviour help us to better understand how our actions affect our environment and how we can act more responsibly. This is a key step towards a sustainable future in which we preserve our planet for future generations.

Summary of the meeting entitled. "Waste at a premium: let's talk about bail".

Last Thursday (17.08.2023), we met with entrepreneurs for whom the obligations under the bail-in system present some challenges. The law will soon go to the President's desk, so those affected by the new order need to prepare their businesses quickly for the changes.

Participants were welcomed to the meeting by the Interzero Management Board -. Pawel Lesiak i Monika Grom and PIOiRO President - Konrad Nowakowski. Pawel Sosnowski, the Board's Plenipotentiary for Environmental Regulation, talked about the bill, the amount of the deposit, fees, records and the role of the representative entity, among other things. Lukasz Czarnowski, Digital Sales CCF Head, explained how the German deposit system, which has been doing its job for many years now and in which an average of 99% of packaging is returned, works. In contrast, Agata Ryś, Commercial Director, talked about the collection of packaging and the importance of bottle machines for retail chains.

As Interzero, we are happy to participate in meetings with our partners, but also with entities for whom environmental issues may be problematic. We believe that, together, we will be able not only to meet the legislation, but also to create an efficient system that does its job.

The event entitled. "Waste at a premium: let's talk about bail". is the first meeting in a series of meetings where we want to get to know the problems of entrepreneurs and, through direct conversation, solve them together. We hope to meet again soon to discuss the ongoing challenges of the bail system.

Environmental Debt Day - we are pushing that date further and further away!

Let's #MoveTheDate!

From the research Global Footprint Network shows that we have an impact on Environmental Debt Day - without our recycling efforts, this day would have passed worldwide 7 minutes and 16 seconds earlier.

Environmental Debt Day, also known as "Overshoot Day", is the symbolic date during the year when humanity has already used more natural resources than the Earth can renew in a whole year. This means that between now and the end of the year we are operating on ecological 'credit', using more resources than our ecosystem can regenerate. This is a worrying indicator of the overexploitation and pressure we are putting on the planet.

Together with our customers and partners, we are making a real impact on global Debt for Earth Day.

Why is this the case? Recycling and reusing recyclable materials not only reduces greenhouse gas emissions compared to the original process, but also protects the planet's bio-sustainability. Instead of overexploitation, we have resource conservation and recycling.

We encourage you to read the press release in English HERE