Towards a waste-free generation

It is 2040 and there are no waste bins on the streets, and there is no litter in sight. Nothing goes to waste, food leftovers become compost, and packaging materials are valuable resources. The circular economy is alive, nature is being restored, the water flowing in our rivers is crystalline, the air we breathe is clean, and the climate is balanced. Too good to be true? 

Marisa de Brito is a senior researcher and lecturer at Breda University of Applied Sciences working in the area of Sustainable Events and Placemaking.

Amber Herrewijn teaches Event Management at NHL Stenden University of Applied Sciences and works for the European Tourism Futures Institute (ETFI) on sustainability within the MICE sector.

All of the above is urgent and its urgency is being advocated by many, from academics to world leaders, from small enterprises to corporations. If we continue the throw-away age ’we irreparably damage our planet’ as stated by Prins William (UK), who was inspired by John F. Kennedy’s Moonshot, and created the Earthshot Prize (n.d.-a), in alliance with Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN). As Kennedy was able to align people and resources to put a man on the moon, Earthshot (n.d.-b) is meant to support those around the globe who are practising a thought-to-be-impossible goal: to repair our planet Earth. The City of Amsterdam has been one of the finalists, aiming to be fully circular by 2050.

Front-runners

Amsterdam is the home of DGTL, the world’s first festival that became circular in 2022, and which aims to become the first regenerative event organisation. In their Road to Circularity documentary, DGTL shows how it puts in a lot of creativity and ingenuity, going from simple solutions of reusing old materials to more high-tech ones. Being visionary, having a sustainable orientation, and having strategic partnerships are key in designing sustainable festivals (De Brito & Terzieva, 2016). Training staff and informing the audience are equally crucial at the tactical level, as the pioneer implementation of hard cups by DGTL in 2016 showed (De Brito & Smorenburg, 2016). 

Given the European Union (EU) Directive against plastics, the Netherlands and other EU members are putting in place regulations prohibiting single-use plastics in 2024. To make it work, both business and consumer mindsets need to make a leap. In addition, steps need to be taken to define impact indicators (Cavagnaro et al., 2022). Festivals can be used as a ground to defy the status quo, test solutions, and measure their impact. This is especially auspicious when the sector has exemplary, ambitious front-runners with more than 40 events European-wide signing the Green Deal for Circular Festivals, during the Amsterdam Dance Event (ADE), in Amsterdam in 2022.

The Netherlands has come a long way regarding sustainability practices in Leisure and Events. There is a lot out there to support festivals (e.g. organisations such as Green Events and the Green Leisure Group). Guidelines for sustainable events and toolkits for social impacts such as inclusion are available. At the same time, for a truly sustainability transition to take place, a lot still needs to be done.

Festivals can be used as a ground to defy the status quo, test solutions, and measure their impact.

Leisure and Events as an opportunity

In recognition of this, four Leisure & Events Management programmes of the universities of applied sciences in the Netherlands co-organised the Future of Leisure conference, which took place in Breda in 2023, featuring sustainability as one of the pillars. The showcases, which took place during that afternoon, illustrate how sustainability is being practised by many, from conscious individuals to pracademics, from small enterprises to national movements, in leisure activities, and beyond. 

Leisure and Events, being a time in-between ordinary life, are inherently self-expansion opportunities (Lawendowski and Besta, 2020), which can be used for awakening new perspectives and shaping change. Events and Leisure organisations can purposely design transformative experiences using positive psychology to provoke metamorphosis (Neuhofer, 2020), also in the sustainability sphere.

Thus, is a zero-waste society too good to be true? It all depends on us. Have a look at the showcases and get inspired.

Showcases

The BUas Green Office & SDG Support?Hub

At Breda University of Applied Sciences (BUas), as well as at many other Dutch universities, there is a Green Office, and a working group around the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), to share knowledge and organise activities within four focus areas: education, research, operations, and community. Some of those are focused on mitigating waste, such as clothing swap events.

The BUTTLE

People often do not realise how harmful it is to throw cigarette butts on the floor. The BUTTLE, an innovative prototype, previously tested in partnership with Innofest, at the Eurosonic Noorderslag in Groningen, 2023, was also present in Breda during the Future of Leisure conference. There is a triple objective in this intervention: 1) create awareness 2) gather data 3) reduce cigarette litter.

Zero Waste Nederland

Zero Waste Netherlands, founded by climate psychologist Elisah Pals, is a platform with thousands of followers, ambassadors, and activists of the zero-waste philosophy. With challenges such as ‘buy nothing new’ or ‘take your own container when getting take-away food’, and with zero waste tours at several cities in the Netherlands, the platform is there for every individual or business wanting to take specific steps into the zero-waste society.

From Pet to Pret

What started with irritation, ended up as innovation. Rolph Adriaansen decided to take the PET bottles he found on the streets and give them a new life: making colourful toys or decorative objects. He teaches children how versatile waste is, and how much fun recycling can be. The ReCycle (an eye-catcher shredder bike) can also be used at events.

Ploggers

Lifestyle coach and running coach, Ron Bekker, organises group plogging activities, combining running with picking up waste on the streets of Breda. It does have a double impact: being a healthy leisure activity, it contributes to a cleaner environment as well. As Ron put it: "we are all responsible for keeping the city clean.”

Serious Lego Method

In imagining a future that is not there yet, a useful and high-spirited tool is Lego Serious Play. In the 2023 Future of Leisure conference, participants could tactilely delve into rethinking waste, green living and healthy leisure for our communities through this facilitation method, envisioning the city of the future. This can also be used by organisations in exploring waste-free scenarios.

Sources

• Aga Khan Development Network. (2020). Aga Khan Development Network partners with HRH Prince William to launch prestigious Earthshot prize. Aga Khan Development Network. https://the.akdn/en/resources-media/whats-new/press-release/aga-khan-development-network-partners-hrh-prince-william-launch-prestigious-earthshot
• De Brito, M. P., & Smorenburg, H. (2016). Hardcups: The case of DGTL 2016. In M.P. De Brito, & E. Cavagnaro (Eds.), Strategies for sustainable events, (pp. 18-21). Green Events. https://www.greenevents.nl/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/Magazine_1901_V2.pdf
• De Brito, M. P. & L. Terzieva (2016). Key elements for designing a strategy to generate social and environmental value: A comparative study of festivals. Research in Hospitality Management, 6(1), 51-59.
• DGTL. (n.d.). Retrieved June 3^rd 2023 from https://dgtl.nl/sustainability
• Cavagnaro, E., Postma, A., De Brito, M. P., & Herrewijn, A. (2022). The sustainability agenda and events. In N. Ferdinand & P. J. Kitchin (Eds.), Events management: An international approach (3rd ed., pp. 251-285). SAGE Publications.
• Lawendowski, R., & Besta, T. (2020). Is participation in music festivals a self-expansion opportunity? Identity, self-perception, and the importance of music’s functions. Journal of Applied Social Psychology. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1111/jasp.12711
• Neuhofer, B., Celuch, K., & To, T. L. (2020). Experience design and the dimensions of transformative festival experiences. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 32(9), 2881-2901. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJCHM-01-2020-0008
• The Earthshot Prize. (n.d.-a). Build a waste-free world. The Earthshot Prize. https://earthshotprize.org/waste-free/
• The Earthshot Prize. (n.d.-b). City of Amsterdam, circular economy. The Earthshot Prize. https://earthshotprize.org/winners-finalists/city-of-amsterdam-circular-economy