Towards Waste-Free Lifestyles

The Association of Cities and Regions for Recycling (ACRR) in partnership with the City of Turku and the Turku Waste Management Company organised Towards Waste-Free Lifestyles European conference on local authority actions. The conference took place in Turku, Finland on October 29, 2004.

A growing generation of waste characterizes lifestyles in industrialised countries. Each European produces already 500 kg of household waste during one year. This is the visible side of consumption. The hidden side corresponds to 3500 kg of industrial waste and 50000 kg of natural resources. For instance, manufacturing a 5-gram gold ring requires the extraction and processing of about 3000 kg of resources.

Thus, it is crucial not only to focus on waste but also to consider the products and resources behind it. This requires the involvement of all actors of the production and the consumption chain.

The attitudes and demands of consumers influence the development of more environmentally-friendly products and services. Consumers need support and ideas to change their behaviour. With adequate information, they can bring concrete changes to the consumption of resources and the production of waste.

Local and regional authorities are in a good position to raise awareness of their constituencies. They are the closest public actors to citizens. They represent a reliable and credible source of information. They also have influence on many aspects of waste management. As such, cities and regions are the central drivers of resource management as well as of the development of a local sustainable culture.

The conference gathered waste management actors from Europe and Russia with the aim to review the actions of local authorities to tackle the above-mentioned issues and to facilitate the exchange of experience between new and older EU Members and Russian Cities

The conference was tailored for decision-makers and experts from cities and regions, industry and NGOs. They discovered local efforts to reduce waste at each stage of the consumption chain. They gained new ideas and tools to implement actions in their communities. Plenary sessions and parallel workshops facilitated exchanges and dialogue.

Visits to various waste management facilities and project sites were organised on October 29, to discover and to learn how sustainable waste management practices were organized in Finland.

The conference was a part of the project ELISEE (Encouraging Local Initiatives For Sustainable Lifestyles in Enlarged Europe) which receives financial support from the European Community.