Singing in Many Tongues, Speaking One Language: Zero Waste
By Tad Kirakowski
In a crowded room, 80 odd people from across Europe all attempt to sing happy birthday in our own languages at the same time.
So much is captured in the cacophony; the sharing of culture and ideas, enthusiasm, mutual support, the challenges in connection but the willingness to work together. The polyphonic spree is represented on the screen with the logos of over 37 organisations, representing the membership of Zero Waste Europe; from Poland to Ireland, and Malta to Estonia all gathered here in Montenegro (at the invitation of our colleagues in Zero Waste Montengro) for the annual Network Gathering.
Throughout the year the network members work together through regular zoom meetings, working groups, emails lists, Loomio channels but this is the one fixed in person meeting we all attend where we can put a face to an email and a 3rd dimension to the face!
Over the next 3 days we discuss the work that each of us is doing in our home states, sharing the lessons we’ve learned, supporting and building momentum.
The conference is a busy one, with topics ranging from the changing political landscape in Europe, best practice in EPRs, the upcoming Circular Economy Act, and the key waste streams that need to be addressed.
As part of the conference, I presented on VOICEs work on textiles, sharing how we built our campaign, how we engaged the audience and what our next steps and plans are. Textiles proved to be a big topic with members throughout the conference, with many organisations sharing similar frustrations around data availability, but also differing approaches. We hear from our hosts on the challenges and opportunities for an EU ascension country when it comes to waste reduction and management. We hear stories from across the network including the ongoing work being done to rollout a DRS in Spain, food waste collection in Slovakia, and campaigning against incinerators in France.
But we are also reminded of our place in a global network through a presentation from our colleagues in GAIA US and Canada who discuss the work being done on plastics and waste there, with a particular focus on environmental justice.
But the conference is not all about death by power point, there are poster sessions and social moments. Where we share our broader work and make connections. It is connections like this that foster our growth, learning, and expand our capacity and impact both at home and across Europe, indeed the MENSY project was built from these very connections.
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The sun shone for 3 days but the rain thundered down as we were leaving the hotel on the final day, washing away the dust and reinvigorating thirsty plants. I leave with a notebook full of plans and ideas, and I am reinvigorated for the year to come.
Photo Credit: Radonja Srdanovic
