Co-Creation Projects
Waste is a global challenge – but solutions need to work locally.
Worldwide, more than 60% of all waste is left unmanaged, often ending up in illegal dumpsites or inadequately equipped landfills. Even in modern landfills, the organic matter in waste produces greenhouse gases such as methane and COâ‚‚, along with other pollutants.
Turning Knowledge into Action
Tackling this challenge requires many projects and locally adapted solutions. By sharing knowledge and experience across countries and regions, we can develop and adapt projects that work in different local contexts.
This is where WasteCulture Country Leads come in. When a new project emerges, they help bring the right people together and turn ideas into action. Depending on the project, they may take an active role or support the process from behind the scenes. Every project draws on the collective knowledge of the WasteCulture community, made possible through this network of connections across borders.
Current Projects
The following projects are currently in progress:
2026 – Under the title "Climate Protection and Reducing Dependence on Raw Materials in the EU," the European Academy of Sciences and Arts (EASA) is initiating this project as its sponsor. Building on the landfill ban in the DACH countries (Germany, Austria and Switzerland), EASA is starting a targeted dialogue with selected European countries.
The goal is to bring the findings of the White Paper — along with 20 years of experience with the landfill ban — into political and scientific discussions in these countries, positioning it as a relevant factor in global climate policy.
Client:
Personal investment, ZMS, VKU/VKS
Participating Partners:
IESP, Various Associations
2025 – The key findings of the White Paper (draft as of July 2026) are as unanimous as they are clear: The ban on landfilling untreated waste
- has been one of the most effective climate protection measures of the past decades;
- is the foundation for a gradually evolving, sustainable waste and circular economy.
Experience in the DACH countries (Germany, Austria and Switzerland) shows that an EU-wide ban on landfilling would
- slow climate change and
- reduce the EU's dependence on raw materials.
Client:
An initiative by Werner Bauer and Martin Grambow, IESP
Participating Partners:
IESP, Various Associations and Experts from Germany, Austria and Switzerland
The following projects have been completed:
2022 – Lithuania and the two other Baltic states have successfully moved away from their former dependence on Russian energy, but they remain highly reliant on gas imported by ship from abroad. The study therefore focuses on identifying and using every possible opportunity for energy savings or energy generation within waste management. Material recycling holds enormous potential – and thermal recycling even more so, a potential this study examines in detail.
AHK Baltic sees this project as the start of a possible partnership between German and Baltic companies in the circular economy. The needs analysis and expertise of Werner P. Bauer, Dipl.-Ing. (TU), show that circular-economy development in the Baltic States is progressing too slowly. However, the identified challenges can be addressed through German knowledge and technology transfer. For future projects aimed at accelerating this development, AHK Baltic considers the following topics especially relevant:
- Thermal waste utilization
- Preparation for reuse of waste
- Waste prevention
Client:
Environmental Protection Export Initiative of the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety and Consumer Protection
Participating Partners:
ete.a Ingenieurgesellschaft für Energie- und Umweltengineering & Beratung mbH
ARGUS Statistics and Information Systems in Environment and Public Health Ltd.
Partners mentioned with Best Practices in the project:
UTV AG
W.L. Gore
BEKON
Stadler
Wehrle
2021 – WtERT Germany GmbH and the Tunisian municipalities of Siliana, Tabarka and Douar Hicher are partners in the so-called Sheltered Container Spots project. Commissioned by Fraunhofer UMSICHT, financed by the Free State of Bavaria, and supported by em&s market GmbH, we designed the Sheltered Container Spots within the EGIDD project as collection and recycling centres with three main goals:
- To ensure the town is clean
- To provide jobs
- To increase citizen awareness of the need to properly manage waste, through communication
Since July 2019, we have been working with architect Markus Heinsdorff to develop an overall design concept that turns the Sheltered Container Spots into aesthetically pleasing places. This work is carried out in cooperation with ANGeD (National Agency of Waste Management) and the local councils of Siliana and Tabarka.
The design concept includes individual components that can be assembled, enlarged or modified according to the specific characteristics of each location.
Client:
Bavarian State Chancellery
Participating Partners:
Fraunhofer UMSICHT
em&s market GmbH
UTV AG
W.L. Gore
2016 – As part of the ixpos.de market development program of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs, several visits to Croatia took place, as well as the hosting of a delegation in Germany. The aim was to highlight and discuss the latest developments in waste management in Germany.
While working on the brochure accompanying the project, we presented ideas for waste management development and linked them to the expertise of the participating companies.
The proposals are deliberately assigned to three regions:
- The urban region of Zagreb
- The inland, rural region
- The coastal region with the islands
In formulating the proposals, particular attention is paid to striking a balance between promoting recycling rates and reducing the disposal of organic materials in landfills as quickly as possible. This leads to the following specific objectives:
- Raising public awareness of environmental and resource protection
- Reducing the organic content in residual waste
- Utilizing energy recovery as a means of reducing pollutants
As well as the idea of a model project.
2006 – The parameters described above already show clear advantages for waste incineration – through higher energy use and lower uncertainty around inflation during the aftercare period. The comparison of the two methods reveals a further advantage: when the scenario period extends beyond 20 operating years, incineration remains the stronger option.
Landfilling, by contrast, requires site planning and selection well before the end of the operating period. Subsequent landfills are expected to come with higher waste fees, due to the known difficulty of finding qualified sites and the longer transport distances involved.
Client:
ITAD, Bayerisches Umweltministerium
Participating Partners:
Fa. MARTIN
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