Zero Waste Europe and its member organisations have been successfully working for over 10 years at the local level, supporting the adoption of community-centred zero waste models throughout Europe. As a result, over 400 European municipalities are part of our Zero Waste Cities programme.
However, over the past 10 years we know that the world has changed dramatically.
This is why we’re changing and evolving with it.
This is why we helped develop the Zero Waste Cities Certification.
Led by our close partners, the Mission Zero Academy, the Zero Waste Cities Certification is the world’s first certification programme and will be crucial for helping accelerate Europe’s transition to zero waste at the local level.
Municipalities who wish to become certified are provided with expert mentors and data-driven services that have been specifically designed to optimise the implementation of local zero waste strategies. It’s a groundbreaking step up and evolution of our work with communities and cities, as we now have a robust and independent certification system to guide municipalities on their journey to zero waste.
The Certification is both the tool to recognise Europe’s best performing municipalities as well as the to-do list for any local authority wanting a zero waste framework to follow and tailor to their context.
Together with the Zero Waste Europe network, the Zero Waste Cities programme will continue to mentor and support cities that have committed to implement local zero waste strategies but who are not ready to join the Certification just yet. We will continue to focus our efforts on building an active network of zero waste experts across Europe, as well as creating tools and documents that capture the best zero waste practices and showcase they can be effectively replicated in different European contexts.
