The EWWR is an initiative of the European Commission that seeks to promote and implement awareness actions to prevent and minimise waste production. The 2021 edition, held on 20-28 November, involved 38 regions and a total of 12.489 activities throughout the EU (136 of them in the Basque Country) aimed at fostering circular communities in a more proximity-based approach featuring a local perspective to prevent waste production.

Subsequently, the 13th EWWR Awards are to recognise the best schemes carried out in the Week, culminating in an award ceremony in Brussels at the end of May 2022.

The four Basque candidates

Reciclanet is standing in the Associations/NGOs category. Its action was to involve various local bodies in the municipalities of the Uribe Kosta and Mungialdea areas of Bizkaia in the selective collection of laptops, tablets and mobile phones. The devices recovered were reconditioned for donation or sale at affordable prices to persons suffering from the digital divide due to financial reasons, with the focus on integration.

The Businesses category candidate, Uvesco, set up recycling points at several shops where customers could leave waste to make sure that it was recycled. These points were intended for common household waste that tends to give rise to doubts in recycling, such as coffee capsules, toner cartridges, batteries and cooking oil. The containers set up to collect this waste are also made of recycled materials.

Axular Lizeoa is standing in the Educational Establishments category. Its scheme involved holding various events to publicise and explain the "sustainable pavement" projects undertaken by the school. The pavements in question are made from plastic bottles and street furniture (benches & waste bins).

The candidate in the Public Administrations category is the Provincial Council of Álava, which staged a public awareness campaign in Álava on the need to manage waste properly and help meet the targets set by the EU. Along with encouraging the public to treat waste properly, the Council showcased the potential of persons with mental disabilities, with a view to achieving true inclusion through their participation in the campaign. Mentally disabled persons acted as monitors for the itinerant campaign and featured in the video and the radio slots organised.