The nomination was submitted by the Agència de Residus de Catalunya within the framework of the European Week for Waste Reduction 2025 in the associations category.
We have been nominated for the 17th European Week for Waste Reduction Award (EWWR Awards) for our initiative “Reciclem, Reutilitzem, Ressonem”, a participatory workshop where musical instruments were created using waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE). The activity took place in Barcelona during the European Week for Waste Reduction 2025.
The nomination was submitted by the Agència de Residus de Catalunya as one of the six Catalan initiatives selected in this edition of the award, which recognises the most innovative waste-prevention projects at the European level. The awards will be presented at a ceremony scheduled for next June.
The activity, held last November in Plaça del Sol in Barcelona, transformed waste into a creative and educational experience open to the public. Hundreds of families took part in building instruments using reused materials:
- Percussion instruments made from discarded electronic components
- Wind instruments created from recovered tubes and parts
- String instruments built from reused everyday objects
The workshop concluded with a collective concert, demonstrating that what we often consider waste can become a resource, culture, and a tool for social transformation.
European recognition in a very special year
The nomination comes at a particularly significant moment, as this year we celebrate our 20th anniversary working to promote the proper management of WEEE and environmental awareness.
The European Week for Waste Reduction 2025 — coordinated in Catalonia by the Agència de Residus de Catalunya — focused on the growing challenge of electronic waste. In this context, ECOTIC’s initiative stood out for:
- Its originality and innovative character
- The active mobilisation of citizens
- Its educational and transformative approach
- Its potential to be replicated in other municipalities and contexts
At the European level, the 17th edition of the Week involved 34 coordinators from 33 countries and more than 13,000 activities organised across the continent.
Prevention, reuse and recycling: the 3Rs in action
With this initiative, we reinforce our commitment to the “3Rs” — reduce, reuse and recycle —, particularly promoting the collection of so-called “invisible WEEE”: small electronic devices that often remain forgotten in households and are not properly managed.
We continue to promote local, creative and participatory initiatives that connect with citizens and help move towards a more efficient and responsible circular economy model.
