#2 in Ukraine

Connecting with Nature 

In June 2019, 20 participants from Bulgaria, Ukraine and Germany met in the Western region of Ukraine. The accommodation was quite special: The Eco-Lodge Хата-Майстерня in Khata-Maysternya was situated in the middle of a forest where the participating youth could experience a fully sustainable lifestyle. The youth exchange had the focus on discussing ways of Zero Waste practices and developing ideas and concepts together. 
 

Form Urban to Rural

The participants first met in the capital city, Kyiv, to start the project week with insights into urban developments of waste reduction. They got a tour focusing on the waste management in the city, visited a start-up soup café and interviewed an upcycling-glass designer.

These first impressions shaped the participants’ view on ways of dealing with waste. The discussions and exchange about pros and cons of waste management and about the realities in other countries made them understand that each country deals with it in different ways and that we can learn from each other a lot. There is so much more to do to support a environmentally-friendly consumption and protection of resources.


The team leaders including Hanna and Anastasiia from ‘Ozero’ provided important impulses and motivational examples. The intense group experience and co-living in the Eco-Lodge helped to motivate each other to live more sustainably – also on long-term level.

 

Project development

An important asset of this project is the self-guided development of own ideas, projects or initiatives to further promote waste reduction. The participants learned from the Ukrainian waste situation but also from each other’s experiences and examples. They also got the task to further work on an eBook that collects the lessons learned and practices of Zero Waste.