Together with the platform for circular waste management heading towards 540,000 kilo less waste and 70% recycled in 202

Amsterdam, Monday 5th September 2022 – This week The College and  University of Amsterdam start working together on a sharp plan to contribute to the circular economy. The College and University of Amsterdam are going to reduce waste by separation their residual waste into 4 separate streams, which can then be reused as new materials. The plan is the result of an in depth research project in 2021 about the vision of reducing waste and the value of materials. Together with Seenons, the approx. 90,000 employees and students of the college and university the journey will start towards the ambitious goal of 33% less waste and 70% recycling in 2026. 

From the materials report it became clear that there is a lot to gain for the college and university from separating and processing waste. Of the total 1,647,000 kilo of waste, 11% was recycled (2021*). In other words, a lot of waste ends up being incinerated. Based on this insight the  vision plan ‘From waste to material’ was created. Within the plan there are two key goals:

• 33% reduction of waste in 2026 though procurement choices and reusable packaging. This amounts to about 540,000 less waste. 
• Recycling 70% of the remaining waste in 2026 into materials and new products (this was 11% in 2011*)
  

Let’s get started

The approach of the new waste policy is based on reduction, separation and in particular the separate processing of waste. During the summer holidays most of the measures became visible. In all the buildings almost 20,000 small waste paper bins were taken away. These were replaced with 800 waste stations for separating four different waste streams:

• GFT
• Disposable cups, plates and take away containers
• PMD and residual
• Paper

Waste separation will now happen as much as possible without plastic waste bags. This means that HvA and UvA aim to reduce the use of plastic waste bags by 75%. For employees and students wondering where their old trash bins have gone, there’s a surprise. Both organisations have taken action and recycled the removed trash and paper bins into a new product: a backdrop for the 4 new waste bins.

HvA and UvA, a breeding ground for recycling experts, see the challenge of ambitious waste management and are approaching it professionally.

“Through a procurement process, we found the right partner in Seenons for the separate waste collection, processing, and recycling of our waste. With Seenons, we will start our journey to zero waste in September 2022. Less and less waste, less residual waste, and more recycling. This cannot be achieved without our employees, students, visitors, and external partners. We ask everyone to carefully separate their waste and to recognise the value of waste. To not see it as something to quickly get rid of but as a raw material for new products. Until the end of December, we will support these messages through the internal campaign ‘Make Your Waste Useful.’ Everyone who participates and passes the ‘test’ at the end of the year can then call themselves a recycling expert. A small investment in time with a huge impact on the future.”

Bert Zwiep, Director of Facility Services at HvA and UvA

Our co-founder and CEO of Seenons, Joost Kamermans, is proud of the new collaboration: “Students are an important target group when it comes to consciously caring for Mother Earth for future generations. They also learn quickly and are open to change. With our platform that connects HvA and UvA with logistics partners and processors, we aim to achieve the ambitious recycling goals by 2026. It’s wonderful that HvA and UvA see their waste transformed into new products, such as fruit grown on compost from organic waste or new paper for printers. That’s what we’re doing it for: helping organisations on the path to zero waste and working together towards a waste-free world.”