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Description
Perhaps no phenomenon has so rapidly and radically changed the parameters of food production and daily patterns of consumer behavior as the COVID-19 pandemic. As Croatia is currently in a new "lockdown", it is estimated that improper storage and excessive purchases and the combinations of lockdown and holidays will contribute to a large amount of discarded food. The main goal of the project is to raise the level of public awareness of citizens related to the problem of excessive food waste in the Republic of Croatia, in order to change the daily patterns of consumption of citizens through a strong media campaign. The campaign will be mostly aimed at the local community - the citizens of Osijek-Baranja and Vukovar-Srijem counties, but we indirectly expect that the action will have effects at the level of the Republic of Croatia. The key target group will be heads of households, young people and people at risk of poverty, but key messages will also be directed to other stakeholders (social services, environmental associations, ministries), the wider local community and the media. With the campaign, we want to encourage not only awareness but also civic solidarity. CEIP closely cooperates with the Social Self-Services in this area through numerous activities and projects. Together we work towards decision makers in the form of improving the food donation system, thus helping socially deprived groups. This campaign will aim to encourage citizens to donate food but also to strengthen intercultural dialogue through a better understanding of the needs of different subcultures devided by the economic gap. By involving young people in the campaign, we will strengthen intergenerational solidarity and encourage young people to think about the needs of older citizens at risk of poverty.
Summary of project results
The implementation of this action achieved the planned results and raised the level of civic awareness related to the problem of excessive food waste in the Republic of Croatia, in order to change the daily consumption patterns of citizens. During the implementation the students themselves and their mentors, proposed to continue cooperation through video competitions for students during which students would design recipes aimed at preventing food waste. Through this action, we have created a platform for future cooperation with schools that will have the effect of civic activism of young people, but also reduce food waste in the community. Also, this action created the idea of a cookbook with recipes from leftover food in collaboration with Sanja Doležal. The emphasis of this action is in connecting non-governmental organizations - educational institutions - public bodies, which makes a good model in the evidence of future projects and achieving positive effects in local communities. This action provided answers to the measures and objectives that policies lack when it comes to sustainable development and food waste. As representatives of the working groups and the Council for the Development of Civil Society, we will contribute to the preparation and implementation of policy in this issue and program area.