ENVIRONMENT

BUSINESS: 327 PRACTICES


TOPIC:

Initiative

Plastic Free Greece

Plastic Free Greece
SUBMITTED FROM:

Lidl Hellas

Lidl Hellas has been active in Greece since 1999. Today the company employs more than 6700 workers, while its network includes 230 stores and 5 state-of-the-art supply centers. It is included for the 6th consecutive year in "The Most Sustainable Companies in Greece", while for the 7th consecutive year it receives the distinction of "Top Employer" in Greece and Europe.
At Lidl Greece we are proud because we build perspective for all our stakeholders, on solid, sustainable foundations. Business ethics are a source of inspiration for our values and the chain of responsibility becomes an act of sustainable empowerment for our own people, consumers, partners.
Sustainability for us is not a simple wording, but shapes our business profile and runs horizontally through our daily life.

We are moving on the trajectory of a new sustainability strategy, which develops in three dynamic axes: "Good for the planet", "Good for people" and "Good for you" with the individual actions spread over six strategic pillars: climate protection, respect for biodiversity, conservation of resources, business law, health protection and participation in dialogue. It is a functional as well as an innovative approach that allows us to respond with best practices, at the right time, to a variety of challenges. We adapt quickly, build efficiency and remain sustainable, extroverted and beneficial to the whole.

www.lidl-hellas.gr

 

Corporate videos & Statements



Objective Action

The "Plastic Free Greece" campaign is a global message of sustainable development for our country and aims to raise awareness of marine pollution from plastic waste through coastal and underwater clean-up actions.

It is an opportunity for all stakeholders to adopt a more responsible way of operating, acting and consuming. An opportunity for the environment.

The underwater and coastal clean-up actions are part of REset Plastic, our international plastic strategy, launched in 2018 by the Schwarz Group with the vision "Less Plastic - Closed Raw Material Cycles", in which Lidl Hellas is also participating, specifically in the REmove, REduce and REcycle fields of action.

The plastic strategy has a total of 5 fields of action: 

REduce / Reduce
REdesign / Redesign
REcycle / Recycling
REmove / Removal
REsearch / Research

As one of the largest food retailers, Lidl Hellas recognises its responsibility to protect the environment and is therefore actively committed to reducing the wasteful use of plastic. It was the first to permanently withdraw single-use plastics such as straws, cups, plates, cutlery and cotton swabs from its stores on 31 December 2019 and removed black plastic - which is difficult to recycle - from all its private label product packaging at the end of 2021.

It also commits to a 30% reduction in plastic use by 2025, a 25% average recycled plastic content, and maximum recyclability for 100% of private label product packaging by 2025.

 

 

Target Audience

The Plastic Free Greece campaign has the strategic objective to raise awareness and activate civil society at local and national level, so that citizens become aware of the necessity to reduce the unnecessary use of plastic and recycling in order to achieve the saving of natural resources and production based on a circular economy model.

With Plastic Free Greece, we aimed to trigger environmental awareness on the reduction of the indiscriminate use of plastic throughout Greece and to gradually mobilize all regions of the country.

 

 

Duration

The action started in June 2020 in Santorini and continues this year for the fifth year.


Description

Based on the fact that shaping a sustainable future for future generations is a common task and responsibility, Lidl Hellas launched the "Plastic Free Santorini" campaign in June 2020 in Santorini, as a joint initiative of the Ministry of Tourism and Lidl Hellas. In September 2020, this initiative was integrated under the national campaign "Greece without single-use plastics", a joint initiative of the Ministry of Environment and Energy and the Athanasios C. Laskaridis Charitable Foundation.

PLASTIC FREE GREECE 2021

This journey continued for Lidl Hellas and the Foundation in the summer of 2021, aiming for 6 tourist destinations in the country to become Plastic Free. Chania, Chalkidiki, Santorini for the second time, Corfu, Rhodes and Kos are the islands selected where Lidl Hellas representatives, together with partners and volunteers of the Foundation, carried out marine and underwater clean-ups and joined forces in the fight for the protection of the marine environment and the Greek coastline, offering breath of life to the islands' ecosystem, but also solutions, paving the way for sustainable development.

PLASTIC FREE GREECE 2022


Plastic Free Greece travelled to 6 additional destinations in Greece, Heraklion, the second leg of Halkidiki, Santorini, Syros, Lake Kerkini and Lemnos, in order to continue their effort to convince people that it is worth trying to live their daily lives in a more sustainable way.

PLASTIC FREE GREECE 2023

The trip continued in the summer of 2023, targeting 6 destinations. The project team visited Agios Nikolaos in Crete, Zakynthos, Santorini, Santorini, Chios, Aegina, and Lake Kerkini, offering breath of life to polluted areas of the Greek islands and mainland through mobilization and awareness-raising actions for environmental protection.

Plastic Free Greece is an innovative initiative, as its inception was based on the creation of an alternative tourism campaign, which was linked to initiatives to achieve sustainable development goals at local, national and international level.

To achieve these objectives, a series of actions are carried out in each destination. Each of them touches on a different aspect, thus offering a holistic and multi-level approach to the issue. Specifically, two coastal and two underwater clean-ups are carried out in each destination in order to directly address the issue of coastal and environmental pollution, while meetings are held with representatives of the local authorities to discuss the strategy of the Foundation and Lidl Hellas regarding the reduction of the indiscriminate use of plastic, as well as the next steps of the action.

https://corporate.lidl-hellas.gr/media-center/pressreleases/plastic-free-greece?startdate=&enddate=&search=plastic+free+greece

 

https://corporate.lidl-hellas.gr/media-center/pressreleases/plastic-free-greece-completion?startdate=&enddate=&search=plastic+free+greece

 

https://corporate.lidl-hellas.gr/plastic-free-greece

 

https://corporate.lidl-hellas.gr/media-center/pressreleases/plastic-free-greece-2022


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Impact on Society

From 2020 to 2023, a total of 39 coastal and 30 underwater clean-ups were carried out. A total of more than 260 volunteers participated in the clean-up activities. A total of 1,050 kg of litter was collected in the coastal clean-ups and 4,821 kg in the underwater clean-ups. A total of 5,871 kg of litter was collected in 4 years.

 



Initiative Location

Cleaning has been carried out at the following destinations:

- Santorini (every year included in the destinations as it is the reference destination of the project)

- Chania (all included in the list of destinations (all included in the reference project) - Chania is the reference site for the project (2021).

- Halkidiki (2021) (the project is a reference site for the island of Chalkidiki)

- Corfu (2021) Halkidiki (Halkidiki) (2021) Corfu (2021)

- Rhodes (2021)

- Kos (2021)

- Heraklion (2022)

- second leg of Halkidiki (2022)

- Syros (2022)

- Lemnos (2022)

- Lake Kerkini (2022 and 2023)

- Agios Nikolaos, Crete (2023)

- Zakynthos (2023)

 - Xios (2023)

 - Aegina (2023)

 


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Working with Organization

Plastic Free Greece is a partnership between Lidl Hellas, the Athanasios C. Laskaridis Charitable Foundation and public bodies (Ministry of Tourism, Ministry of Environment and Energy, as well as representatives of local government of the respective regions).

Finally, for the production of the videos, the team of Sotiris Danezis and Thodoris Tzartos have collaborated.


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Workers Participation

For the implementation of the project, employees of the Corporate Responsibility department of Lidl Hellas, the Athanasios C. Laskaridis Charitable Foundation, as well as volunteers from Lidl Hellas stores in each destination are cooperating.

For the organization of the project there is also communication with representatives of the local government and meetings are held in each destination and there is also the possibility of voluntary participation in the clean-ups. Also, in the destination of Lake Kerkini in 2023 we had the participation of students and teachers from schools in the area, as well as from Anatolia College.


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Photos Videos

Benefits for Οrganization

Lidl Hellas seeks strategic partnerships and invests in them. One such cooperation is the one with the Athanasios C. Laskaridis Charitable Foundation, which has already been in existence for several years. Through this cooperation we contribute to the protection of the environment and, by extension, to the achievement of the UN goals to which the action is linked. As the project is addressed to civil society, local authorities and other partners of our company, our commitment to partners and stakeholder engagement is further strengthened.

Furthermore, in the context of the meetings with local government representatives, Lidl Hellas' strategy on reducing the wasteful use of plastic is communicated, but multiple benefits also arise through cooperation and open dialogue with other stakeholders, including local authorities, who participate in the programme. 




Connection with Global Goals







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