From 9–11 September 2025, the 6th thematic seminar of our Interreg Europe project CORE took place in Söderhamn, Sweden, bringing together 38 participants from all partner regions.
The seminar focused on three main themes:
- improving the quality of biowaste through tools, methods, communication, and local solutions;
- the framework conditions for small-scale and home composting; and
- governance aspects such as waste disposal systems and tariff structures.
Over the course of the event, seven Good Practices from across Europe were presented. These ranged from local initiatives in Söderhamn to prevent contamination in biowaste, to innovative approaches in Brandenburg and Central Transdanubia for improving waste quality, and practical guidance on community and home composting from Castilla-La Mancha and Świętokrzyskie.
Contributions from Flanders showcased behavioural change strategies, while Brandenburg also presented its “Bumerang” campaign and experiences with video surveillance as a tool to improve waste sorting.
The seminar also featured inspiring inputs from local experts. Angelika Bloom from Avfall Sverige provided valuable insights into Sweden’s food waste collection and treatment system, while Anna Carin Söderhielm from Gästrike Återvinnare presented an example of successful behavioural change from a district in Gävle.
To complement the discussions, participants took part in three study visits. At Söderhamn Nära, the municipal waste management company, they observed the processes of collection, treatment, and recycling, including a visit to the Långtå recycling centre where garden waste is composted. The group also visited Stenbacken, the pilot action site for small-scale composting within the CORE project, as well as Ekogas in Gävle, a biogas plant where municipal food waste is transformed into biogas and biofertilizer. Inspired by CORE, Ekogas is currently experimenting with producing soil from solid digestate, and these developments were shared with the partners.
You can access more information about the good practices on the Interreg CORE website and please follow these activities on the social media account as well.