From a banking center to a model country for innovating environmental care
The SuperDrecksKëscht® awarded ‚best practice’ by the EU Commission

The objective of the EU General Direction for the Environment is the care, maintenance and improvement of our natural environment within the frame of the EU environment strategy for our and future generations. In order to achieve this objective, it is promoting strategies in all EU member states as well as international and exemplary actions that have made their proofs in practice. After a thorough examination such exemplary actions are acknowledged as “best practice”.

Such best practices were selected to show best examples of information, public relation and political measures centered on waste prevention. The criteria applied are the following :
- goal-oriented: practices strongly focus on waste prevention by which they differ largely from other waste management strategies or larger environmental strategies,
- innovative: practices use new and innovative procedures for waste prevention
- reproducible: practices can easily reproduced and applied in other regions of Europe,
- representative: practices are initiated in a series of countries, the function of national, regional and local level and cover numerous waste flows;
- efficient: practices have clearly defined aims and measurable results.

As early as June 2009, the initiative ‚Clever akafen’, promoting ecologic products in cooperation with producers, resellers and the association for consumer protection got acknowledged as ‚best practice’.

In the meantime, the EU Commission has determined after a new analysis that the SuperDrecksKëscht® as an overall system with all its various activities fulfills the criteria of ‚best practice’. The holistic (overall) system available to citizens, companies, shops and administrations, thus all actors of society, was rated positive by the EU Commission.

In the factsheet published on the site of the General Direction for the Environment of the EU Commission, the activity of the SuperDrecksKëscht® is summarized in the following way: praxis related advice clearly show that waste prevention is top priority for our and future generations. Second is the ecologic re-use of waste and recycling through second hand shops for instance. At the level of consumption, prevention and life cycle of the products are emphasized with at the end back-consumption, collection of residual waste and optimal recycling thereof.

A particularly important element of the success of the SuperDrecksKëscht® is the continuous communication with all actors of the economy using modern communication means:

• providing a brand image of the SuperDrecksKëscht® people can identify with
• continuous information, advice and communication with the public to keep this important subject present in the people’s minds
• direct praxis-oriented advice in companies, schools, administrations, etc.
• the ISO 14024 certified quality label for companies, supporting them not only in the environmental, safety and quality management but also guides consumers to identify and buy from environmentally oriented companies.
• the label ‚Clever akafen’ for ecologic products assisting resellers to implement a sustainable product policy and a sustainable consumption by consumers.
• promotion and development of sustainable technologies for the separate collection and efficient recycling of waste.

The positive – measurable – results were also important for this recognition:
- according to a survey the SuperDrecksKëscht® is the third best-known consumer brand in Luxembourg.
- about 3400 companies employing more than half of Luxembourg’s workforce, participate in the SuperDrecksKëscht® fir Betriber
• All retail chains and most of the resellers and shops participate in the initiative "Clever-akafen", with labeled products
• the recycling rate of certified companies reaches about 70 % already today
• the model SuperDrecksKëscht® is already successfully implemented in other countries (as for instance in Switzerland).

All Luxembourg citizens and people working in this country can be proud of the ‘best practice’ award to the SuperDrecksKëscht®. Thus, it could very well be that in future, Luxembourg will no longer just be a financial center but also the site for innovative and sustainable environment services, waste prevention management and efficient use of resources.

Further information under www.sdk.lu. Links on this site will also provide information about all our partners.