Danish pictogram system in the Baltic countries

Today, waste communication varies from country to country and in some cases from municipalities to municipalities. This can create confusion among citizens and ultimately lead to ineffective waste management. Therefore, the Danish Waste Association, Local Government Denmark, and the Danish Environmental Protection Agency in collaboration with the strategic design company Futu have developed a common pictogram system to be used for waste sorting all over Denmark. The pictogram system is currently being implemented in several Nordic countries and NCM Lithuania is now, together with the NCM offices in Estonia and Latvia looking to extend the project to the Baltic countries.

Baltic countries have high amounts of waste that ends up in landfills, something that was highlighted by the project “Towards a Textile Circulation System in the Nordic and Baltic Countries” carried out in all Baltic countries.

A standardization for waste pictograms will not only benefit the citizens by making it easier to sort waste correctly, but it will also benefit producers in the way that a clear labelling will simplify the message on packaging. By streamlining the pictogramming in the region, we can ensure that citizens and industry encounter the same communication no matter where they are. For the respective governments, this project can be an opportunity to show best practices to the EU and other countries how the Nordic-Baltic region is leading the way for unified waste communication.

The circular economy is at the core of the EU’s green deal. The pictogram project is part of the solution for a very important area of the circular economy; namely the side-stream flows and waste management. By helping solve the communication and practical issues that are related to waste management, the project will be an important contribution to the Nordic Council of Ministers vision for a Nordic region as the world’s most sustainable region.

Cooperation partners in Lithuania: Ministry of Environment, NGO “Mes Darom”.