Problem addressed

Municipal waste is one of Europe’s major sustainability challenges. In 2017, only 46.3% of municipal waste in the EU was recycled (material recycling and composting). Cooking oil used domestically is one of the major waste streams that is inadequately managed. This issue is particularly salient in Cyprus, which has one of the highest levels of municipal waste generated per person in the EU: more than 2 000 tonnes of used cooking oil is wasted every year in the country.

Innovative solution

Tiganokinisi (loosely meaning ‘frying pan movement’ in Greek) is an educational environmental programme that transforms harmful waste (cooking oil) into a renewable energy source. The programme is developed by the Cypriot small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) Isotech and run by Akti Project and Research Centre, a non-governmental organisation. Tiganokinisi aims to reduce the impact of waste on the environment, whilst raising awareness of sustainable development in the classroom and in local communities across the country.

The programme is based on an innovative circular bioeconomy model. Pupils, teachers and the wider local community are encouraged to collect their used oil. Participating schools act as collection points for the oil. Akti sells the oil to companies that transform it into biodiesel. The novelty of Tiganokinisi is the close link between environmental education and the provision of funds by Akti to schools through the sale of the used oil. The profits go back to the schools, with each school receiving around EUR 500–600 for each tonne of collected cooking oil at the end of the school year. Schools invest this in green infrastructure and technology, with a view to furthering environmental education and promoting technological innovation.

The programme’s website includes an educational page with materials to help schools identify green technologies that they can implement and collaborate with to develop experiential educational actions. Ideas range from simple ones, such as growing a vegetable garden, to more technological long-term solutions, such as installing solar panels – all of which can be financed through the programme.

The programme was launched in collaboration with the Pedagogic Institute of the Cypriot Ministry of Education and Culture which has approved the educational goals of the programme. The partnership with the institute is important for the success of Tiganokinisi. It ensures the commitment of schools and has allowed the programme to gain high-profile political visibility and cross-party support.

Enterprises and the wider public are also an active part of the programme. Enterprises, for example, can give their unused cooking oil to their local schools as part of their corporate social responsibility strategy. In this way, Tiganokinisi goes beyond the classroom, raising awareness in the wider community of a pressing environmental concern, and the potential of a community-driven solution.

Key results and benefits

Tiganokinisi has been instrumental in bringing the topic of sustainable development into schools and the wider community across Cyprus. From a pilot project involving five schools in 2012, the programme has developed into a nation-wide initiative, with the participation of 400 schools – 85% of all schools in the country. Trained programme staff visit around 300 schools per year to run educational workshops on environmental issues. The programme increases the environmental awareness of teachers, parents and pupils. Since 2014, over EUR 250 000 generated by the programme was invested in green infrastructure and technologies in participating schools nation-wide. The programme has also created jobs for science university graduates, who are employed by Akti to deliver the educational activities of the programme.

Beyond its direct impact, Tiganokinisi has also contributed to policy and legislative change in Cyprus in the field of social innovation. Cyprus has no legal, regulatory or fiscal framework for social enterprises, but a new law on social enterprises was proposed in 2019 and is now with the house of representatives for final approval. This is partly thanks to the emergence and success of programmes such as Tiganokinisi.

Potential for mainstreaming

The programme is an example of the circular economy in action. The simplicity of the action – collecting oil from your home or your workplace – makes the project transferable to other countries in Europe, where waste remains a key concern and environmental awareness is on the rise. A key condition of such a transfer would be political support and partnerships with relevant educational authorities which have been instrumental in the mainstreaming of the programme country-wide. In Cyprus, Tiganokinisi currently collects 150 tonnes of domestic waste (used cooking oil) per year, out of a potential 2 000 tonnes. Tiganokinisi is planning to develop cooperation with waste management authorities to scale-up its activities, address the problem more comprehensively and diversify its funding sources.

The positive impact and the potential for internationalisation of Tiganokinisi has been recognised through the award of the Horizon 2020 SME Instrument Phase 1 Grant to Isotech, the developer of the programme. The grant of EUR 50 000 is for the development of a business model and feasibility study for the internationalisation of the Tiganokinisi programme, under its new name ‘InnovOleum’. Isotech, aims to develop a blueprint that will allow the replication of the programme in other countries, through a social franchise scheme.