ABOUT US
Zero Waste Montenegro
OUR MISSION
The mission of Zero Waste Montenegro is to promote the concept and methodologies of zero waste in Montenegro following zero waste hierarchy, to guide cities to become zero waste municipalities and link up with decision-makers and businesses toward most efficient waste management.
Zero Waste Montenegro aspires to raise awareness and advocate changing laws and behaviour patterns to stop littering and reduce waste production at the source. Methodologies involve alternatives to single-use products and packaging, reusing and recycling discarded materials locally, and moving away from waste incineration (learn here why) and landfilling.
OUR VISION
Our vision is a complete societal and cultural shift in the way waste is being perceived and addressed in Montenegro. All of the stakeholders in society – business, municipalities, public and private institutions and citizens play an essential role in this transition by incorporating concepts of zero waste and circular economy into their daily operations.
Our vision is part of the global ecological transition, acting under environmental justice and with respect for human rights and better consideration of the most disadvantaged and future generations.
Our History
Zero Waste Montenegro was founded in March 2015 by Alexandra Aubertin, French environmental consultant and activist and Azra Vuković, now a director at the well-known Montenegrin environmental NGO Green Home, and formerly director of the National Parks of Montenegro. Together they decided to create an entity focusing on one of the largest environmental issues in Montenegro: waste management. For the first 3 years, several motivated volunteers worked on small projects with a big impact to create awareness on waste issues and initiated the first coalition of NGOs working together on a common goal of raising awareness on the sources and dangers of single-use plastic pollution in Montenegro: Cleanupmontenegro.me. Now ZWMNE has grown and its team of full and part-time employees is now led by a Steering Committee.
Zero Waste Montenegro is an official member organisation of Zero Waste Europe, a core member of the global movement Break Free From Plastic and national Coalition 27.
Legal status: Since November 2016, ZWMNE is registered as a non-governmental organization under the number 8388 in the registry of non-government organizations with the Ministry of Justice of Montenegro.