Blog
- MESA products in the spotlight during Fair Trade Weeks from 12 to 25 MayYou’ve probably seen it on posters around Esch, or in the window of MESA (thanks to our intern Alix for creating this ephemeral window display). We’re starting the second week of our Fairtrade campaign, in collaboration with Fairtrade. In the grocery shop, as in the preparation of the delicious MESA meals, the commitment is expressed… Read more: MESA products in the spotlight during Fair Trade Weeks from 12 to 25 May
- Esch-sur-Alzette, a model city for ecological transitionInterview with Meris Sehovic, alderman of the City of Esch, responsible for environment and mobility, among other areas. How did your keen interest in ecology come about?My first contact with ecology and climate change was around 2008/2009, when my mother showed me the American documentary “An Inconvenient Truth” by Al Gore. For many people of… Read more: Esch-sur-Alzette, a model city for ecological transition
- Streaming: the tip of the digital icebergTo mark Digital Clean-up Awareness Week (10-16 March), Facilitec organised a screening of the ARTE documentary ‘Frankenstream, ce monstre qui nous dévore’ (‘Frankenstream, the monster that devours us’.), followed by a lively debate with digital experts. What issues were raised by our guests and the audience in attendance, and above all what concrete actions can we… Read more: Streaming: the tip of the digital iceberg
- Monday 17 February 2025 – the day Luxembourg has already used up its share of resources for the yearA cry of alarm or yet another reminder of a climate emergency that has become difficult to ignore. I found it difficult to write this article, not only because I feel that we are taking a step backwards, or at least that we haven’t done enough. But on reflection, this date is a challenge to… Read more: Monday 17 February 2025 – the day Luxembourg has already used up its share of resources for the year
- Discovering CASA LallangeA group of residents from Lallange and the surrounding area got together to celebrate Liichtmëssdag. A procession of around thirty children and adults, carrying lanterns, shared a warm moment. This convivial event was also an opportunity to officially launch CASA Lallange, a meeting place designed by and for local residents. What will CASA Lallange mean in… Read more: Discovering CASA Lallange
- The Digital Clean-up Day Campaign that’s right for youOn 15 March, we’re holding a day to raise awareness of the environmental footprint of digital technology. Being concerned about the environment also means being aware of our digital usage. This day is part of an awareness-raising initiative aimed at contributing to responsible digital use. It’s a great opportunity to share some convivial moments with… Read more: The Digital Clean-up Day Campaign that’s right for you
- André Zewen: An Organic Walnut Farmer Tackling Environmental ChallengesGet to know André Zewen, who has spent 42 years cultivating walnuts while staying true to his vision of sustainable farming in harmony with nature. Despite facing a particularly tough year with harvests halved, André remains steadfast in his commitment to producing high-quality organic products and preserving biodiversity. Adapting to Climate Challenges with Resilient Agriculture… Read more: André Zewen: An Organic Walnut Farmer Tackling Environmental Challenges
- Portraits of engaged citizensDiscover the portraits of six citizens engaged in the ecological transition in Esch-sur-Alzette.These inspiring volunteers actively participate in various projects led by Transition Minett, thus contributing to building a more sustainable future for their community. Meet them through these testimonials and delve into their varied initiatives, bringing about change. Commitment and passion: Meeting with Céline… Read more: Portraits of engaged citizens
- Waste Reduction Week is over, but action is all year roundWith the European Week for Waste Reduction having just ended at virtually the same time as COP 29, we continue to move dangerously close to a point of no return in terms of the use of limited natural resources. Added to this are international geopolitical challenges that are taking us further and further away from… Read more: Waste Reduction Week is over, but action is all year round
- Eco-citizen initiatives as solutions to planned obsolescenceSébastien Kanarek, head of Facilitec’s participatory workshop, was one of the guest speakers at the round table on ‘Obsolescence and the circular economy: between environmental challenges and economic and social opportunities’, organised by the Circular Innovation Hub of the City of Wiltz and Infogreen on 15 October at Wiltz Castle. The event provided an opportunity to… Read more: Eco-citizen initiatives as solutions to planned obsolescence
- Repair Café – Learning to extend the life of our items!Repair Cafés, workshops organized by Facilitec in Esch, are dedicated to repairing everyday items, in order to help extend the life of products but also to strengthen environmental awareness and solidarity within local communities. What is a Repair Café? A Repair Café is a place where expert volunteers, often DIY enthusiasts, share their skills to… Read more: Repair Café – Learning to extend the life of our items!
- Esch’s new ecological transition mapDiscover and download the map with all the places linked to the ecological transition in Esch-sur-Alzette:
- ECO-ANXIETY: some tips to improve our mental healthMay 2023 (Forli, Emilia Romagna, IT) = On a sunny afternoon of a dry season, alternating with violent rains here and there, I read on my phone screen the civil protection’s weather alert for heavy rain forecast. I dismissed the problem without thinking, and that same evening, and for the next 48 hours, it fell… Read more: ECO-ANXIETY: some tips to improve our mental health
- Buy less and more consciously: a “trend” that will help your wardrobe…and the ecology!To find out more about the problem, just pass by “rue de l’Alzette” in Esch In Luxembourg alone, the average person throws away 12 kilos of clothes a year, of which only 1% is recycled. So where does the rest go? This is the question that the exhibition “The Revival“, on display until May 11th… Read more: Buy less and more consciously: a “trend” that will help your wardrobe…and the ecology!
- Focus on energy cooperativesInterview with Abbes Kalmes President of TMEnerCoop S.C It’s a group of people who come together to pursue a social project that produces goods and/or services. In this case, we’re talking about the production, and soon the sharing, of renewable energy. You can do both, but investing in a cooperative allows you to make a… Read more: Focus on energy cooperatives
- Climate (in)justiceWhen we talk about climate change, we quickly conjure up images of drought and flooding in Africa or Asia, with their disastrous consequences for local populations and harvests. But they also exist in our latitudes. July 2021. The Alzette turned into a fury and floods everything in its path. In Germany and Belgium, the consequences… Read more: Climate (in)justice
- Long live cycling!The transportation sector accounts for almost 60% of CO2 emissions in Luxembourg, compared with only 30% for our neighbours. This is partly due to the strong attachment to personal cars (700 cars per 1,000 inhabitants, 1st place in Europe). What’s more, half of all journeys of less than 5km are made by car! A fundamental… Read more: Long live cycling!
- Food: choose change!The agricultural production sector is one of the main emitters of greenhouse gases. More than ever, it is important to turn to local, planet-friendly agricultural production. Guaranteeing the human right to food, as well as the right of farmers to live in dignity (see international agreements signed by Luxembourg), is also crucial. In Luxembourg, only… Read more: Food: choose change!
- A ‘hot’ year in Esch!Projet Metzeschmelz, © Agora 2023 was the hottest year on record, and at the beginning of 2024 the planet exceeded 1.5°C for the first time in 12 consecutive months (1). Since the main factor in global warming is the accumulation of Greenhouse Gases (GHG), all the climate agreements aim to reduce them drastically and as… Read more: A ‘hot’ year in Esch!
- Adapting without surrendering …. It can be done!The Paris Agreement adopted in 2015 was a historic celebration! It was the first time, in more than thirty years of climate conferences, that the world community managed to agree on an ambitious and above all binding objective: To reduce greenhouse gas emissions in order to limit global warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels (1).… Read more: Adapting without surrendering …. It can be done!
- 12 minutesIn Luxembourg, but also in most other European countries, that’s the average length of use of a new drill over its lifetime! Twelve minutes. For most of them, that’s the time it takes to fix to the wall the shelf on which… you’re going to leave the drill for the rest of its life!And it’s… Read more: 12 minutes
- The winter anti-waste recipe: Rabanadas
- Circular economy (podcast)In this episode, Yasmin Labidi (Transition Minett association) talks with Caroline Holz and Miss Bak about circular economy, local economical activities that respect the environnement and about alternative economy. Caroline Holz is the coordinator at Facilitec in Esch at the Transition Minett association. She trained as a landscape architect and urban planner, and was involved… Read more: Circular economy (podcast)
- Do you you know what Facilitec is ? Facilitec, a third place for circular economyI’m sure you’ve been here many times before, or even come in for a visit, but do you really know what you can do at Facilitec? Housed in the former Claude Muller carpentry on Rue Berwart, 5 minutes from the train station in Esch-sur-Alzette, the place was renovated thanks to participative workshops and with second-hand… Read more: Do you you know what Facilitec is ? Facilitec, a third place for circular economy
- CCC – 1 year alreadyThe thematic groups of the Collectif Citoyen pour le Climat will soon be celebrating their one-year anniversary, and all of them already have some nice actions and achievements to their credit. As a reminder, the first meeting was on December 3rd 2022, and on June 29th we all got together at the Breedewee Garden in… Read more: CCC – 1 year already
- Second-hand in Luxembourg and surrounding areas
- The end of single use and the European Waste Reduction WeekIn 2019, Luxembourg launched the “Null Offall Lëtzebuerg” initiative. This strategy has four components: protecting soil and water / making better use of our objects / packaging sensibly / sustainable construction. Since January 1, 2023, single-use plastic objects have been banned in catering for meals consumed on site, but objects made of cardboard, paper or… Read more: The end of single use and the European Waste Reduction Week
- Climate change and human rightsInterview by Adriana Cardoso and Yasmin Labidi Thousands of climate displaced people in Belgium, Germany and France in 2021 and 2022 ; yes, climate change is also a concern here. Luxembourg is one of the richest countries in the world; it is also proportionally one of the biggest emitters of CO2 emissions, and therefore responsible for… Read more: Climate change and human rights
- The “circular economy” strategy in LuxembourgAugust 2nd, 2023. That’s the day on which human consumption of natural resources exceeds the planet’s capacity to reproduce them. For Luxembourg, it’s already February 14th! What can we do about it? One obvious answer is to make better use of existing resources and reduce the need for new ones as much as possible. This… Read more: The “circular economy” strategy in Luxembourg
- What if ?Yasmin Labidi, for Transition Minett in co-conception with Caroline Holz Do you also drive to the office in the morning and find yourself in endless traffic jams, rush to grab a coffee and take the paper cup which is supposedly recyclable-but-in-fact-no, then at lunchtime you eat a pizza and throw the box full of oil… Read more: What if ?