“Il Pomodoro. Buono per te, buono per la ricerca” is an initiative promoted by the Umberto Veronesi Foundation to raise funds for scientific research in the field of paediatrics, to ensure the best possible treatment for children with cancer and increase their chances of recovery. In the past edition, 1400 volunteers were involved in over 160 Italian squares; for a minimum donation of 10 Euro, they distributed a package with three cans of tomatoes (peeled, chopped and cherry tomatoes). This charitable initiative was possible thanks to the collaboration of ANICAV (Italian National Association of Industrial Canned Food Vegetables) and RICREA, and which made it possible to donate around 300,000 Euro to this important cause.
Tomatoes have always been a fundamental ingredient in the Mediterranean diet; it is a fruit low in sugars, rich in fibre, vitamins C and E, and mineral salts, such as potassium and phosphorus. It contains bioactive molecules such as polyphenols, powerful antioxidants, and carotenoids including lycopene, studied as an adjuvant in strengthening the immune system and in the prevention of certain types of tumours. The steel packaging helps to ensure the preservation of the product’s nutritional and organoleptic characteristics.

Organised by Slow Food, the Piedmont Region and the Municipality of Turin, “Terra Madre Salone del Gusto” is an international food and wine event that every two years brings to Turin agri-food producers and artisans from around the globe. The event consists of an exhibition part (the Market) and other activities such as conferences, forums, workshops, guided tasting sessions and cooking lessons.
Many topics are addressed, including biodiversity, soil and air, the climate crisis, and finding solutions to reduce the environmental impact of food production. In the intense and diverse schedule of the event’s latest edition, called “Food for Change”, food preservation techniques and steel packaging were also discussed. Thanks to the creativity of the Michelin-starred chef Moreno Cedroni, the undisputed protagonists of gourmet dishes were anchovies and tomatoes, two excellences of the Mediterranean diet mainly preserved in steel cans and tins. The event was also an unmissable opportunity to review the nutritional characteristics and preventive function of foods such as anchovies and tomatoes – characteristics and functions perfectly preserved by canning. The event was conceived and organised by RICREA, in collaboration with ANFIMA (Italian National Association of Rigid Metal Packaging Manufacturers), ANCIT (Italian National Association of Fish Preservers and Tuna Fisheries) and ANICAV (Italian National Association of Industrial Canned Food Vegetables). RICREA has been the Environmental Partner of Terra Madre Salone del Gusto for seven years.

“Slowfish” is the international event dedicated to fish and sea resources in which RICREA has been participating since 2009 as an Environmental Partner, because steel containers are the most used packaging for storing fish products such as anchovies, mackerel, tuna and sardines. As part of the event, the consortium organises creative workshops for little ones, such as “Il rompi-scatole” [The can breaker], and for an older audience, such as “Tu come lo fai?” [how do you do it?], a musical show made with instruments obtained from steel packaging. RICREA also supports Slow Food and AMIU [waste management agency] in supervising the recycling centres arranged in the exhibition area, contributing to the training of volunteers who supervise the correct disposal of waste by visitors. The event is organised by Slow Food and the Liguria Region, with the patronage of the Municipality of Genoa and the Ministry of the Environment and the Protection of the Territory and the Sea, with the support of the Chamber of Commerce of Genoa and the participation of the Ministry of Agricultural, Food, Forestry and Tourism Policies.

“Circonomìa” is the Circular Economy and Territorial Energy Festival held in Piedmont since 2016. It involves citizens, businesses, public administrations, organisations and consortia that have identified the circular economy as the answer to environmental problems and risks. Circonomìa is aimed at a wide audience (not only at “experts”) to share ideas, strategies, good business and administrative practices, social and cultural changes that all share environmental protection as a goal. These changes are already transforming producing and competition practices in the economy, as well as lifestyles in society.
During the latest (fourth) edition of the event, an awards ceremony was held for the “Green Heroes”, i.e. the people and companies identified and chosen by the “Kyoto Club” as “Italian champions” of the circular economy.
Valentina Re, from the RICREA Technical Area, intervened for the Consortium, underlining how separate waste collection is the first step in a Circular Economy process that is fundamental for environmental sustainability.

“KISS Mugello” – Keep It Shiny and Sustainable – is the environmental and social sustainability programme of the Oakley Italian Grand Prix. RICREA and Corepla offer their support to the event, with the common goal of making spectators and operators aware of the importance of adopting an environmentally friendly behaviour, starting from correctly separating steel and plastic packaging waste.
At the info desk in the paddock, Ricrea and Corepla set up a special area for visitors, equipped with benches made of recycled steel and plastic: a “comfortable” way to touch the advantages of separate waste collection and discover the value of packaging recycling, a message that was further “stressed” by staff distributing information and gadgets. Since the first editions of the KISS programme, Ricrea and Corepla – in collaboration with Alia Servizi Ambientali [environmental services] – have focused on involving motorcycling enthusiasts and rallying them round the theme of sustainability. This year, once again, the good performance levels of separate waste collection achieved in past editions have been widely exceeded, thus reducing the environmental impact of the major sporting event.

The RICREA Consortium is a supporting partner of “CinemAmbiente”, the festival that presents the best films and documentaries on the environment in the international arena.
In the past edition, the first with the participation of the Consortium, the “RICREA Award” for the best Italian documentary went to “Il sorriso del gatto” [The smile of the cat] by Mario Brenta and Karine De Villers. The jury also awarded a special mention to “Controcorrente” [Against the current] by Claudia Carotenuto and Daniele Giustozzi. The messages of sustainability and valorisation of the Circular Economy principles were also conveyed through a video of the Consortium, broadcast before the screenings of the competing Italian films.
The CinemAmbiente Festival was born in Turin in 1998 and is organised by the Associazione CinemAmbiente, jointly with the Museo Nazionale del Cinema [Italian National Cinema Museum]. The Festival is part of the Green Film Network, an association that brings together environmental-themed film competitions around the world.

With the EcoLoTor By RICREA team, led by the athlete Roberto Cavallo, RICREA supports “Tor des Géants”, the toughest ultra-trail in the world held in Val d’Aosta for the past ten years. The sporting competition is linked to the EcoLoTor environmental sustainability project, which has extended the environmental criteria and sustainability procedures to all sporting events in the Aosta Valley. Great attention is paid to waste management. To reduce the overall amount of waste produced and to guarantee the highest percentage of waste separation and recovery, supplies and procurements are selected by evaluating the lowest production of waste, the recyclability of waste, sustainability brands, and logistical organisation. Very careful organisation before, during and after the event led to the achievement, in the latest edition of the Tor, of the remarkable percentage of 84.94% separate waste collection in the life bases.
Furthermore, the “Charter for Sustainable Sporting Events” (or “Courmayeur Charter”) was ratified, as part of the activities promoted by the green EcoloTor project. The document arises from the collective need of the national and international signatories to adopt actions aimed at making sporting events ecologically sustainable. The signing of the document, on the occasion of the tenth anniversary of the Tor des Géants, represents the culmination of a path of sustainability that the organisers started many years ago.

The “Giffoni Film Festival” (later Giffoni Experience and finally Giffoni Opportunity) is the film festival dedicated to cinema for children and teenagers. This year, Conai and the Consortia of the steel packaging recycling chain, RICREA first of all, participated with two initiatives, the Masterclass ECO and the Green Game. 
The Masterclass ECO was conceived and developed as a platform for raising awareness, training and informing the younger generations on environmental issues. The aim of the project is to direct young people towards an authentic civil mission to be carried out over time, day after day, transforming it into their profession. A group of 90 young people, aged between 16 and 34, took part in the Masterclass ECO, meeting sector operators and experts of the green economy and testimonials from the green world; they also studied case histories of companies or entities particularly involved in the development and dissemination of good practices. Over 1,000 Giffoni jurors took part in the Green Game, the interactive game on separate waste collection created by the six national supply chain consortia. A quiz where speed and competence count: it is essential to be well informed about the collection and recycling of the six materials.

“Festambiente” is the Legambiente eco-festival that offers visitors 5 days of music, cinema, exhibitions, food stands, debates and conferences on healthy eating, the environment and sustainability.
During the debate on the Circular Economy, which included participants such as Chiara Braga (member of the Environment commission in the Chamber of Deputies), Vittorio Bugli (Tuscany Region Councillor), Giorgio Zampetti (General Manager of Legambiente) and Giovanni Corbetta (General Manager of Ecopneus), the communication manager of RICREA, Roccandrea Iascone, underlined the fruitful collaboration of the Consortium with Legambiente: initiatives such as Trenoverde and Goletta Verde, aimed at making citizens aware of topics related to the advantages of recycling steel packaging through separate waste collection, have reached and raised awareness in a great number of people, contributing to the adoption of good practices.

“Comuni Ricicloni” is the Legambiente initiative, sponsored by the Ministry of the Environment, which rewards local communities, administrators and citizens who have obtained the best results in waste management: separated waste sent for recycling, but also the purchase of goods, works and services that have valorised the materials recovered from separate waste collection. RICREA participates with one of its representatives in the jury of Comuni Ricicloni, which includes representatives of Legambiente, CONAI, Fise Assoambiente, COMIECO, COREVE, CIAL, COREPLA, RILEGNO, Consorzio Italiano Compostatori [Italian Composters Consortium], Centro di Coordinamento RAEE [WEEE Coordination Centre], Assobioplastiche and IPPR. Starting from the 2016 edition of the initiative, emphasis has been placed on Waste Free Municipalities, i.e. the municipalities with a low production of general waste destined for disposal. The assessment of the waste management system is therefore based on the ability to contain and reduce the quantities of general waste destined for disposal. The rankings are drawn up on a regional basis. For each region, absolute winners are defined for four categories: municipalities with fewer than 5,000 inhabitants, municipalities with 5,000 to 15,000 inhabitants, municipalities with over 15,000 inhabitants, and provincial capitals. There are also winners for each waste category, plus winners of the special “Cento di questi consorzi” [One hundred of these consortia] category, dedicated to the best collection on a consortium basis. In addition to the prizes above (awarded in Rome), various special prizes are awarded at the jury’s discretion, in the presence of the Minister of the Environment in office, during the closing event of Comuni Ricicloni. The event also includes a conference attended by the main institutional representatives of the waste and products sector.

For its 50th anniversary, Amiat, the company that manages and provides waste collection and disposal services in the city of Turin, set up a celebratory exhibition called “50 anni di Amiat in mostra” [50 years of Amiat on display]. The future is in our history. The exhibition offered a narrative journey through the history of Amiat, closely linked with the city’s history and with the urban, social and economic changes that have occurred over the last fifty years. It includes the display of some equipment and vehicles used in the past for waste collection services, video testimonials of Amiat employees and former employees, and the technological changes made by the company in terms of industrial treatment of waste after collection.
A space is also dedicated to the evolution of communication, an area in which Amiat has been a pioneer, focussing considerably on informing and educating citizens. Some of the main campaigns were exhibited, including a film with an exclusive interview with Piero Chiambretti, the protagonist of a famous Amiat campaign from the 1990s. The Exhibition is completed by an “educational” space dedicated to environmental education activities reserved for young people and schools, plus a comic story of Taurino, the mascot created by an Amiat employee for the fiftieth anniversary. In the exhibition space there is also a selfie station, with the profile of Taurino, so visitors can take a commemorative photo. To take the shot, visitors can sit on a recycled steel bench made by the Ricrea Consortium, a solid way to understand the link between virtuous behaviours and the recovery of materials.

Eighteen sold-out dates, over 600,000 spectators, an event made unique and extraordinary by the peculiarity of the environmental realities in which the “Jova Beach Parties” were held. “We will leave our mark without leaving a mark” was the mantra of the Tour organisers and of Jovanotti himself. The complex organisational machine had the support of three consortia, RICREA, CiAl and COREPLA, which set up dozens of recycling points at each stage and organised groups of volunteers, who guided the spectators in the correct disposal of used packaging. At the end of the concert, extraordinary cleaning services were organised for the beach, with vehicles and people who ensured optimal conditions were restored very soon. Once again with the collaboration of the three consortia, what can be obtained from the recycling of plastic, steel and aluminium was put on display. A relaxation area was specially set up with recycled furniture items, and a demonstration was given at the end of the tour, with an explanation of what can be achieved with all the packaging correctly collected and separated during the concerts. Furthermore, at each stage of the Jova Beach Party, RICREA donated 100 steel pencil holders for the pupils of schools selected by the hosting municipality. With the crown caps collected during all the concerts, the artist Luigi Masecchia created a mosaic that reproduces the cover of Jovanotti’s latest album. The partnership with the Jova Beach Tour, the artistic event that made summer 2019 memorable, demonstrates that having fun does not mean forgetting about the environment: if everyone does their part, even big events can be a driving force for the diffusion of good practices and an example of environmental sustainability.

“Keep Clean and Ride” is the main Italian event of the “Let’s Clean Up Europe!” campaign. The event was created to raise awareness of littering among the public and the media by combining Sport with the Environment.
The “waste expert” and environmental popularizer Roberto Cavallo rode a 100% recyclable and environmentally friendly steel bike, accompanied by a personal trainer and triathlete, Roberto Menicucci, cycling along seven regions and the Adriatic coast: Puglia, Abruzzo, Marche, Umbria, Tuscany, Emilia Romagna and Veneto. In total, the two eco-athletes cycled over 1,000 kilometres, a route with a positive height difference of over 18,000 metres.
The run, promoted by AICA (Italian International Association for Environmental Communication) in collaboration and with the sponsorship of the Ministry of the Environment and the Protection of the Territory and the Sea, was supported by Conai and by the packaging recycling chain consortia Comieco, Corepla, Cial, Coreve and RICREA.

“Fa’ la cosa giusta!” is the first and largest national fair for ethical consumption and sustainable lifestyles, hosted in the pavilions of Fieramilanocity and now in its 17th year.
Born in 2004 from a project of the Terre di Mezzo publishing house, the initiative aims to make the “good practices” of consumption and production known and disseminated throughout Italy. It also aims to enhance specificities and excellences, while networking and in synergy with local institutions, associations and businesses. In addition to the market fair (products and services), its schedule includes over 450 events, workshops, meetings, presentations, tasting sessions, shows and many educational initiatives for schools and training opportunities for volunteers. The Steel Life project, promoted by the RICREA Consortium, fits into this context through an exhibition and a book dedicated to the recycling of steel packaging, with drawings by Alessandro Sanna and photos by Massimiliano Tappari. Art is the medium that explains the transformation that occurs when cans, tins, drums and caps come back to life, thanks to separate waste collection and a little imagination.

Bologna is world capital of the Environment with “#ALL4THEGREEN“, a “container” of 70 events to engage the widest possible audience, in order to prepare, introduce and “raise awareness” of the themes of the 2017 G7 Environment, the intergovernmental meeting of the most industrialised countries on Earth.
In this context, Conai and the supply chain consortia for the recycling of packaging material organised two events in Piazza Maggiore, the Concert for the Earth (directed by Maestro Ezio Bosso) and the Abi-Tanti project.
The conductor, composer and pianist Ezio Bosso, on Environment day, used great classical music (for him, simply “free music”) as a metaphor for the new challenges of the planet, with the new “Panta Rei” and the “REciclo”, a new term he coined to indicate the virtuous cycle of reusing materials.
The second event, Abi-tanti (“inhabitants” in Italian), was a “peaceful invasion” of over 11,000 sculptures created in Italy, Europe and around the world starting from recycled and therefore eco-sustainable materials. Recently, the Abi-tanti were protagonists of the Arts Learning Festival in Melbourne, which has environmental education interacting with the arts as one of its main objectives.
The citizens of Bologna were able to get to work, creating their own Inhabitants using steel, aluminium, paper, wood, plastic and glass packaging, with the support of the Artenauts of the Castello di Rivoli Education Department.

The “Research Panettone”, a tasty gift that does good! Here is a project promoted by the Umberto Veronesi Foundation and the RICREA Consortium. This charitable initiative, repeated every year at Christmas, provides for the distribution of a 1 kg panettone made according to the classic Balocco naturally leavened recipe. The sales proceeds are entirely donated to support scientific research on paediatric cancers.
RICREA participates in the project by providing elegant steel sheet boxes for packing the panettone, decorated with Christmas motifs, made of eco-compatible and eco-sustainable steel.
The Veronesi Foundation was established in 2003 on the initiative of Professor Umberto Veronesi and many other internationally renowned scientists and intellectuals, including 11 Nobel Prize winners, with the aim of promoting scientific research and prevention and health education projects.

Legambiente, with its itinerant campaign “Workshops for a green transition”, mapped 112 sites of Made in Italy ecological transition, which were presented on December 1st 2023 during the opening of the 12th National Congress called “Italy’s Worksite”. This result highlights how a journey towards a more sustainable economy is already taking shape in our country, which could aim to be a guiding light for the rest of Europe. Among the virtuous regions appears Sicily which, thanks to its 12 mapped worksites, outperforms Lombardy and Emilia-Romagna. This is a sign that shows how Southern Italy can become an important innovation hub.
As an example of a virtuous worksite, RICREA presented its collaboration with Acciaierie di Sicilia, situated in the Catania industrial district and part of the Alfa Acciai Group. As the only steel mill on the island, it provides a great example of circular economy of the steel industry, by producing raw material from scrap metal, which also includes steel packages coming from separated waste collection.
“We are very glad – states Domenico Rinaldini, RICREA President – to have been involved in this project, which is being presented during the congress works by Legambiente. It is an important setting for serious and high-value work. Being among the 112 virtuous worksites for Circular Economy chosen by this association makes us very proud as well as helping us raise awareness on the importance of keeping on communicating our best practices and our results in the field of steel packaging recycling”.
For Giorgio Zampetti, Legambiente’s general director, “The green transition is an old goal for Legambiente. We were already onto it in the 80s, when we wrote in our documents about a green new deal for the Italian economy. Then came the climate crisis, the emergency of the pandemic, the fossil industry speculations, the Russian military aggression in Ukraine and the Israel-Palestine conflict, which made this theme central in the latest political debate, but not how we expected. From here is born the idea of the worksites campaigns to tell the experience of who decided to face the climate crisis concretely. In the next years we will work on spreading these experiences all over the national territory”.

From September 29th to October 1st 2023 RICREA was in Genoa to run side by side with professional athletes and amateur runners in the World Plogging Championship. This event, now in its third edition, has the goal to promote the practice of plogging: jogging while collecting all the waste left on the streets, in order to finally send it to be recycled. It is a simple but extremely important gesture that each one of us can do to respect the environment.
To inaugurate the event, on September 28th 2023 the Cabannun theater in Campomorone hosted the show, produced by RICREA, “There is no Planet B”, by and with Roberto Cavallo. The show talked about key themes such as biodiversity, resource exploitment, waste and pollution, with the rhythm of the music by La Quadrilla Folk Band.
Find out more on worldploggingchampionship.com

On May 22nd 2023 the first “Festival of Social Progress – ideas and suggestions for a shared future” was hosted at the Fondazione Stelline in Milan. The main Italian experts on social and environmental progress had an exchange with authorities, media, journalists as well as the civil and scientific community of our country. The Festival of Social Progress is created as a dialogue between present and future perspectives, in order to start turning ideas of progress into new social architectures and concrete action. In today’s society the role of Infomercials is becoming even more crucial and requires a bigger effort for innovation and social inclusion.
The Great Contradiction of post-industrial society is there for all to see. The crisis we are facing is now structural and, as a matter of fact, new ideas and new cultural paradigms are needed. This event is especially stimulating for the expertise, the depth of reasoning and the variety of the contributions. The Fondazione Pubblicità Progresso was the aggregator and incubator of new ideas to create a better future, with a special focus on its three thematic fields: Environment, Soul and Art.
For what concerns the thematic field of Environment, there was a debate among distinguished speakers, such as: Matteo Bassetti Prof. e Director Infectious Diseases Clinic in Ospedale Policlinico San Martino in Genoa, Andrea Farinet President of Fondazione Pubblicità Progresso, Federico Fusari General Director of Consorzio RICREA, Serena Giacomin Meteorologist and Climatologist at Meteo Expert, Sergio Harari Prof. of Medicine and Director of Pneumology at Ospedale San Giuseppe in Milan, Luca Mercalli President of Società Meteorologica Italiana and scientific communicator, Alice Pomiato Tutor for more sustainable and ethical lifestyles and Social Ambassador PP, Francesco Vecchi Journalist, conductor and Writer (Mattino Cinque News – Canale 5).
For RICREA the festival represented an important occasion to highlight the importance of raising awareness on environmental problems also through waste collection, in addition to being an opportunity to present the results obtained by the consortium in the year 2022.
“Sensitivity to environmental issues – stated Federico Fusari in his speech – is the result of cultural progress and education that will involve especially younger generations, alongside with more mature ones. The progress towards a green transition is created through the direct awareness of how an individual’s action influences general behaviors. I refer to our Consortium’s experience, as it ensures the recycling of steel packaging thanks to separated waste collection, obtaining absolutely relevant results: we have already reached the 2030 european goals with the recycling of more than 80% of products sold to consumers.” In conclusion to the event, the “Libro bianco” was presented: a selection of speeches and articles provided by all the counselors of Fondazione Pubblicità Progresso, advisors and members of the Athena network (project created by the Fondazione and reserved to university professors interested in development, research and sharing of social communication). The Festival has got an institutional partner, which provides moral support: the European Parliament.