InnoWATER – Education, Action and Advocacy for Communities Taking Responsibility for Plastic in Waterways
InnoWATER – Education, Action and Advocacy for Communities Taking Responsibility for Plastic in Waterways is a project dedicated to reducing plastic pollution in waterways and strengthening a lasting environmental culture in the Băile Tușnad and Surroundings ecotourism destination.
The project responds to the need for greater awareness of the impact of plastic on water, aquatic ecosystems and local communities. In the Ciuc Basin, streams and rivers are both part of the region’s natural heritage and part of everyday community life and the identity of the ecotourism destination. Protecting them therefore requires more than one-off clean-up actions: it also requires education, civic involvement and cooperation among schools, young people, communities and businesses.
Through InnoWATER, the Project Bag Association involves pupils, teachers, Junior Ranger groups, local communities and managers of tourism and commercial businesses in educational and practical activities focused on protecting waterways and reducing plastic at source.
Project activities include the development of educational materials and programmes about plastic pollution, recycling, water protection and the effects of waste on nature. Pupils take part in applied learning, outdoor activities, workshops, demonstrations and educational programmes that help them understand connections between water, biodiversity, responsible consumption and ecosystem health.
Activities for young people play a central role in the project, including InnoWATER Camp, a two-day educational camp, and InnoWATER Days, a thematic event bringing together pupils from Harghita and Covasna counties. These activities help develop responsible environmental behaviour and strengthen participants’ civic and green skills.
The project also includes practical actions for cleaner water, field-based education and demonstrations related to aquatic life and the effects of plastic on ecosystems. At the same time, InnoWATER addresses plastic reduction at source through workshops with tourism and commercial operators across the destination. These meetings are intended to identify realistic, sustainable solutions for reducing plastic use and to develop a shared local strategy.
Through education, action and cooperation, InnoWATER contributes to a community that is more responsible towards water, nature and local resources, while also supporting the green identity of the Băile Tușnad and Surroundings ecotourism destination.
First activity: a two-day educational camp at Tușnadu Nou
The first educational activity of InnoWATER was a two-day tent camp at Tușnadu Nou for children and young people interested in nature, water and environmental protection.
More than 80 participants took part in educational activities, team games, shared programmes and direct experiences in nature. Over the two days, participants explored in a practical and friendly way why waterways, streams and natural habitats need protection and how plastic affects the environment and aquatic life.
The activities emphasised experiential learning. Children had opportunities to observe, ask questions, collaborate and connect more closely with the surrounding natural environment. Through games, discussions and outdoor programmes, the camp created an engaging setting for the project’s core themes: clean water, biodiversity, environmental responsibility and reducing plastic pollution.
The Tușnadu Nou camp demonstrated that environmental education becomes more powerful when it is experienced directly in nature through activities that actively involve children and help them understand their own role in protecting the environment.
The InnoWATER project is part of the Cu Apele Curate grant programme administered by the Romanian Association for Community Relations (ARC) and supported by Lidl Romania. The grant programme is part of the wider Cu Apele Curate initiative implemented by MaiMultVerde Association with support from Lidl Romania.
