Jena acts sustainably

The DRK facility "Sternschnuppe" was the first kindergarten in Jena to officially receive the "Fair Kita" certificate on 13.06.2019. This also makes it the first fair daycare center in Thuringia. The title is awarded by the "Fair Kita" project office of the "Faire Metropole Ruhr" network for an initial period of three years.

On its way to becoming a Fair Daycare Center, the facility dealt with various topics, such as the diversity of countries and a sense of justice. They also looked at the origin of food and visited a bee colony in the Kernberge mountains, learning about the connections between nature and the environment.

Almost at the same time, a partnership was established between the "Sternschnuppe" daycare center and the "Maribel Molina" preschool in San Marcos, Nicaragua, which further enriches the more than twenty-year town twinning between Jena and San Marcos.

The employees of Eine-Welt-Haus e. V. contributed significantly to the success of the project and the certification.

Further information on the first Fair Daycare Center in Jena can be found here.

School year 2014/15

Starting with the 2014/15 school year, a joint sustainable homework booklet (Möhrchenheft) was offered free of charge to all primary school pupils in the cities of Erfurt, Weimar and Jena. In Jena, 3700 booklets were distributed to the schools that wanted to use it.

The numerous positive responses from children, their parents, teachers and experts show that the "Möhrchenheft" was well received in 2014/15. We have succeeded in expanding the educational offerings for sustainable development in primary schools.

Over the next five years, an updated edition was produced for each school year.

Child-friendly topics in the areas of sustainability, climate protection and fair trade are designed to inform, sensitize and inspire. The children can link these topics to their everyday school life and pick them up there or at home. The mascot "Kiki Karotte" guides them through the booklet.

In June 2014, the booklet received the Climate Protection Award from the Jena-Thuringia Climate Protection Foundation. The project has also attracted interest at a national level. As an exemplary educational project for sustainable development, it received the "Werkstatt N quality seal" in 2015, which stands for excellent sustainability initiatives. The seal of quality is awarded by the German Council for Sustainable Development.

School year 2015/16

Another edition was realized for the 2015/16 school year, this time with a focus on "Fair Trade".

In addition to the cities of Erfurt, Jena and Weimar, the Ilm district and the city and district of Nordhausen also participated in the third edition on the topic of "Energy and Climate", which was created for the 2016/17 school year. This means that the "Möhrchenheft" is reaching more and more elementary school in Thuringia.

School year 2017/18

The fourth edition on the topic of "Biodiversity" has now been realized for the 2017/18 school year. In addition to the cities and districts already involved, the city and district of Gotha also took part. There are also interested teachers and parents from other places who have seen the booklet at friends' homes and are keen to have it.

School year 2018/19

For the 2018/19 school year, there was another edition on the topic of "Environment".

The Möhrchen booklet was nominated for the 2017 Audience Award of the German Local Sustainability Award (ZeitzeicheN Award) and also received its own website.

School year 2019/20

The new edition for the 2019/20 school year was produced on the topic of "Fair Trade" and could only be delivered before the start of school and not before the vacations as usual. There were production-related delays that we were unfortunately unable to influence.

School year 2020/21

Another edition on the topic of "Energy and climate protection" has been produced for the 2020/21 school year and has already been distributed to the schools in Jena that requested it.

In the 2020/21 school year, the carrot "Kiki Karotte" once again accompanied primary school pupils in Jena throughout the year. In this way, the children can learn how important a good climate balance is, what energy is needed for everywhere and how it can be saved.

School year 2022/23

For the 2022/23 school year, the booklet also includes a special page on "Moors", a topic of the Thuringia Nature Conservation Foundation. The content is presented in an appealing and fun way on 10 illustrated themed pages. Children can find out where chocolate comes from, how electricity gets into the lamp, what happens to a plastic bag in the sea, or which regional and seasonal fruit and vegetables are ripe in which month. Topics such as "Animal husbandry and conscious nutrition", "Mobility and the way to school", "Urban gardening" or "Owning, sharing and giving" should also lead to new insights and lively discussions. Many elements are also designed to encourage people to paint, do handicrafts, discover and browse. In this way, sustainability can be experienced and also involves the environment, teachers and parents.

School year 2023/24

How do you inform primary school pupils about sustainability issues? What exactly is fair trade? Where are my jeans made and where do bananas come from? Pupils at elementary school in Jena were given comprehensive information on these and other questions in the 2023/24 school year through the sustainable homework booklet "Möhrchenheft".

School year 2024/25

The focus of this edition is on the environment. The booklet explains what sustainability is, why plastic is bad for the stomach and why cows also want to go for a walk. In addition to the typical functions of a homework booklet, the "Möhrchenheft" also contains ten topic pages with a variety of tips and regional contact points as well as ideas for games and crafts to further deepen the content.

The fair trade coffee "San Jena" is the city coffee of Jena and a visible sign of the town twinning between the cities of Jena and San Marcos in Nicaragua.

• Origin: Cooperatives in the north (Boaco) and in the center of Nicaragua
• Cultivation altitude: 700 - 1,200 meters
• Variety: Arabica (Burbon, Caturra)
• Flavor: nutty, chocolate
• Availability: ground, whole bean, espresso

The Cafe Chavalo cooperative from Leipzig imports the twinned coffee. As San Jena is bought directly from the producers, there is no intermediate trade. This ensures that as much of the sales proceeds as possible go directly to the producers. In contrast to conventionally traded coffee, the stock exchange does not earn anything from this wonderful product.

In addition to these advantages, we also pursue a high social standard with the distribution of San Jena: with the city partnership coffee, you not only have a delicious drink in your cup, but also one that is produced fairly and sustainably and transported in an environmentally friendly way. By buying this coffee, you are also supporting the school education of three young people in San Marcos/Nicaragua.

You can find more information here.

The official inauguration of Jena's city chocolate took place on 04.11.2016 at the Jenaplan School. This fair-trade chocolate was presented there by Ms. Schneider, the branch manager of the CONTIGO Fairtrade Shop in Jena.

The idea of a city chocolate, which has already been realized in other cities by the CONTIGO Group, was something the employees also wanted to realize in Jena. But in Jena it was to be something special. Ms. Schneider therefore turned to the Jenaplan School. There, Ms. Schreiber listened to her suggestion to have the layout of the chocolate banderole designed by pupils. There was one problem: the time frame for this was tight due to the fall vacations and the pre-Christmas business. The pupils took on the task and challenge with great commitment and continued the work in their free time. This resulted in unique designs with great ideas. It was almost unimaginable to have to choose just one design.

In addition to the jury's votes, votes were also collected from parents and pupils. The count then resulted in 1st place for Floris Hansberg. She brings her picture to life as she sees her home town - young, lively, full of life and with a beautiful, relaxing paradise park. Floris has staged this convincingly for the Jenaer Paradies-Tafel.

The Jenaer Paradies-Tafel is produced by the Austrian chocolate manufacturer Zotter, which has developed its own creation for Jena.

One thing has become clear: the idea of fair trade is alive and well in Jena, and it also tastes good. The idea of a sweet business card has been successfully implemented and at the same time supports fair trade.

Sustainability means taking into account the long-term consequences and effects of one's own actions when making decisions. Sustainability means respecting and taking responsibility for our future. The city of Jena has also committed itself to the goal of acting sustainably. For this reason, fields of action and measures have been developed to help promote sustainability. Jena has also been a Fairtrade city since 2012, a title that constantly gives us new incentive to make the world a fairer place.

Our everyday actions not only influence local life, but also have an impact on the climate, nature, animals and the living and working conditions of people around the world. Through our individual sustainable consumption, taking into account social and ecological aspects when buying and using products and services, we can contribute to global, sustainable development on a daily basis. Among other things, this means buying consciously, fairly, seasonally and regionally and using consumption alternatives such as food sharing or repair initiatives. Responsible and sustainable consumption also means living and shopping in such a way that we and others will continue to be well off in the future.

One way of doing this is the free Jena "Wandelkarte"(Jena's "Wandelkarte"), which provides an overview of stores and other local offers to enable all interested parties to shop fairly and sustainably. The Wandelkarte was conceived by a group of young people on a voluntary basis back in 2016 and implemented as a printed product for the cities of Erfurt, Weimar and Jena. Inspired by this, the now nationally known "Karte von Morgen" was created shortly afterwards. The aim of the Wandelkarte is to be able to meet needs and requirements in a resource- and climate-friendly way, thus making sustainable consumption suitable for everyday use across the board. To achieve this goal, initiatives and offers, locations and exchange opportunities are recorded and mapped. The new Wandelkarte is part of a networked map ecosystem. The digital Wandelkarte project is essentially being created together with the Thuringian sustainability map, the "Map of Tomorrow" and the city of Erfurt and the city of Weimar.

Who makes my fashion? What does my fashion do to me? Do we have to follow every fashion? Where are my clothes made and what are the working conditions there?

The Eine-Welt-Netzwerk Thüringen e. V. and the agency Nachhall try to answer these questions at various events with lectures, films and discussions.

In 2015, at the beginning of the 4-month "Fashion Protest Jena" campaign from January to April, a thematic introduction to the topic of "Global Textiles" took place on 19.01.2015 in the Haus auf der Mauer. After an input from UNICEF Jena on the topic of children's rights and child labor in the textile industry, Anke Günther (FemNet e. V.) gave a presentation on the topic of Sumangali. Interactive elements and a stimulating discussion rounded off the event.

The biggest activity, however, was the "Clothing Cure", which is intended to help people reflect on and reduce their personal habitual over-consumption of clothing. The recommendation from"modeprotest" for this reduction exercise is to pick out 50 items of clothing from your own wardrobe and pack the rest away for just under 7 weeks. The aim is to create an awareness of your own needs.

Let's challenge ourselves: can we resist the fashion dictate of changing outfits every day?

On 05.02.2015 at 16:00, the "Clothes Cure" kicked off at the "Nähcafé - Kombinat für textiles Recycling"(Kassablanca Gleis 1). After a short introduction to the topic of clothing consumption, the participants had plenty of time to talk about clothing overconsumption and minimalism.

On 09.03.2015, an interim evaluation of the "Clothes Cure" took place at EWNT. Afterwards, the participants were able to watch a documentary showing the terrible production conditions in Asia.

On 14.03.2015, the women's flea market was held at SOBAEXA Coworking at Carl-Zeiß-Platz 3.

As a moving finale, a flash mob took place on the Holzmarkt on 24.04.2015 to mark the international Fashion Revolution Day.

As part of the Intercultural and Fair Week, a cinema day took place on 23/09/2016 from 20:00 in the Kino am Markt with the documentary "The True Cost" and on 27/09/2016 at 19:30 in the Ernst-Abbe-Bücherei with an author reading with Gisela Burckhardt on the topic "Todschick-Edle Labels, billige Mode-unmenschlich produziert" (further information can be found under Links).

As part of "Fashion Revolution Week 2019", the One World Network Thuringia and its partners once again organized an interesting series of events. For one week, various activities, offers and formats were used to draw attention to the human rights situation and conditions in the global textile industry.

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, "Fashion Revolution Week 2020" took place primarily in the digital space. Every day from April 20 to 26 was dedicated to a different focus topic in order to draw attention to the various aspects and effects of the global textile industry.

Switching from disposable to reusable packaging for food and drinks to-go

Together with fourteen other municipalities in Thuringia, Jena is taking part in the Thuringia-wide information campaign MISSION MEHRWEG from 01.06.2022 to switch from disposable to reusable packaging for food and drinks to-go and is helping to raise awareness among restaurants and consumers in order to conserve resources and make our environment cleaner.

Rising volumes of waste due to disposable takeaway packaging

Takeaway food and drinks have enjoyed great popularity, and not just since the coronavirus pandemic. According to the German government, 770 tons of packaging waste are generated every day in Germany by takeaway disposable packaging. The disposal costs of disposable packaging for takeaway food and drinks in public places and parks are also increasing, as are the energy and resource consumption and the impact on the environment and climate.

Reusable use instead of single-use plastic

One answer to the increasing amounts of waste is environmentally friendly reusable packaging. Reusable use instead of single-use plastic has an impact on CO2 emissions, protects against the unreflected consumption of resources and saves non-recyclable composite material.

The promotion of reusable packaging is therefore a significant contribution to environmental protection at municipal level. A reusable system systematically supports consumers in making environmentally friendly decisions. According to research by NABU, reusable products are used over 50 times more and therefore cause less waste and emissions.

"Thanks to the success of the MISSION MEHRWEG campaign throughout the city, we hope that reusable systems will meet with greater acceptance in the future and can be established permanently, and that many businesses in Jena will agree on a pooling system to make returns as easy as possible for customers," says Christian Gerlitz, Mayor and Head of the Department for Urban Development and the Environment.

Measures in Jena

The city of Jena has had a plastic-free concept for its markets and festivals since 2020: "Jena's markets and festivals plastic-free - support for reusable systems and degradable materials" (19/2240-BV). The administration and the city of Jena's own companies make a significant contribution to the avoidance of plastic waste with their options as a licensing authority for markets and events.

Furthermore, a website on the topic of plastic-free was also published, which explains the problem of plastic use, gives citizens tips on how to reduce plastic consumption and shows alternatives to plastic products.

Jena is also in the process of updating the Wandelkarten together with Erfurt and Weimar. The Wandelkarten were devised by a group of young people on a voluntary basis in 2016 and produced in print for the cities of Erfurt, Weimar and Jena. Inspired by this, the now nationally known "Map of Tomorrow" was created shortly afterwards - initiated by Helmut Wohlmann.

The aim of the Wandelkarten is to be able to meet needs and requirements in a resource- and climate-friendly way, thus making sustainable consumption suitable for everyday use across the board. In order to achieve this goal, initiatives and offers, locations and exchange opportunities are recorded and mapped. The new Wandelkarte is part of a networked map ecosystem, as the digital Wandelkarte project is essentially being created together with the Thuringian sustainability map "thueringen-nachhaltig.de", the "Map of Tomorrow" and the city of Erfurt and the city of Weimar.

Pigeon houses reduce the animal population and pollution

Since 2012, a concept has been implemented in Jena to reduce the population size of urban pigeons and the associated pollution caused by pigeon droppings. Supervised pigeon houses enable birth control by exchanging eggs for dummies, professional disposal of droppings and care for the animals.

The urban pigeon project is a sustainable, animal-friendly and effective solution for local authorities and property owners. The operation of pigeon houses is a proven and animal-friendly approach to a problem that cannot be solved by deterrence measures. Further information can be found on the volunteer-run project website.

Pigeon houses in Jena

The third pigeon house was opened in Jena's city center in autumn 2024. This cooperation model is financed by the city of Jena and local institutions and companies.

In addition, there are five other pigeon houses in Jena's urban areas that are run by private companies or volunteers. An overview of all managed pigeon lofts is published on the project website.

Successful implementation

The concept for reducing the urban pigeon population in a way that protects animals is being successfully implemented in Jena. In recent years, a drastic reduction in pigeon droppings and a reduction in the number of pigeons on roofs, in pedestrian zones and shopping arcades has been achieved. This is also associated with a reduction in costs for deterrence and cleaning measures.

Since the start of the project, over 15,000 pigeon eggs have been replaced with dummy eggs in Jena. Several tons of pigeon droppings are disposed of from the pigeon houses every year, which noticeably relieves the environment.

The Jena city pigeon project is seen as exemplary throughout Germany. Numerous cities have already learned about the approach and expertise in Jena.

Contribution to animal health

Supervised pigeon houses offer the feral domestic pigeons clean, weather-protected accommodation and a species-appropriate supply of grain food and drinking water. Hygienic measures support the goal of a healthy pigeon population that is compatible with the city.

The "Wenigenjena Community Garden" project has been under construction since May 2021. The city has made approx. 1500 m² of an area next to the KGA Talstein available for this purpose (Wenigenjena-17-6/11). The area had actually been prepared to accommodate replacement gardens for allotment gardens that are no longer needed. Due to a lack of demand from allotment gardeners, it has now been leased to someone else and thus put to horticultural use.