The “Green Embassy Week” has just ended. The event was organized by the Diplomatic Representation in Brasilia, the first Italian Diplomatic Mission to be certified as “Green” and the first Embassy in the world to obtain the “Lixo Zero” (Zero Waste) certification for the minimum amount of solid waste that goes to landfills. The initiative aimed to spread ideas and best practices for the implementation and dissemination of the culture of sustainability. The full calendar of events included conferences, guided tours of the “Lixo Zero” realities present in the city of Brasilia, and educational seminars for schools.
The “Week” started with an opening evening held in the Nervi Room of the Embassy, with a video message introduction by the Undersecretary of State for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Manlio Di Stefano, who stressed the great environmental commitment of the Farnesina and of the Italian diplomatic-consular network around the world. During the opening event, the Italian Ambassador, Francesco Azzarello, received the international “Zero Waste Embassy” certification from the Lixo Zero Institute in Brazil for the second year in a row. In fact, in 2021, the Italian Representation in Brasilia was the first in the world to receive this certification, having achieved the goal of sending less than 3% of waste to landfills, allocating the remaining 97% to the processing, recycling or reuse of solid waste.
The Embassy will soon sign a contract with a local cooperative for the recycling of cigarette butts and cooking oil, based on a project by the Federal University of Brasilia, and will engage in increasing the production of clean energy thanks to solar panels installed on the roof of its building and the implementation of environmental education projects for schools in the Federal District. Lastly, the book in Portuguese “Cidades Lixo Zero” [Zero Waste Cities] was launched, sponsored by the Embassy. In this book, the President of the Lixo Zero Institute in Brazil, Rodrigo Sabatini, and the architect and urban planner, Tainá Wanderley, present the Brazilian Zero Waste Model for urban solid waste management, based on the pioneering Italian inspiration. The “Week” ended with the world premiere of the video “Manual do Mundo” [World Manual] filmed at the Italian Embassy headquarters.
