Green Diary for Erasmus+ VET Schools Doing Greenlink opens on new page project 

Erik Riige, design teacher 

Kuressaare Ametikool 

Estonia 

SDG 11 – Sustainable cities and communitieslink opens on new page

When I've been running projects with students, I often think about how to make the impact stretch beyond just the school walls.

Sustainability issues are a broad topic to dive into, and while discussing it with students, you can find ways to combine the learning process with something that can have a positive impact for the whole community too.

One such project that combined sustainability and design was the pictography of new waste containers in the city of Kuressaare.

At one point, we discovered new shiny metal bins in our town, all labeled in Estonian—'paper,' 'plastic,' and 'deposit'. As citizens and design enthusiasts, those labels got us wondering: what exactly should go in each bin, and how could we help out a tourist who doesn't speak Estonian but wants to dispose of their soda bottle?

We decided to contribute by enhancing the existing labeling with pictograms to simplify waste sorting for a wider audience. As a result, three different pictograms were created, which seamlessly integrated with the existing labels.

We produced them independently on vinyl (sticker-like material) and installed them on the bins on a sunny spring day.

The conclusion of the project brought satisfaction for several reasons. Students had the opportunity to complete the entire design cycle, and the feeling of making a small personal contribution to the benefit of the community still warms the heart. Of course, the pleasant spring day outdoors was an added bonus.