Muca Copatarica (Eng. Slipper keeper kitty) by Ela Peroci is second most read story in Slovenia. It talks about a cat who patched and cleaned slippers for children. Muca CUPatarica aims to teach youngsters to love and protect our planet by inviting them to her little house on the Slovenia-Italy border, where they can exchange used items for others, learn to renovate and reuse. Organization is cooperating with local kindergartens and schools where they implement workshops on exchange and reuse.

City Nova Gorica – Town Solkan, SI – 5000 Nova Gorica, Goriška region, North-West Slovenia

The main societal challenge faced by Goriška region and addressed by our idea is the pollution and other environmental impacts that are a consequence of bad waste management. Muca CUPatarica is supporting the lifestyle changes and transition to circular economy, starting with youth to lead by example. By influencing the youth, we can change and form their consumer habits to be more aware of reuse and exchange before buying new things. We first aim to prevent waste, prepare it for reuse, recycle and lastly, if not possible otherwise, dispose waste. Circular economy is recognized as one of the development potentials in the draft Regional Development Program for the Northern Primorska region 2021-2027, which can be accomplished by supporting the activities of Muca CUPatarica association.

Schoolchildren, high school students and college students will be included in the project idea through awareness raising, educating, training, other actions and practical workshops in the field of nature preservations with following activities:
• Adopting exchanging clothes, books, sports equipment, etc., through Muca CUPatarica house, instead of buying new items,
• Helping with collection of items for joint projects of Muca CUPatarica – for making re-use products (from bottles, clothes, scraps, leather, old tires…),
• Education and awareness raising about minimizing planet pollution,
• Practical workshops,
• Renovating or re-using new products from used items individually or with members and creators in Muca CUPatarica association

The activities of the project will be implemented in a few steps:
1. First step will be to establish a connection with local educational institutions; at least 2 kindergartens and 12 primary and secondary schools per year to include visits of Muca CUPatarica’s home and cooperation in their programs.
2. Second step is reception of the children in Muca CUPatarica’s house for presentation of the activities of the organization. The presentation would include possibilities of restriction and reduction of pollution with waste prevention and reduction, but also by reuse. The presentation would include the viewing of products and creations made with reuse processes.
3. The third step would be to establish a permanent and specific agreement on the cooperation between kindergartens, primary and secondary schools and Muca CUPatarica association. The cooperation would consist from children and students who are environmentally aware providing waste materials for reuse and product creation. The products will be used in Muca CUPatarica presentations and regular workshops that are organized by members and associates of the organization in schools, Muca CUPatarica’s house.
4. We plan to organize a public round table on waste prevention and management. We will include students of Gimnazija Nova Gorica who received an award for best school ambassador of the European Parliament.

First result is referring to social community – higher awareness of the population of the area where Muca CUPatarica is positioned. We also plan to influence a wider area of Goriška region so its population is mindfully approaching the process of getting supplies and is thinking not only about purchasing but also exchanging or reusing. The second goal is referring to the center itself. We want the activities to result in center coming to life by inclusion in the local society. Through inclusion of youth, we want to influence the adults and elderly. We want to increase number of workshops in local educational institutions to raise awareness of recycling and reusing from 2 workshops/ month to 4. We want to reach positive business results which will allow the association to expand their team.

The idea of Muca CUPatarica (Center of useful items) enables young people and other residents of the Goriška region to live in a healthier and cleaner environment and have a better future. The activities will encourage young people to enter consumer society with more critical thinking and encourage them to have in mind that the easiest solution to cover their needs (usually by buying different items) is not always the best solution for the environment and be aware of other possibilities, such as exchange and purchase of processed or reused items. We want the youth to become the leaders by example also for the adults and elderly and help us with all the society become more environmentally friendly and conscious.

The initiator and founder of Muca CUPatarica is Ms. Ana Jug, who is working on the creation of products with different materials and techniques, mostly from waste materials (plastic, fabric, leather and other). As a former city councilor, she worked in the field of nature protection and proposed for the municipality to enter the zero waste municipalities. Ms. Metka Magdalena Šori and Ms. Metka Mirt are both active members of Muca CUPatarica association. Ms. Šori is the initiator and co-founder of a similar center, positioned in Izola, Slovenia. Ms. Mirt is mostly working on the renovation and restoration of furniture and damaged objects. High school students Žiga and Nace Pavlica and Miha Mirt are cooperating in the project in the field of promotion and as assistants at the workshops.

Staff costs – including contracts (14.000 EUR)
Staff costs – external contracts, student work (8.000 EUR)
Travel and accommodation costs (3.000 EUR)
Office expenses and costs for materials (6.000 EUR)
External costs for space rentals, transport (2.000 EUR)
Costs for promotion materials (2.000 EUR)

We hope everybody got a good insight into our idea behind Muca CUPatarica. We would like to share opinions with other project ideas, especially in how to involve people in our activities, especially those who are differently-minded about our concept.