The planting of new trees along the left bank of the Drava River, near the pedestrian bridge in Osijek, marked the conclusion of this year’s From Source to Sea initiative. The project, run by Coca-Cola in cooperation with Konzum, the Association of Cities in the Republic of Croatia and Jutarnji list, encourages citizens to dispose of packaging waste responsibly and to take care of their local environment. This year, 32 cities across Croatia took part, and more than 2,200 volunteers collected almost 288 tons of waste.
Vrgorac won in the category of small towns, Sveta Nedelja topped the medium-sized category, while Osijek was the most successful large city. The three winning cities shared a prize fund of EUR 45,000, which they invested in planting trees at selected locations in their communities - helping reduce CO₂ emissions, improve environmental quality and enhance the well-being of local residents.
The closing event was attended by Željko Vuković, State Secretary at the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Green Transition, who expressed strong support for the initiative:
“This is truly a commendable project, and I want to thank everyone involved - first and foremost the organisers. But we are all aware that without the volunteers, the ordinary people who step in and do the work, much of this would not be possible. When I heard the figures on the amount of waste collected and the number of institutions and volunteers taking part, I was astonished. My sincere congratulations to all.” State Secretary Vuković also emphasised the importance of direct, on-the-ground environmental protection, a priority of the Ministry, as a foundation for the long-term sustainability of such initiatives.
Ivan Radić, Mayor of Osijek, also joined the closing ceremony, stating: “As part of the ‘From Source to Sea’ competition, we organised a clean-up action in Donji grad in June. Together with 38 volunteers- whom I especially want to thank, as they are most responsible for this result - and our utility company Unikom, we collected more than 21 tons of waste. With that, we proved that we are Croatia’s most successful large city in this year’s edition. As our reward, together with our partners, we are planting 46 poplar trees today along the left bank of the Drava.”
Igor Zgrabljić, Director of Corporate Affairs and Sustainability at Coca-Cola HBC Adria, stated:
“From Source to Sea project is a great example of successful cooperation between the private sector, public institutions and civil society organisations. Through joint efforts, we are raising awareness of the importance of responsible waste disposal and encouraging activities that contribute to environmental preservation. The project reminds us that protecting the environment is not the responsibility of a single company or institution, but a shared commitment - and an opportunity to build a more sustainable future together.”
The final event in Osijek was also attended by project partners: Miodrag Streitenberger, Regional Director for Eastern Croatia at Konzum, Marija Šarić, Mayor of Pleternica and member of the Association of Cities’ Presidency and Goran Ogurlić, Editor-in-Chief of Jutarnji list. They expressed their satisfaction with the results achieved in collecting packaging and other waste, and particularly with the strong turnout of citizens across Croatia - demonstrating just how important environmental care has become.
Coca-Cola in Croatia has been implementing From Source to Sea since 2018, in cooperation with government institutions and civil society organisations, with the aim of encouraging responsible waste management and protecting natural resources. Since its launch, 134 clean-up actions have been carried out, involving nearly 12,000 volunteers. In total, an impressive 932 tons of waste have been collected - the equivalent of filling 108 large trucks.
Over the years, Jutarnji list, Konzum and the Association of Cities in the Republic of Croatia have joined the project, supported by the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Green Transition and the Faculty of Forestry and Wood Technology at the University of Zagreb.
