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On November 1, the association Zero Waste Latvia together with partners - the association  Green liberty,  Clean R, SIA ZAAO and Eco Baltia VIDE opened a digital platform for promoting the circular economy - Lietovelreiz.lv. The platform serves as an instrument, where you can find various repair and rental service points all over Latvia in one place on the map, as well as receive products available in the catalog for free or for a nominal fee, thus reducing the purchase of new items and promoting a longer life of existing items.

At the opening of the platform at the Goethe Institute in Riga, the project implementers presented the new platform available for everyone now, and also discussed challenges and future upgrades to be considered in order to improve the functionality of the platform. Zigrīda Murovska, head of the Goethe Institute's Library of things, shared her two years of experience in circulation of the current collection, Agita Pusvilka told about the investment so far in the development of the platform from the Green liberty initiative "Tīri.labi" and active communication with all Latvian municipalities during the development of the platform. The manager of the platform development project from Zero Waste Latvia, Evija Ozola - Ozoliņa, presented the goals and solutions of the platform, demonstrating its functionality.

The new platform is created to encourage society to engage in more sustainable practices in their everyday lives and to engage in the circular economy. The maps with repair and rental points in Latvia and the item catalog available on the Lietovelreiz.lv platform are a support for the transition to a circular economy, which helps to reduce the amount of potentially generated waste and discarded items. It was developed as one of the activities of the European Union's LIFE program integrated project "Waste To Resources Latvia - boosting regional sustainability and circularity". Platform’s technical solution was developed by SIA White Digital.

As part of the same project, less than a month ago, CleanR, together with Zero Waste Latvia and other partners, opened an exchange point for construction materials and repair activity items, where every resident can hand over, pick up or exchange things they need - paints, brushes, wallpapers, interior items, electrical engineering, small plumbing, also construction debris, in return taking rubble or soil, etc. From now on, the items available at the exchange point will also be presented on the Lietovelreiz.lv platform.

"We are glad that our cooperation partner "Zero Waste Latvija" continues to develop the website www.lietovelreiz.lv, offering residents new opportunities that promote the circular economy. This app is also synced with the CleanR exchange point inventory system, so everyone will be able to see up-to-date information about the stock available at the exchange point. That way, before going to the sorting area "Nomales", Brivnieku iela 11, residents will be able to find out if what they need is available at the exchange point at that particular moment,"CleanR" board chairman Valerijs Stankevičs explains.

The introduction of the Lietovelreiz.lv platform is in line with broader sustainability initiatives and Latvia's commitment to achieving EU goals in the field of waste reduction and recycling. By facilitating access to repair services and providing information on environmentally friendly alternatives, the platform is expected to make a significant contribution to the country's efforts to reduce waste.

SIA ZAAO will create a business-oriented repair and recycling center or "Vidzeme Regional Circular Economy Center" in Valmiera, Dzelzceļa Street 5, within the framework of the implementation of the joint project.

Work on the implementation of the project started in April 2022. The construction project of the "Vidzeme Regional Circular Economy Center" has been developed and submitted to the construction board for approval. Intensive work is currently underway on the development of the operational model of the center to determine cooperation between ZAAO, which is the owner of the territory of the local repair and recycling center, and suppliers of various items and waste to be repaired or recycled in the center, social entrepreneurs who will be involved in the center's operation. It is planned to involve marginalized groups (long-term unemployed (especially young people and people of pre-retirement age)) in the activity of the center. Its also considered here how to organize training and educational events.

The "Vidzeme regional circular economy center" plans to put into operation, equip and start the operation of the center at the beginning of 2026, when it will also start more intensive work on the www.lietovelreiz.lv platform. Currently, the platform contains contact information of SIA ZAAO and information about the exchange points, which were created and placed in two SIA ZAAO's ECO fields - in Cēsis, Lapsu Street 19, and in the landfill Daibe ECO field. (The activity was implemented with the support of the "Tīri.labi City without waste" initiative, which is implemented in Latvia by local governments in cooperation with the association Green liberty, thanks to the financial support of The Coca-Cola Foundation).

Citizens, businesses and organizations are encouraged to explore the platform's resources, actively promote the circulation of things and extend their life, and share their experiences of sustainable practices with others.

In order to supplement the map, the implementers of the Lietovelreiz.lv project invite you to suggest repair shops, workshops and rentals. This can be done by emailing lietovelreiz@zerowastelatvija.lv