Winner: Team Edu Box
Team Edu-Box won first prize. Not only did they develop an intervention aimed at tackling the waste problem in the canteens of the Hollandse Delta district water board, but they also came up with a way to put the collected food waste to a high-quality use. A large part of the food waste in the canteen of the Hollandse Delta district water board is going to waste. The Edubox consists of special waste bins which are designed to encourage users of the canteen to better sort their VGF waste. The collected food waste is then turned into compost. To thank them for their efforts, the district water board’s employees receive a biobox containing everything they need to make seed bombs from the composted food waste from their own canteen. That way, they save food waste from the incinerator and they get a little extra to make their garden, balcony, or neighborhood greener.

Second place: Emerge
Emerge took home the second prize. They discovered that part of the plastic which the Rijnland district water board retrieves from rivers with Bubble Barriers could be recycled and converted into plastic bars. They used these plastic bars to design a loan station with waste grabbers and special waste bins made from this material. The idea is to return these items to the area where the plastic is collected to encourage even more people to collect waste

Honorable mention: Brijn

The honorable mention went to Team Brijnwater. Brijnwater is salty water and a by-product of the wastewater treatment process of the Hollands Noorderkwartier district water board. The team discovered that this water is so contaminated that you cannot make a new product with it. The contamination might be reintroduced into nature again as a result. Therefore, they decided to look for a better water treatment method to prevent the production of brine water.

Ecological wood wax and ecological soil improver

Besides the Edu Box, Emerge and Brijn, ideas for sewer grease and ecological clippings were also pitched. Team Future Abiding Technology found a way to separate grease from other materials in the slurry for Aqua Minerals and Waternet. The team developed a protective coating for wood from these materials. Soil improvement granules were developed from the clippings of the Schieland and Krimpenerwaard district water board to improve soil quality in fields.

Challenges

BlueCity Circular Challenge - October 2025