As part of the EcoSmartCities project, two cross-border competitions of the fourth grade of elementary school Ludbreg and their colleagues from the Hungarian City of Zalaegerszeg were held at the Intergeneration Center in Ludbreg. The first competition was held on Friday, November 9, 2018 at the Intergeneration Center in Ludbreg, and a week later the competition was held in Zalaegerszeg.

-Ludbreg wants to be a green city and in order to make it, it is important to include all age groups. The children have accepted this project very well, they have proved to be excellent in waste separation and I believe we have created a good pledge for the future - said Mayor of Town Ludbreg Dubravko Bilić.

The focus of this project is to strengthen the capacity of all stakeholders involved in waste management systems (citizens, local authorities, non-governmental organizations and utilities). Recently, within the project, in Town Ludbreg two locations have set up modern waste management systems that include equipment for underground containers and smart and sustainable IT solutions.

-With a practical workshop for children, a computer game with a theme of waste sorting was prepared, through which pupils could have fun, show their knowledge and learn something. Although the goal of the game was primarily educational, but a competitive component was added, so each child was measured the time the task was performed. All the time was finally summed up and the winners were declared and the winners were all children who showed a high level of awareness about waste disposal and sorting. The pupils are given gift packs and given special thanks for participation. At the end, the participants of the workshop were perpetuated by sharing a joint picture, and the children gained new knowledge, memories and some new friendships - said Robert Majhen, IT manager at Lucera, who created a computer game.

The project also has a strong cross-border character because it will intensify cross border co-operation between the two cities and the different target groups are directly involved in the implementation of the project.

The total duration of the project is 16 months, while the total value of the project is EUR 204.943,00. The project is approved for co-financing under the INTERREG V-A Hungary-Croatia Cooperation Program 2014-2020. The project leader is the City of Ludbreg, and the project partner is the City of Zalaegerszeg from Hungary.

As part of this project, an underground waste system has been set up in Ludbreg, which includes two underground containers with three 2,200-liter tanks placed on two locations, at Ivan Gundulić Street and Augusta Šenoe Street, near Ludbreg's "Radost" kindergarten.

This system is managed through smart and sustainable IT solutions that will enable further upgrade of the established system. Through the establishment of a smart system of underground containers, the City of Ludbreg wants to have a positive impact on changing public awareness, increasing the degree of recycling and sorting of waste and improving the waste management system based on innovative infrastructure, smart solutions and the latest environmental achievements.