STICHTING LALA FOUNDATION – WASTEBAR

At the WasteBar, you pay with litter – 25 cigarette butts for a portion of Dutch pancakes, a handful of cans for a soft drink. What begins as a playful activity grows into a powerful awareness-raising activity. The WasteBar lets visitors experience, in an accessible and creative way, that waste has value – and that everyone can directly contribute to a cleaner, circular world. The WasteBar is a traveling concept that pops up at festivals, in neighbourhoods, and on squares. It’s more than a playful idea: it’s an activation with a lasting impact. Every transaction sparks conversation, and every collected piece of litter makes its impact visible. This way, waste is not only cleaned up, but also changes the perspective of visitors: from spectator to participant, from consumer to co-responsible.

In 2024, thousands of participants collected a staggering half a million cigarette butts. That mountain of discarded filters has now been transformed into a powerful work of art: het Peukenbos (the Cigarette Butt Forest), on display in the Utrecht City Hall. It’s a tangible reminder of what collective action can achieve—and a stimulating invitation to rethink what we throw away. Thanks to the support of Fonds 1999, WasteBar can continue to grow, visit new locations, and reach more people. Together, we make sustainability tangible, joyful, and connecting.