Brussels Environment
Cutting park waste by 30% with a behaviour-led campaign
Waste
Campaign
Evaluation
Citizens
Belgium
The Challenge
During the Covid-19 pandemic, Brussels’ parks saw a surge in visitors, and with them a surge in litter. Traditional signage and clean-ups were not keeping pace. Brussels Environment needed a way to get visitors to take responsibility for their own waste through the busy summer months
Our Approach
We built a behaviour-led campaign that tied proper waste disposal to community pride, turning it into a visible social norm rather than a top-down instruction. Instead of traditional communications, we used contextual messaging: the right prompt, in the right spot, at the right moment, spoken from each park community’s own perspective.
The Result
The campaign delivered a 30% reduction in waste, with 93% of visitors intending to manage their waste properly and their sense of shared responsibility doubling. It worked so well that Brussels Environment has run it for three summers running, with a lasting improvement in visitor behaviour.
“We particularly liked Behaven’s in-depth analysis and innovative communication strategy based on a scientific approach to behaviour change.”
Corentin Tassignon
Campaign Manager
Brussels Environment
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