Donations handed over to the Jena Children's Aid Foundation

"Crown caps for a good cause" collection campaign

"Crown caps are not just garbage, but a valuable commodity that can be converted into donations," says Shabnam Staudt, Project Coordinator at Navimatix GmbH. She proved this together with Kommunalservice Jena (KSJ): In a joint collection campaign, more than a ton of crown corks were collected within ten months, corresponding to a scrap value of 315 euros. As the KSJ doubled this amount, Uwe Feige, Plant Manager of the KSJ, has now been able to hand over a donation check for 630 euros to Hans Proquitté, Chairman of the Jena Children's Aid Foundation and Deputy Director of the Department of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine at the University Hospital.



"We are very happy about this donation - especially because it does good in two ways, firstly for the environment and secondly for sick children throughout Thuringia," summarizes Proquitté.



Shabnam Staudt had already submitted several ideas to the so-called Jena Citizens' Budget. This allows residents of the city of Jena to suggest improvement measures. In 2022, she came up with the idea of submitting a crown cap collection campaign. This time with success: the KSJ was interested even before the actual vote on the ideas submitted. "We had been thinking about a similar campaign ourselves for some time," says Martin Steglitz, Head of Municipal Services, Marketing & Sales at the KSJ.



Since February 2022, golden collection garbage cans, known as treasure chests, have therefore been available at the KSJ's recycling centers at Emil-Wölk-Straße 13A and Löbstedter Str. 56. "There are now also other collection points such as the Winzerla district office or various Jena companies that collect the crown caps and bring them to the recycling centers," says Uwe Feige, delighted with the great commitment of Jena's citizens. Within ten months, 1,043 kilograms of crown caps have already been collected. That corresponds to around 450,000 lids. "I'm delighted that the project has got off to such a good start - and that it will continue," says Staudt. The collection garbage cans at the recycling centers will also have space for the valuable metal in the future, as the collection will continue in 2023. "The proceeds will then be credited to the Jena Hospice Association," adds Uwe Feige.



"I would also be delighted if, in addition to companies, restaurants or events in Jena and the surrounding area were to take part in the campaign in future," says Staudt, looking to the future.



(From left to right: Chairman of the Jena Children's Aid Foundation Hans Proquitté, idea generator Shabnam Staudt, Plant Manager KSJ Uwe Feige)