NO TIME TO WASTE
Expedition Clean World
Trash can, rubbish bin, wastebasket … every day we fill them with the remnants of our overconsumption. We empty their contents into a dumpster or put the garbage bag on the street. Then a garbage truck whisks away our waste so that our waste is ‘gone’. Off our radar and out of sight. But out of sight does not mean it is taken care of. Sustainability does not have to be complicated, but it does require expanding our awareness. For this special project, the waste incineration plant itself is in the spotlight to make us aware that what we throw away affects our future.
- Location
- Alkmaar (NL)
- Client
- HVC
- Year
- 2023
- Service
- Concept, spatial design, creative direction, content development
Three-part collage
What does waste have to do with a clean world?
‘Expedition Clean World’ is an exciting journey through the fully operational waste plant of HVC Alkmaar designed for groups and school classes. You can see the entire waste disposal process, from waste collection to incineration. Yet waste is only a very small part of the expedition’s big story about climate change, sustainability, the circular economy and our consumption habits.
A colourful factory
In close collaboration with HVC, Kossmanndejong transformed the factory into a spatial narrative. Artists painted the grey walls with life-size illustrations that bring the world outside into the factory. Colourful scenes playfully confront us with our own purchasing behaviour and reveal sustainable and innovative alternatives. You will learn, for example, which valuable raw materials we throw away and how you can prevent this waste. The HVC factory only burns our waste when there is no other sustainable alterative. And even then, the combustion still produces heat and electricity for the houses of Alkmaar.
The factory speaks
In addition to the illustrations’ visual narration, an audio narration guides visitors throughout the factory. As the narrator, the factory itself shares his dreams of a future in which his own work has become obsolete and he can transform into something he would much rather be: an amusement park. But to make that dream a reality, he needs our help. How can we ensure that the factory becomes unemployed? The factory takes you on an expedition to make you aware of your own share in the large mountain of waste.
A fun and educational trip for our school class, with an interesting smell!
Step into a cleaner future
Along the way you will discover how you can help the factory out by making a few adjustments in your purchasing behaviour and lifestyle: reduction, repair, waste separation and use of alternative energy sources. The story takes you from the household world full of stuff to the polluted water world and shows you the – normally invisible – consequences of our consumer society. ‘Expedition Clean World’ is a journey of discovery in which you learn, discover and, above all, think for yourself how we can take steps together towards a cleaner future.
