On 18 & 19 January 2025, GIZ, through the Collaborative Action to Reduce Single-Use Plastic in Southeast Asia (CAP SEA) project, partnered with Chula Zero Waste and EcoCrew to support the Thai Film Director Association and the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) in piloting a full-scale deposit return system (DRS) for reusable packaging at the Krungthep Klang Plang festival in Lumpini Park. This initiative successfully prevented approximately 8,000 single-use plastic items from being discarded.

Event atmosphere during the day and night; people watch films while eating and drinking from reusable packaging

The festival welcomed over 4,000 attendees, with more than 15 food and beverage vendors from various Bangkok districts participating. As part of the initiative, all vendors were required to use only reusable containers. Consumers were charged a ten-baht deposit per container, which was fully refundable upon returning the containers to the designated collection points.

Over the two-day event, a total of 1,481 reusable cups and 1,127 reusable bowls were used, along with additional reusable cutlery provided by Chulalongkorn University. This significantly reduced single-use plastic waste (by approximately 8,000 items) and minimised the event’s overall waste footprint.

Reusable cups and bowls actively used at the event

One of CAP SEA’s main objectives is to support the BMA in reducing single-use plastic (SUP) waste at large-scale public events by implementing upstream strategies – approaches that focus on reducing consumption and promoting reuse. The DRS for reusable containers has proven to be an effective measure in encouraging behavioural change, shifting consumption habits away from the traditional ‘take-make-waste’ model towards a circular economy approach of ‘take-make-reuse’.

For this pilot, CAP SEA worked closely with the BMA’s Environment and Social Development Departments, providing advisory support, planning assistance, and international best practice exchanges to implement the DRS at the festival. The insights and results from this initiative will be compiled into a report and operational guidelines for the BMA, serving as a blueprint for expanding the DRS model to other large-scale events in the future. This will contribute to more sustainable event management and mark an important step towards Bangkok’s transition to a circular economy.

Container return station with redeemed reusable cups

“The success of this event clearly demonstrates that this system is practical for various events and has the potential to become the new normal for future events. The most significant impact is that, beyond significantly reducing waste, vendors also see it as beneficial in lowering costs,” said Pornphrom Vikitsreth, Chief Sustainability Officer and Adviser to the Governor of Bangkok.

Pornphrom Vikitsreth talking with the project task force during the venue inspection

CAP SEA is a key component of the GIZ global project ‘Environmental Protection Worldwide’, implemented in both Thailand and Malaysia. The project is part of the ‘Export Initiative Environmental Protection’ initiated and funded by the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety and Consumer Protection (BMUV).

You can find more information about the Collaborative Action to Reduce Single-Use Plastic in Southeast Asia (CAP SEA) project at: https://www.thai-german-cooperation.info/en_US/the-collaborative-actions-for-single-use-plastic-prevention-in-southeast-asia-cap-sea-thailand-component/