An education movement building a nation of young environmentalists
Cyprus: How schools are driving a green circular economy, one student at a time
What if the used cooking oil sitting in your kitchen could fund solar panels on a school roof?
In Cyprus, it does.
Tiganokinisi – the Frying Pan Movement – is a circular, community-based environmental education programme that has transformed 530 Cypriot schools into collection hubs for used cooking oil, a domestic waste that, when improperly disposed of, causes landfill fires, clogs sewage systems and pollutes the soil.
Developed by AKTI Project and Research Centre and implemented together with the Ministry of Education, the programme engages over 100,000 students annually. The collected oil is sold to biodiesel refineries (thus reducing carbon emissions), and the proceeds return to the participating schools to fund sustainability activities, from photovoltaic panels to water-saving systems and school gardens.
"Knowledge, passion and teamwork. These are the three ingredients. Without any one of them, it does not work.”
Xenia Loizidou, Chair of the Board of Directors at AKTI Project and Research Centre.
The European Training Foundation (ETF) is delighted to count this initiative as one of the finalists for the Green Skills Award 2026. Read on to find out why.
The project
Launched 16 years ago as a pilot in four schools, Tiganokinisi has grown to cover 95% of all schools in Cyprus. The model is elegantly simple: children bring used cooking oil from home, schools collect it in monitored barrels, certified collectors transport it to biodiesel refineries, and the proceeds return to each school to invest in sustainability projects of their choice.
But the genius lies in the education wrapped around the logistics. Students learn circular economy principles through hands-on participation: physics, chemistry and essay-writing are all taught through the lens of the programme.
AKTI’s Mobile Experimental and Educational Unit brings interactive science demonstrations to schools, reaching over 85,000 students annually and sparking enthusiasm for environmental science careers.
The ETF has selected this initiative as one of the six finalists for the Green Skills Award, recognising how it has embedded circular economy skills into the daily life of an entire country's school system, while also reducing the polluting impact of domestic used cooking oil on the soil, water and air quality.
Why this initiative stands out:
- National coverage in Cyprus, from urban centres to remote rural areas
- More than €1 million generated for school sustainability projects over the past decade
- Fully integrated into the national school curriculum. Used cooking oil collection is the entry point for teaching circular economy, physics, chemistry and environmental science
- Stakeholders engaged at every level of the community. Families, local businesses, schools, and the Ministry of Education are all involved
- Award-winning methodology recognised by local, European and international organisations such as the Global Education Network Europe, The Costa Carras European Citizens Award for the Safeguard of Endangered Heritage, the Society4Med award, and #PlayEurope.
- It all begins in the kitchen: children bring used cooking oil from home to school, where it is collected in monitored barrels. Certified collectors of AKTI transport the oil to biodiesel refineries, and the proceeds return to the each participating school, to invest in sustainability projects of its choice – from photovoltaic panels and water-saving systems to school gardens and further environmental education.
- The development of a comprehensive education programme built around this reverse logistics loop: circular economy principles are taught through the lens of domestic used cooking oil management, having the students themselves transform a toxic waste into “fuel” for improving their school’s infrastructure and for hands-on education experiences.
- AKTI's Mobile Experimental and Educational Unit (a travelling science lab staffed by young scientists) visits schools across Cyprus with interactive demonstrations.
- 16 years of continuous operation, growing from four pilot schools to 530, today encompassing 95% of all schools in Cyprus
- Over 100,000 students engaged annually, with 35,000+ actively participating in collection and education activities
- 85,000+ students reached annually via the Mobile Experimental and Educational Unit
- €1M+ in proceeds over the last 10 years
- 200,000+ people reached at public festivals through educational caravans (25% of the population of Cyprus)
- 200–300% increase in household used cooking oil collection following school-based education campaigns
- Sensor-equipped monitoring barrels are integrated into the STEM curriculum, providing hands-on experience with real-world data
- Green skills are developed, particularly circular economy literacy, scientific inquiry, community organising, data analysis, and environmental advocacy
“I don’t know why people believe that the green transition is something expensive. It’s not!”
– Xenia Loizidou, Chair of the Board of Directors at AKTI Project and Research Centre
- 9,500 educators trained in circular economy teaching methods, embedding sustainability across subjects
- 400 businesses and 180,000+ households engaged, extending the programme’s reach well beyond school walls
- Young women scientists lead AKTI’s educational outreach, providing role models for students considering careers in environmental science
- The methodology is structured, evidence-based and fully replicable, designed for adaptation in other countries and contexts
- Schools use their oil revenue to install photovoltaic systems (achieving zero energy bills), buy water filters, plant gardens and fund further environmental education
Tiganokinisi’s success rests on a simple insight: schools are where habits begin. By making children the agents of change – the ones who bring the oil, who understand the science, who tell their parents – AKTI has created a self-sustaining system where education drives collection, collection funds more education, and the whole cycle strengthens year after year, all while reducing carbon emissions. Sixteen years of patience, institutional trust-building and scientific rigour have turned a small pilot into a national infrastructure.
Today, virtually every student in Cyprus encounters circular economy principles before they leave school, not as theory, but as something they do with their hands, every week, in their own kitchen.
“Sustainability is not a theory. Sustainability is about implementing solutions.”
– Xenia Loizidou, Chair of the Board of Directors at AKTI Project and Research Centre
