- Rethymno honored for Environmental Governance and Sustainability.
- Mayor Giorgis Marinakis accepted the award at the Do It Green Forum in Heraklion.
- Emphasis on teamwork, recycling, and turning “trash” into “resources.”
It was a proud Saturday for Rethymno — and for anyone who still remembers to separate glass from plastic. Mayor Giorgis H. Marinakis took home the award for Environmental Governance and Sustainability during the Do It Green – Recycling for a Sustainable Future Forum at the Heraklion Cultural Conference Center.
For a city already famous for its old town charm, this was proof that even the narrow alleys of Rethymno can make room for modern eco-thinking — preferably without parking on the recycling bins.
The mayor joined a roundtable that looked a bit like an environmental Avengers team: Menelaos Bokeas of Malevizi, Giorgos Ntispyrakis of Phaistos, and Kostas Kokkinakis of Gortyna. Topics ranged from recycling programs to the eternal question: how do you convince Cretans that “throwing away” actually means “sorting nicely”?
“No Such Thing as Trash”
Marinakis, speaking with his signature calm gravitas, reminded everyone that no environmental plan can succeed without cooperation:
“No program, however well designed or ambitious, can succeed without collaboration, citizen understanding, and a vision we must pass on to our children.”
He went on to emphasize that Rethymno leads in European programs for environmental protection and circular economy, noting recent initiatives for recycling electronic devices.
And then came his trademark line — part philosophy, part Cretan realism:
“There is no such thing as waste in the traditional sense — only resources with environmental and economic value that we must use wisely.”
Which, translated loosely, means: even the old washing machine has potential — just not as a barbecue stand.
From Bins to Brilliance
Rethymno’s recognition is more than symbolic. It represents a steady shift in mindset — that sustainability is not a foreign word but an everyday habit. From composting to eco-education, the city has managed to make green thinking part of its DNA — without losing its warm humor or its love for a proper frappe.
And if awards were measured in sea breeze and clean conscience, Rethymno would already be Europe’s capital of fresh air.
