The Modern Grandma project is implemented by Youth Estia, a group of young people based in Veroia, Greece, working together on social and environmental issues through volunteering, community action and participation in European initiatives. The project is developed in the framework of the European Solidarity Corps and reflects the group’s commitment to sustainable development, youth empowerment and local solidarity.

The partnership approach of the project is based on community cooperation and stakeholder engagement. Although the project is locally implemented, it actively involves a wider network of community actors, including restaurants, grocery stores, food producers, local organisations, educational actors, community members and individuals interested in sustainable food practices.

Through this collaborative model, Modern Grandma creates opportunities for dialogue, mutual learning and joint action. Stakeholders contribute to the project through interviews, roundtable participation, dissemination support, recipe sharing and involvement in public activities such as the cooking competition and the final event.

A key objective of the project is to build knowledge around the causes, effects and possible solutions related to food waste. This will be achieved through both desk research and community-based research, allowing the team to produce educational content that reflects both broader trends and local realities in Veroia.

Another central objective is to promote dialogue and collaboration among different actors in the local food ecosystem, including households, restaurants, grocery stores, farmers, community organisations and citizens. The roundtable activity is designed to create space for exchange, reflection and the co-development of practical responses to the issue.

The project also aims to foster experiential learning through creative and participatory activities. The cooking competition based on leftover ingredients will encourage participants to explore sustainable cooking in a fun and accessible way, while showing that food waste prevention can be innovative, practical and community-driven.

An additional objective is to create useful and attractive outputs that remain available beyond the duration of the project. These include handbooks, presentations, newsletters, digital dissemination materials and the Modern Grandma Cookbook, which will combine recipes with food waste facts, tips and stories from the community.

Finally, Modern Grandma seeks to strengthen youth empowerment by involving young people in all phases of the project, from planning and research to event organisation, dissemination and evaluation. In this way, the project supports the development of soft skills, digital competences, teamwork, initiative and active citizenship.