From Old to New: Students Bring Sustainability to Kufstein
- 10.06.2026
- Practical Project
The Out of the Box project team with project coach Bettina Anker. (From left to right): Lorenz Magel, Bettina Anker, Daniel Judem, Lorenz Zabelt, Melina Morgenschweis and Katharina Jörg.
Swap, don’t discard: In May, the practical project Out of the Box turned Vitus & Urban in Kufstein into a lively hub for sustainable consumption. At the swap event, students demonstrated a modern and creative way to give everyday items a new life — Upcycling 2.0 you can join in.
Where others sort out, Out of the Box begins a new story. On 21 May 2026, visitors at Vitus & Urban were invited to take an active part in sustainable consumption. Clothing, household items, decorative objects and children’s items changed owners at the swap event — entirely free of charge and regardless of their monetary value.
The focus was the idea of keeping resources in circulation longer and promoting more conscious consumption. The event was organised by students of the full‑time bachelor programme in Sport, Culture & Event Management at FH Kufstein Tirol as part of a practical project. The aim was to make sustainability not only a topic of discussion but directly tangible for visitors.
Swap, discover and recombine
At the heart of the event was a value‑free swap market. Visitors could bring well‑preserved items from the categories Clothing, Home & Living, Lifestyle & Kids and Creative and exchange them for other articles. For each item handed in, they received a coin that served as the event’s swap currency. This put the emphasis not on the financial value of an object but on its reuse.
It was a great feeling to see how an idea we developed at the start of the semester turned into a real event with so many visitors
Lorenz
Member of the practical project group
In addition, visitors could donate voluntarily under a pay‑what‑you‑wish principle. Every donation was also rewarded with a coin that could be used at the swap market. In this way, sustainability was made visible not only through reuse but also through social engagement. The collected donations benefited the Red Cross. “It was a great feeling to see how an idea we developed at the start of the semester turned into a real event with so many visitors,” reports Lorenz M., a member of the project team.
A special highlight was the second‑hand fashion show: students presented outfits created entirely from previously donated garments. The catwalk clearly demonstrated how modern and versatile second‑hand fashion can be.
At the same time, the project showed that a sustainable swap concept gains appeal through complementary programme elements — many visitors explicitly named the fashion show as a reason to attend. In this way Out of the Box deliberately distinguished itself from a classic flea market and positioned the event as a vibrant platform for sustainable consumption.
Sustainability beyond the event
Sustainability was not only central to the swap market but shaped the entire event. Out of the Box was planned and implemented according to the Green Event Tirol criteria.
Even after the event ended, the sustainability concept was consistently continued: items that did not find a new home at the swap market were donated to the Red Cross so they could continue to be used meaningfully. This ensured that as many of the donated articles as possible remained in circulation.
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