Never Refuse to Reuse

Our goal is clear: we want to become the leading provider of sustainable premium e-mobility, and our commitment to sustainability and progress is reflected at all levels. As a pioneer of development, Audi has proven itself in the past with many innovative solutions that underline its sustainable values, and this is still the case today. Among other things, we are exploring new ways to reuse recycled materials from end-of-life vehicles in serial production, and we are looking for solutions beyond the automotive sector. Audi Slovenia has designed the project Never Refuse to Reuse ("Uporabimo uporabljeno") to give new life to end-of-life materials, and we have invited partners who share our sustainable values to join us.

"We want every employee to internalize the brand's sustainable values and think about what they can do to impact the environment in a positive way. This is the approach each of us takes, and the Audi Slovenia team came up with the idea of using discarded advertising banners while thinking about sustainability."

Franci Bolta, CEO of the Audi brand in Slovenia

Progress ensures we’re heading in the right direction

Today, Audi is being transformed by the quest to reduce environmental impact. Audi is a pioneer in bringing sustainable innovations to serial production, and as employees, we have embraced the brand's sustainable values. According to Franci Bolta, CEO of the Audi brand in Slovenia, this is how the Audi Slovenia team came up with the idea for the project Never Refuse to Reuse, which demonstrates the brand's drive in the right direction.

Once a part of the winter spectacles ...

As a long-standing partner of the FIS Alpine Ski World Cup, Audi demonstrates its participation in the skiing spectacle with banners. Over the years, the overall brand image has changed several times. It would be a shame if used banners ended up in a landfill and polluted the environment, since they are basically made of high quality material. The material can be reused to create a new product that carries forward the values of the brand.

... today transformed into carriers of progress

In collaboration with the prestigious designer of bespoke products Mario Herzog, used advertising banners are transformed into a first-class material base for the production of travel bags. At the M. H. Atelier shoemaking workshop, built sustainably from traditional materials, skilled craftsmen are working on a collection of fifty unique bags. Each bag is distinctive and unique in its design and appearance, elegantly printed with Audi logos, infusing it with the spirit of both brands, which stand for tradition, quality and innovation. In addition to reusing the banners, the bags are made with a variety of high-end lining materials left over from larger factory batches and high-quality leather scraps gathered in the workshop.

Mario Herzog making a travel bag from a discarded Audi banner

One-of-a-kind travel bags made from discarded Audi banners.

Progress equals responsibility

Progress is not just inventing something new. Mario Herzog, designer and maker of high-end shoes, believes that progress is the search for better ways to revive what has already been invented in an original way, so that it can have a positive impact on the world in a new guise. As part of the Never Refuse to Reuse project, conceived by Audi Slovenia, the designer transforms discarded advertising banners into sophisticated bags.

Auction of travel bags made from advertising banners

The first eleven one-of-a-kind travel bags made from Audi banners went up for auction, and the remaining thirty-nine pieces from the first series will gradually be available in the online shop. The proceeds from the sale will go to the YouSea Institute, whose goal is to protect biodiversity in the Piran Bay. This will complete the full circle of sustainable use of materials: reducing waste, reusing it in new products and finding ways to use it to have a positive impact on the environment.

A marine oasis for biodiversity conservation

The proceeds from the sale will go towards financing YouSea's construction of a marine oasis, a sanctuary for marine animals and plants, in the Piran Bay. It will function similarly to natural underwater reefs. With this pilot project, the institute, together with external institutions, aims to research the structure’s multiplicative positive effects on the environment. The project will explore ways in which it could contribute to a more sustainable way of producing food in the future. It will also study how such structures remove carbon dioxide from the sea and how they clean it up. In degraded areas, this could increase the self-cleaning capacity of the sea, improving its quality and regeneration.

We encourage you to join us and follow us as we closely follow the evolution of life in the marine oasis.

Irena and Leon Fonda on a boat in the Piran Bay.

Plans for the underwater structure to be built by the YouSea Institute in Piran Bay.

Irena and Leon Fonda looking at a plan of the underwater structure on which the marine oasis will be built.

Irena and Leon Fonda looking at a model of the underwater structure.

Progress is not always linear

Irena Fonda, co-founder of the YouSea Institute, talks about the idea of a marine oasis in Piran Bay that her father envisioned thirty years ago. She and her brother Leon have decided to revive the original idea and build an underwater structure dedicated to research and raising awareness about the importance of sustainability, new ways of obtaining food from the sea, and preserving biodiversity. The Never Refuse to Reuse project, conceived by Audi Slovenia, will help to make this idea a reality.

Napredek je odgovornost

Napredek ni le izumljanje nečesa novega. Mario Herzog, oblikovalec in izdelovalec vrhunskih čevljev, meni, da je napredek iskanje boljših poti, kako na izviren način oživiti že izumljeno, da v novi preobleki prinaša pozitiven vpliv na svet. V okviru projekta Uporabimo uporabljeno, ki smo ga zasnovali v Audi Slovenija, tako odslužene oglasne transparente preoblikuje v vrhunske potovalne torbe.

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Napredek ni vedno linearen

Irena Fonda, soustanoviteljica Zavoda YouSea o ideji morske oaze v Piranskem zalivu, o kateri je njen oče začel razmišljati že pred tridesetimi leti. Z bratom Leonom sta se odločila idejo oživiti in postaviti podvodno strukturo, ki bo služila za raziskovanje in ozaveščanje o pomenu trajnosti, novih načinih pridobivanja hrane iz morja in ohranjanja biotske raznovrstnosti. K njeni uresničitvi bo pomagal tudi projekt Uporabimo uporabljeno, ki smo ga zasnovali v Audi Slovenija.

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Buy your travel bag

Fourty bags from the limited edition of 50 travel bags made from discarded Audi banners are already available for purchase in the online shop at napredek.si, and we will gradually add the remaining bags. Each bag comes with special care and protection products. With your purchase you support the YouSea Institute in constructing a marine oasis in the Piran Bay.

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Sustainability x Audi

Responsibility born out of conviction

Based on its firm beliefs, Audi operates in a sustainable way in everything it does. Not only does it aspire to lead the way in the transformation towards clean mobility; it also wants to help drive change within society, and, in doing so, make a decisive contribution to resolving global challenges - climate protection, the responsible use of resources and social justice. In order to meet these challenges, Audi acts in accordance with the principle of consistent sustainability.

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INTERVJU Z GAELOM

The vehicles shown may differ in individual details from the current offer for the Slovenian market. The pictures show some of the additional equipment items that are available at extra cost. All prices are non-binding recommended prices, including VAT and motor vehicle tax. We reserve the right to correct any errors, inaccuracies or omissions, and to change the content. Carbon dioxide (CO₂) is the most important greenhouse gas causing global warming. raffic-related emissions of air pollutants contribute significantly to the deterioration of outdoor air quality. In particular, they contribute to excessively high concentrations of ground-level ozone, PM₁₀ and PM₂.₅ particles, and nitrogen oxides. Detailed environmental information on new passenger cars can be found in the guide on fuel consumption and CO₂ emissions..