Why schools recycling program is important in driving change

November 25, 2018

The lessons we learn in school can impact a generation and as such it is important to teach our children the importance of recycling. 

As our children are already learning a lot different subjects at school which are all graded, recycling needn’t be an add-on to the day’s learning but rather a habit that can be taught in a proactive way.

Launched program a good start

This autumn, we launched a schools recycling program in Uganda. In a week of activities in the eastern region that involved visiting over 12 schools and talking to representatives of over 8000 students, we launched the recycling program with success. By the end of the week activities, we had over 6000 students enrolled and given an initial introduction to recycling.

Despite all the efforts this autumn, we were just able to meet a handful of schools and only in the eastern region. Our goal is to have this program across the country. The next region we will approaching is the eastern and central region. The good news is that though we approached the schools during exam time, the schools enthusiastically embraced the recycling program. 

Though schools have a variety of waste paper being most prevalent, our program will recycle a range of products including paper, plastic polythene bags to start with.

Small lessons reap big rewards

Without better education on the issues regarding waste and the impact of waste to the environment, we are depriving the next generation of the knowledge it needs to make better waste disposal decisions. The direct result of that lack of knowledge is increased pollution to the environment our children are growing up in.

But this is not only providing knowledge to the schools. It is also a program that will provide the schools with incentives to join the program.

Waste to Green is pledging to convert all the materials that collected by the schools into products that the schools need. Each school will highlight priorities that need to be addressed by the school. Once the school joins the program, then all the materials collected will be converted into a resource that will be used to address some of the priorities.

Happy holidays and seasons greetings