The future is in the hands of our children. Today's action and decisions will influence the world they live in tomorrow.
Education is key and whether you start when they're 4 years old or over 40, it's never too late to learn.
We've witnessed a lot of educational institutions talking more about sustainability and environmental protection, but there's still a big road ahead of us and organizations need to work together to make an even bigger impact.
Zer'0Waste Shanghai wants to be part of that impact and this is why we have gathered here below the different ways schools can make a difference:
1. Playful Activities [Talks, workshops, seminars]
Education goes through our minds, but more often than not, that's where it remains. The ability to transfer the knowledge from our minds to our hands is often discarded and considered as unimportant. At Zer'0Waste Shanghai we believe that hands on activities are a must when it comes to better understand information and the world around us.
"The more parts of your brain you use, the more likely you are to retain information", says Judy Dodge, author of 25 Quick Formative Assessments for a Differentiated Classroom (Scholastic, 2009).
Our portfolio include a handful of playful and educational hands-on workshops for all ages on multiple topics, including: “How to make a compost bin for your home or your school”, “How to recycle”, “How to upcycle and transform your old clothes or objects into new cool creations”, and more.
We focus on small groups of kids (20 maximum per teacher) to ensure the best educative experience for all of them.
(Photo by Alizée from Zer'0Waste)
2. Extracurricular courses
Extracurricular activities are extremely important for students during and after their school life. They are fundamental when applying for colleges. They also help to develop talents, interests, and passions.
Zer'0Waste provides recreation and knowledge with a topic that is so important for us nowadays and where our students don´t have a way to access. We allow students to get involve and know much more about sustainability, zero waste, environmental crisis, etc.
(Photo by Alizée from Zer'0Waste at SAS)
Besides that Zer'0Waste also works with universities, whether it is holding a conference, a case study or a lecture spread over multiple weeks on how to incorporate sustainability into the corporate world and create open minded leaders today, and who will be leading the economy of tomorrow...
(Photo by Alizée from Zer'0Waste at NYU Shanghai)
3. Compost Bin Project
Thanks to the incredible work with Concordia in 2018, we are now able to help other schools to set up their very own composting system. The Compost Project aims to reduce food waste, create a circular loop for the remaining debris, within the school facilities and serve as a visual and daily educational opportunity for every student in the school.
By introducing the Compost Project, we've seen food waste been cut by half in only three months time, students being actively part of the waste reduction process and an overall rising awareness at school around waste and sustainability.
The next natural step of this process is to create a garden in the school. Our personal favorite was the rooftop garden at Shanghai American School with an active involvement of the students of all ages. When we went to visit them, we were impressed with the easy that students had to take care of the greens and the compost.
Grow with us this year!
Get in touch with us here to know more.
(Photo by Alizée from Zer'0Waste at Concordia International School)
(Photo by Alizée from Zer'0Waste at Concordia International School)