School recycling education plays a key role in shaping how students understand sustainability.
Taught by the student
We recently had the opportunity to gain further insight into how UK schools handle recycling and sustainability. School recycling and wider education about sustainability are very important to the Agecko team. Any extra info helps us further improve our services and understand exactly what’s needed in a client’s plan.
We sat down with a student and asked some questions about how schools are handling sustainability. This isn’t just to find out whether people are using the correct bins, but also to learn whether these practices affect students and teachers alike. We knew this would be the perfect opportunity to share what we learned with everyone.
Lunchtime waste recycling
We were given a rundown of the school’s lunch waste system, in which students place their trays on a shelf for collection by lunch staff later on. There has been a move towards more reusable cutlery and plates, minimising single-use plastics going to landfill and supporting more sustainable waste management services.
This approach provides an excellent foundation for minimising the school’s carbon emissions and waste volume. Previously, having hundreds of students use single-use cutlery daily would have created large amounts of unnecessary waste that likely could not be recycled. This switch helps to curb this.
This is a great way to ensure that students’ waste is managed sustainably. It also produces an opportunity for schools. By minimising the reliance on the school’s lunch staff for food waste collection, students can better understand personal waste management. By introducing this responsibility to students, you can encourage more thought about how they manage their own waste. By making waste separation part of your daily routine, you can help build positive, sustainable habits that last a lifetime.
Sustainable education
When it comes to informing students, we found that Geography and PSHCE classes focused most on sustainability. Outside of building behaviours, the student clearly had a good understanding of its importance. Education surrounding sustainability has evolved past students making a green school project out of items they might’ve thrown away.
They knew that being taught about sustainability helps future generations protect the planet for years to come. These classes also educated students on how real sustainability will improve the overall quality of life for people worldwide.
Building on this would encourage students to use the skills they develop in school and transfer them to life outside school. The student pointed out that some students don’t act in the most sustainable ways when out of school or at home. This creates an educational opportunity in which students build on their in-school habits and use them to be a better influence in encouraging waste reduction outside school.
Learning opportunities
There was also an expressed desire to learn more about the plastic recycling process. What happens in the collection to reuse (if possible), and where it goes if not.
This would be the perfect starting point for teaching young people about the circular economy. It’s an approach Agecko utilises as often as possible, and helps to realise the potential of every bit of waste created. By highlighting the potential of materials rather than the importance of recycling, students will value their waste more and be more thoughtful when disposing of it in the future.
Furthermore, by investing in installing more recycling points around your school, you can help make source separation a habit. This way, recycling waste becomes second nature, with littering becoming a thing of the past for many students.
Let us get involved.
With over a decade of industry experience, Agecko have provided support to a number of institutions across the education sector. Not only can we improve your waste collections, but we can also develop a waste management plan suited to your needs. Monthly carbon-saving reports will highlight your progress, helping you better understand how your actions directly impact your sustainability targets.
With classroom talks and practical sessions offered by Agecko, along with our classroom resources and recycling activities, you can go from a school that aims to be sustainable to one that fosters an environment where waste management is part of day-to-day skill-building.
It all starts with a waste audit. Get in touch to learn more.
