Schools for recycling: a local project with a global perspective

Abstract

During a debate at an elementary school in the city of La Paz, Baja California, a question was posed: “What can I do with my plastic bottle?” The students gave various ideas and solutions to address this problem, which inspired us to carry out the “Schools for Recycling” project. The initiative seeks to promote environmental awareness and community work, so that students understand that they can contribute to solving waste problems that affect the world. Although the project is still in its early stages, after 9 months we have managed to collect 370 kg of waste on beaches, produce 50 kg of recycled paper from paper collected at our school, train 70 primary school students, 25 secondary school students, 100 high school and 40 teachers. The project has been more than a simple initiative to clean beaches or collect recycled material; students have learned to count and classify types of waste, as well as measure their impact using field methodologies such as the Ocean Conservancy’s.