New classroom resources – Bin Detective Primary Kit

Vegware has launched the Bin Detective, a cartoon character with an educational resource kit helping schools teach about recycling. The concept empowers students to become Bin Detectives and change behaviours at school and at home.

The Primary Kit, launched for autumn term 2015, includes an interactive classroom presentation, a poster, and teachers’ notes describing a range of activities. Created by Vegware’s in-house environmental team, based on their experience of communicating about zero waste, it is available for free at www.Vegware.com/downloads.

Bin Detective – classroom recycling activities from Vegware on Vimeo.

“Sustainability is a huge part of the curriculum nowadays,” says Principal Teacher Avril Meldrum of Baldernock Primary School, which trialled the Bin Detective kit with classes P1 to P7. “Bin Detective has been really useful – it brings sustainability to life for the children. The activities we did really highlighted that the resources we have are not limitless. I think that the children see the relevance of what they are doing, and it’s been really useful, really motivational.”

Eilidh Brunton, Vegware’s Group Recycling Consultant (and model for the Bin Detective character), explains: “A lot of our Food Waste Network consultancy work involves communication and behaviour change, helping people to personally engage with recycling. We see Bin Detective as a fun way to bring sustainability into the curriculum, and also to empower pupils to boost recycling rates at their schools. Teachers can run the activities, Catering Managers can display the poster, and pupils can engage with those all-important choices at the dining room recycling bin.”

Vivian Maeda, Programmes Coordinator of Food for Thought at Scottish Business in the Community, says: “The Bin Detective is a fantastic exercise that is really interactive and engaged the children with the real issues on sustainability – this is an essential part of Food for Thought. I could see the children engaging with the great activities and really learning by doing.”

The Bin Detective is an educational resource designed to inspire young people to engage with recycling and sustainability. The primary kit’s key learning outcomes are:

• Understand why recycling and composting is important, and how pupils can help others and the environment by separating waste
• Empower the pupils to become Bin Detectives and encourage behaviour change at home and at school
• Explore human impact on the environment, discuss where materials come from and why it’s important to not waste them

All Vegware’s catering disposables are made from recycled and sustainably sourced eco materials and are completely compostable – so unlike most foodservice packaging, Vegware can be simply recycled after use. Vegware’s non-profit initiative The Food Waste Network is a free service matchmaking any UK business with local food waste collections and promoting zero waste.

The Bin Detective Primary Kit is free on www.vegware.com/downloads and contains:

• Classroom activity – interactive PowerPoint presentation with notes
• Teachers’ notes
• 2 extra activities – Recycling Challenge and Planting Seeds In Compost
• Poster – ‘Why do we recycle’
• Students’ completion certificate
• Bin Detective bin signage for the school and classroom