Concerned students and staff at Bullsbrook College near Perth, Australia took action to protect their local wildlife and school environment from the harmful effects of litter and promote greater education on waste issues.

Students started by collecting and sorting litter and waste from their school three times per week to better understand the types of materials that were being littered or thrown away. After sorting through the waste, students made sure that recyclable materials were redirected to the correct recycling bins. They found that paper products and food packaging were some of the most common, so they looked for solutions to minimise these waste items.

To help reduce the amount of food packaging going into the bin or onto the ground, the students organised “Waste Free Wednesday” lunches and encouraged parents to bring homemade snacks in reusable containers to school events. They also started their very own green waste worm farm and used the rich compost to nourish the school’s sustainable vegetable gardens!

“It is pleasing to see our enthusiastic Litter Legends reducing the litter – the school is looking great and I love Rubbish Rob who is awarded for tidy areas.” – Deputy Principal, Bullsbrook College

In addition to these activities, students in the classroom learned all about greenhouse gas emissions from landfill, recyclable waste, green waste, and the different ways that litter and waste impact the environment. The school has seen an overall reduction in litter and waste since the start of this Alcoa W5 project, and the students at Bullsbrook College have enthusiastically embraced these initiatives to create a cleaner and more sustainable school environment!

The Alcoa W5 project activities at Bullsbrook College support the following SDGs: