As part of their Alcoa W5 project, 2nd and 3rd graders at Granmoen Primary School not only learned about waste management in theory but also in practice!

Grandmoen Primary School is located in the village of Granmoen, which lies inland along the 50-kilometre-long Vefsnfjord in the north of Norway. The school’s mission is all about investing in the youngest in society, with a strong desire to engage more deeply in environmental issues. Teachers work together with students, with the aim of identifying active and practical ways of making a difference.

Throughout the spring, the 2nd and 3rd graders learned about different topics related to waste and our environment, including the different types of waste, how to sort and recycle waste, what happens to waste and how we can all contribute to a clean environment. As the students learned about waste in the classroom, they also got outdoors for litter pick-ups in their community. They also visited the facility of the local waste company, SHMIL (Søndre Helgeland Miljøverk IKS). At the waste plant, students go to see waste management in practice, observing how different types of waste are sorted and treated in different ways.

“Batteries must be delivered as special waste in the correct place. If they are thrown into residual waste, it may start to burn.” – Student, Grandmoen Primary School

The students developed a deeper understanding of how increasing quantities of waste present a challenge for a sustainable society. Learning about waste from different sources, such as households, workplaces and industry, has led the students to be more aware of what they can do to reduce the issue of waste. It should come as no surprise then that all the students have become better at recycling their waste at home and school!

The Alcoa W5 project of Granmoen Primary School supports the following SDGs: