School recycling programme designed by LEAD Fellow is adopted in Nigerian City

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Created on Wednesday, 06 February 2013 11:03

An in-school recycling programme developed by LEAD Fellow Patricia Diaku has received recognition from the Ministry of the Environment in Lagos, Nigeria, and will be rolled-out in schools across the State.

Patricia and LEAD Fellows Titi Adegbile and David Owolabi recognised that waste management in schools is a huge challenge and they wanted to design a fun, educational and financially beneficial programme that would address the problem. The team approached Corona School in Victoria Island, Lagos, and got the approval of the Head of School who had been seeking this kind of programme. They worked with teachers and pupils to develop a very dynamic programme that would teach practical and holistic ways of recycling waste. This was done using child–friendly methods of communication such as music, poetry, quizzes, debates and reward systems.

The school then organised a recycling-themed 'open house event' where each class recycled different waste materials such as wood, paper, plastic, cans, fabrics. The children then used these materials to create products, making pencil cases from tetrapacks, necklaces from plastic straws and dresses from old fabrics. These recycled products were then sold to parents and school visitors, and the school now has plans in the future to sell them in local shops in Lagos.

In May 2012 Corona School was invited by the Lagos State Ministry of the Environment to exhibit the recycled items at the fourth anniversary celebration of the Lagos State Climate Change Club. At the event the children performed a rap song that they had written about recycling, and this has now been adopted as the official song of the Climate Change Club by all the primary schools in Lagos state.

Thanks to the recycling programme initiated by Patricia and her LEAD colleagues, Corona School Victoria Island, Lagos has developed a reputation as a leader within the local community and will now be used as a bench-mark for the Lagos schools environmental advocacy work. All other primary schools will be equipped with a recycling bank and conservation centre, and they will be encouraged to undertake waste sorting and environmental campaigns.

The children and teachers at Corona School Victoria Island, Lagos are thrilled that their hard work has been recognised and that they have become a model for other primary school recycling programmes. One of the teachers said, 'we are extremely grateful for the support of the LEAD Fellows in initiating this programme. They have worked hard with the children to make this project a huge success. While we are very proud of our children's works, we could not have done it without the help of the LEAD Fellows'.

For Patricia and the team, it was a chance to use the creative spirit and passion for sustainability that characterises LEAD Fellows. 'For me, the LEAD Fellowship Programme opened my eyes to the need to raise a new generation of sustainability leaders. And our decision to work with Corona School, Victoria Island children was borne out of that sole desire. Their enthusiasm to truly become sustainability leaders was very much like what I felt the week I began my LEAD Programme. So equipped with the necessary skills from our LEAD trainers and the wonderful support of our LEAD Programme Mentor, we were able to implement this recycling project way beyond our initial expectation.' The school is 'now getting the attention of the State Government who graciously donated a Recycling Bank,' according to Head of School Mrs. Ifueko Thomas.