Children enjoying a train ride at an amusement park next to the Green Park Bus terminus in Nairobi during Christmas day celebrations on December 25, 2021.
Learning to recycle is easier and more fun for children. There are many games and activities related to recycling designed to teach children to generate much less waste, separate it at home or school and reuse it, helping to reinforce their socioecological values and commitment.
Recycling is an important concept that teaches children and youth to care for the environment. It encourages them to be responsible and appreciate the earth.
In Nairobi, about 2,500 tonnes of solid waste is generated daily, 20 percent in plastic form. Poor waste management and rising urban pressure have heightened the risks of environmental degradation in the city of 4.4 million people.
Of the waste generated by the city, only 45 percent is recycled, reused or transformed into a form which can yield an economic or ecological benefit, a far cry from the 80 percent target set by the National Environment Management Authority.
Someday our children will receive the keys to the planet and will have to take care of it. They will have the future in their hands, and that of millions of species that will then depend on the sensitivity of their fingers to divert their almost inevitable extinction.
We must, therefore, stop the next generation from making the same mistakes that we have made and educate them to build a better and more sustainable world.
It is important to identify the three Rs — reduce, reuse and recycle — so that children can distinguish three key ways to reduce their impact on the environment: Reduce means cutting back on the amount of waste generated in everyday life.
For example, reduce waste by teaching children to use recyclable bags at the grocery store instead of plastic bags. Reuse means reusing an existing item in your service to minimise waste.
For example, reuse paper for drawing, reuse recyclable materials for crafts etc. Recycle means an object can be shredded, melted or processed to create new raw materials. For example, paper and cardboard can be recycled to generate more paper products.
Despite the effort by State and non-state actors, plastics recycling remains low in Kenya, estimated at eight percent of the total plastic waste generated. The Environment ministry seeks to transition the waste sector from a disposal-driven model to a more circular system encompassing recycling and composting.
Walk through Nairobi’s Mukuru informal settlements and you will see rubbish and plastic everywhere, open drainage channels lining the tin houses blocked by plastic bottles and papers. When it rains the channels overflow and attract mosquitoes, which breed and in turn increase the rates of malaria among local inhabitants, especially children.
Children should become active learners in the environment to ensure they understand why we need to recycle. This also helps them to learn about where products come from, how they are made and how they can be reused.
Children are curious and open to new experiences. These early years are the perfect time to introduce them to healthy habits like recycling.
Alice Anukur is ChildFund Kenya director
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