The initiative dedicated to teachers and students in pre-university education has so far created hubs of creativity and sustainability in 12 counties
OSCAR Downstream, the largest independent fuel distribution company in Romania, won the second prize in the Environment category at the Romanian CSR Awards – Sustainable Companies Gala, for the Creative Recycling Caravan, a national project dedicated to teachers and students in pre-university education, which encourages creative recycling of waste (upcycling).
At its second edition, the Caravan helps direct and indirect participants (students, teachers, families, communities) to become aware of the effects of consumerism on the environment. Through activities that stimulate creativity and teamwork, participants learn to recycle discarded objects and give them a new life, with a much higher use value than they originally had. Thus, participants in the Creative Recycling Caravan change their behavior – and, through them, their entire community, for a sustainable future.
"We are honored to receive the recognition of the jury at the Romanian CSR Awards, for such a young project, but which has won the hearts of so many children, parents and teachers, since its first edition", says Luiza Dumitru, Communication & Marketing Director OSCAR Downstream. "Sustainability is the desideratum of all of us, and the vector that helps us get there is education. We can learn a lot from our children and teachers. We just need to create the right framework for them. The Creative Recycling Caravan represents such a framework, which has already outlined hubs of creativity and sustainability in 12 counties and has begun to transform local communities. Together with our partners at PlaYouth, we aim to replicate this model across the country in the coming years."
"It was a beautiful surprise to receive recognition of the results of the Creative Recycling Caravan that supports teachers with resources, inspiration and creative activities. We are extremely grateful to the OSCAR Downstream team for their support and active involvement and for believing in the project from the first presentation", said Ana Stanescu, President of Playouth Association.
We wanted to create a context for cooperation and collaboration between teachers, students, parents and the directorate and for the participating teams to discover and pass on information about sustainability, rational consumption and separate collection. We are happy that this endeavor has already succeeded in the participating counties and we promise to continue with the same energy. The debut edition of the Caravan took place last year in 84 schools in Calarasi, Giurgiu, Brasov and Sibiu counties, with the participation of 435 teachers and over 11,000 children. The impact is estimated at approximately 35,000 indirect beneficiaries (13,000 students, 20,000 parents and 2,000 teachers).
The current edition – ongoing – doubled its coverage area in 8 counties - Salaj, Bistrita Nasaud, Arad, Timis, Satu Mare, Maramures, Cluj and Bihor, and attracted over 1,050 teachers from 210 educational units. This year's impact is estimated at 75,000 indirect beneficiaries (25,000 students, 45,000 parents and 5,000 teachers from enrolled schools).
At the same time, the project has found coordinating teachers in the counties of the first edition and can continue this year.
Why the Creative Recycling Caravan project is important
Each group of participants obtains specific benefits that, taken together, build a unitary mechanism that can have a domino effect, causing behavioral changes in the targeted communities.
Extra creativity. Children and teachers participating in the Creative Recycling Caravan managed to transform discarded materials (such as PET bottles, old tires, egg shells, textiles, shoes and accessories or glass) into true works of art (containers for selective recycling, animal houses, decorative and furniture objects, Martisors or jewelry, among others).
Entrepreneurship. The Creative Recycling Caravan encourages entrepreneurship and can inspire some of the young participants to become Romania's future innovators and small entrepreneurs, thus contributing to a cleaner and sustainable future for them and future generations.
Personal development. The participants in the first edition confessed that the project brought them fulfillment on a personal level, developed their imagination, creative spirit, team spirit, free expression, self-esteem, desire for involvement, aesthetic sense, but also the desire to spend time at school. A teacher also noted that the project activities helped weld the partnership between parents and teachers. As far as students are concerned, they have changed their behavior for the better, they no longer waste paper and teaching materials, they have replaced plastic with reusable materials and show the desire to continue such initiatives in the future.
Sustainable communities. The impact of this project is also propagated among the communities where the Caravan reaches. Thus, they will have more attentive and educated inhabitants, responsible for what is around and involved in the "life of the city". With the help of children, people can learn to use their resources creatively and responsibly and stop wasting them, thus reducing the amount of waste generated. In addition, targeted communities can develop innovative projects and activities to help certain categories of people, including small businesses that can benefit from creative recycling.
Currently, creative activities are in full swing in the schools participating in the 2024 edition. After the judging process, the organizers will award the following prizes:
1. First prize - 8 school units: Camp of socio-educational animation and creativity for the 40 teachers (8 units x 5 teachers), which will take place between 15 and 20 July;
2. Second prize - 8 school units: One printer for each of the 8 school units;
3. Third prize - 8 school units: One set of school supplies for each teacher (40 teachers);
4. Mentions - 8 schools - access to a conference and three online workshops organized by PlaYouth (8 units x 5 teachers x 4 access links).
All details about #CaravanaReciclăriiCreative project are presented on the https://playouth.ro/portfolio/caravana-reciclarii-creative/.
You can follow the progress of the project directly through the participants' posts, on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/caravanareciclariicreative/
