1. science
2. ecology
3. waste management
4. recycling

The Plastikeep
Recovery
Programme’s
Education Model
Plastikeep Team
Greenlight Network/Plastikeep Recovery Programme
August 2014
Table of Contents
Introduction……………………………………………………………………………………….. 3
WHO was targeted, and WHY? …………………………………………………………………. 4
Community Programmes
 Targeted community outreach (flyer distribution)…………………………… 8
 Presentations/Workshops …………………………………………………….. 9
 Surveys and Feedback………………………………………………………….. 11
Corporate Programmes
 “Recycling in the Workplace”- Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)…….. 12
 Knowledge Fairs and Corporate Events ………………………………………. 13
School Programmes
 Student Specialty Workshops and Events …………………………………….. 15
 The Plastithon…………………………………………………………………… 17
 Supplementary School Curriculum and Web Portal………………………….. 19
General Population Programmes
 Print Media and Advertising……………………………………………………. 24
 Social Media (Facebook/Website)………………………………………………. 25
 Partnerships/Information Sharing………………………………………………. 27
Budget and Required Resources………………………………………………………………….. 28
Final analysis and Recommendations……………………………………………………………. 32
APPENDICIES…………………………………………………………………………………….. 33
2
INTRODUCTION
The Plastikeep Recovery Programme was created with many goals in mind. The collection of
plastic waste for the betterment of Trinidad and Tobago, yes; but at the forefront of the project was a
desire to advance the culture of the nation towards a cleaner, healthier way of living through an
increased consciousness of waste: a major element in any individual or community’s life.
For this reason, the project embarked on an ambitious education campaign that targeted a
wide cross section of the population within its catchment area in an attempt to change citizens’ mode
of behaviour relative to both their consumption of plastic, and its disposal thereafter.
The Plastikeep team, as early as the first phase of the project, began by outlining specific
components of their message and selecting key demographics within the country in order to best
deliver their environmental serum. Information is most often compared to a virus. While not being a
particularly compelling image (who wants to think of themselves as the flu!), they share the same
fundamentals. In fact, viruses themselves are simply tightly bound strings of coded information (in
this case, DNA) that finds a way to replicate, expand and spread through a population. Similarly, the
new behaviour (awareness of consumption, appropriate disposal, and healthy environmental
lifestyles) needed to be spread in similar ways.
The following key goals and outcomes form the core of the Plastikeep Education and
Awareness Campaign:







Developing the understanding of the citizenry that they have the power to preserve the
fragile environment and contribute to a sustainable future;
Developing an acute awareness of the environment utilising a geographic, historical and
social approach to understanding the nature of the environment; its role and importance;
Understanding the positive and negative impacts of human actions on the environment;
Understanding the origin of plastic, its role in modern society and the impacts on the
environment;
Understanding the concept and culture of plastic recycling; its associated benefits and
challenges;
Developing knowledge of and appreciation for current initiatives involving plastic recycling
at a local and global level;
Developing an appreciation for the need to advocate to society regarding environmental
protection and responsibility.
For this, the Plastikeep team needed to decide 2 major criteria: WHO would be given this
information, and HOW to inject it for maximum effect. A strong message in a small group could
create a dedicated core of new environmental activists, but without spreading outwards to other
members of the community. Too thinly spread through a large population risked small, but intangible
changes. Given limited resources, in the end the team decided on a strategic and balanced method
that took optimum advantage of both elements, combining tightly focused programmes with large
scaled ones.
3
This document will outline first WHO (which organisations/groups/individuals/communities)
was approached, and WHY they were chosen. Then we will look in greater detail at each of these
targeted groups, explaining WHAT specific programmes were developed, and HOW each of these
programmes was then implemented. Relevant
costs and final results of these
EDITOR’S NOTE: The content of the Education Model is the
programmes will also be shared and
intellectual property of the Plastikeep Recovery Programme.
analysed as each programme is
Our hope is to provide operational and design knowledge
detailed, to provide key insights into
based on our experience that can be applied to various relevant
the obstacles, limitations and lessons
environmental projects throughout the country and
learned from the accumulated 3
internationally. Happy Reading!
years of the Plastikeep Recovery
Programme, Phase II.
WHO is targeted, and WHY?
The Plastikeep Team began planning their education model by looking at the social sphere in
which they found themselves and asked key questions:
1) Where do people congregate in dense enough pockets that can serve as ideal injection points?
2) Which groups have the highest transmission rate (i.e. can pass that information along)?
3) Which groups have the highest uptake rate (i.e. will retain and use this information for
positive behavioural change)?
The answers led to 4 major groups being chosen. They are:
i.
Community Groups
Recycling ultimately is an individual’s responsibility, but it is a responsibility that is best
magnified through concerted group efforts. Places where the gathering of a community is either
large, or exerts a powerful voice are ideal points to foster social pressure for positive change. For
example, if everyone on a street dumps their garbage in an empty lot, it becomes ‘status quo’ for the
neighbourhood, and soon the local culture of the neighbourhood is to dump garbage in the empty lot.
“If that’s what they do, that’s what I’ll do!” “Everyone does it, so it’s not so bad”. Or most often cited
and most insidious, “That’s just how things work here.” Conversely, if the community can
collectively encourage its members to funnel their waste into recycling initiatives, it will put pressure
on the whole community to alter its behaviour to managing their waste better. No one wants to be
the one who isn’t a team player and risks being socially ostracised. Similarly, if you see the advantages
your neighbours are accumulating from a cleaner, healthier and happier
environment, you are far more likely to join in the fun!
!KEY LEARNING!:
consciousness spreads
For this Plastikeep targeted neighbourhood/residential/apartment
quickly and can be rooted
associations, community centres, church organisations, etc. to help spread
deeply in positive
community values.
4
the word about recycling and to implement communal initiatives to manage it.
ii.
Corporations/Businesses
Roughly 6-8 hours of everyone’s day is spent at work. That’s a large portion of a human adult’s
time. Office relationships become major aspects of an individual’s social and cultural identity, and
workplace values thus seep out of the office and into the general lives of the employees.
Secondly, with so much time spent in the office, a large portion of waste is created there. By
implementing workplace recycling initiatives, the team sought to alter in-office attitudes to waste,
and capture this waste for responsible disposal.
!KEY LEARNING !: Environmental
responsibility and corporate culture need not
be opposing views. The emerging trend of
mandated Corporate Social Responsibility
advocates that employees learn about, and
participate actively in socially beneficial
initiatives...like Recycling!
iii.
Finally, corporations have a large share of power in
public life and social change. The third goal was to
create and foster a cleaner, responsible corporate
culture and attitude to waste. If a major oil company
can show by example that it believes responsible
waste management is a priority, what does that say to
the population at large? What sort of macroscopic
changes can that promote?
Three birds with one stone. An ambitious, but
possible, feat!
Schools
The term ‘Education’ is synonymous with Schools, and rightfully so. It is the bedrock of our
understanding of how the world works. This is where you learn that the Earth is round; that if Mark
has 5 mangoes, and Suzie takes 4, Mark is left with just 1. Poor Mark; lucky Suzie. This is the place
where ideas become facts, and build into long term habits and attitudes in the core of our identities.
So too with key environmental facts. It is often easy for older people to dismiss recycling and
waste management initiatives since they grew up differently. However, by ensuring that the next
generation grows up knowing, and acting, on the realities of waste facts, Plastikeep sought to plant
the seeds that will grow a whole new forest: rich, wise, and resilient to a new world; a world that this
generation will lead.
This key demographic was the obvious beneficiary of the majority of Plastikeep’s Education
resources, since we believe in fostering this new generation that can grow and excel at adapting these
newer, improved values in both the present and the future.
Additionally, while it is paramount to set future generations’ attitudes to waste at a young age,
children also have an incredible capacity for transmitting information outwards to their parents,
relatives, friends, and communities through high-energy, dedicated appeals. As information grows in
society and ideas change, it is often through our children that we learn of them first, and who are the
most demanding of advancing our own opinions about creating a better world, for ourselves but most
importantly, for them.
5
iv.
General Population
While much of the programmes created for the Model were highly targeted, it is important to
reach out to the public at large to reinforce the ideas being presented. Think of the above three
groups as specifically and carefully planted seeds in large garden. Sometimes the rain will fall; i.e. the
dump will catch on fire, a news report might highlight the death toll of marine life from plastic
ingestion, etc, and those seeds will sprout, remembering what they have learned, and reach towards
the sun, fostering change.
But like any careful gardener, Plastikeep did not rely solely on the rain. We carefully watered the
garden with regular reminders of our own, through a strategic advertising campaign that sought to
nourish this new, fresh green revolution, using a combination of social media, signage, promotional
material, and print and visual advertising.
EDITOR’S NOTE: Much of the differentiation that appears in the following subsections is
illusory. Many of the same programmes are actually used throughout all 4 ‘Target Groups’ to
different degrees. The breakdown is created simply to allow a greater readability and easier
understanding of the Education Model as a whole.
6
Figure 1: Stakeholder Engagement chart
7
COMMUNITY PROGRAMMES
1. Targeted Community Outreach (Flyer Campaign)
The Plastikeep Flyer is now considered a ubiquitous element in Plastikeep’s image, and has been a
major cornerstone of our outreach programme since the project’s infancy. While it can appear like a
fairly insignificant element, a flyer is actually a highly useful and functional tool for several reasons:
(i) It is relatively cheap to produce and distribute, (ii) it allows for both personalised and large scale
distribution, (iii) it is a highly efficient summary of the major content of the Education programme as
a whole and (iv) it provides an excellent introduction and reference guide to Plastikeep as an
organisation, i.e. brand recognition.
The Flyer has gone through several updates and iterations, the most recent being an 8x6” glossy
image with differentiated content on each face. By creating a visually appealing and concise format,
the flyer is designed to be kept as a reference, on a fridge for example, or passed along to friends,
instead of finding itself, ironically, in a garbage bin. (See Appendix 1- Promotional Material for full
Flyer image)
Due to a flyer’s limited space, it was designed to be direct and concise. The ‘Front’ side carries the
7 steps of proper recycling of plastic waste: Keep (your plastics separate from other trash), Remove
(all caps and lids), Rinse (contaminated plastic is unusable), Crush (increase spatial efficiency), Put (in
a bag), Tie (securely to prevent spillage) and Throw (in a Plastikeep Collection Bin). On the ‘Back’
side, it lists the 7 types of regularly used plastic to ensure the consumer can identify what can be
disposed of for collection by the Plastikeep Collection Services.
The Plastikeep flyer is rolled with 2 large clear plastic bags (to assist the budding recyclers’
journey to habit-forming behavioural change) and is distributed through several methods; in fact any
which way possible! Some of the most commonly used methods include: (i) by-hand delivery in
mailboxes by the Plastikeep Team and stipend or volunteer workers, (ii) ‘Take a flyer’ handouts at
community group meetings, churches, schools, businesses, grocery stores and fairs, (iii) As an element
in a larger package of promotional items, (iv) Hung/stuck/stapled to notice boards, classrooms and
office walls and (v) sent as an electronic image file in E-mail correspondence and social media.
The flyer has been found to be highly effective in this capacity and continues to be a cornerstone
of Plastikeep’s efforts to inform the public about adequate disposal of waste. While there is a risk of
duplication (someone gets the flyer more than once), the benefits of re-appealing to a prospective
stakeholder, or reminding current recyclers of correct behaviour, will outweigh the relatively
negligible costs incurred.
2. Community Group Workshops
While the flyer is an excellent introduction and reference guide to the culture of recycling, it is
limited in the amount of information it can express. Why should I recycle? What are the benefits?
What are the environmental costs otherwise? What happens to the material that I collect?
8
The primary method of answering these questions is through community stakeholder
engagement through the use of presentations and workshops created and implemented by the
Plastikeep Officers.
The format of these presentations is outlined in the following sequence of information:
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
f)
g)
h)
Plastikeep’s mission and objectives.
History and Origin of Plastic.
Positive applications and uses of Plastic
Negative Environmental impacts of Consumer Plastic
i.
Marine Life threat
ii.
Flooding
iii.
Health risks
iv.
No space for waste! (local and global limitations of waste accumulation)
Three R’s- Reduce, Reuse, Recycle!
What is recycling and why is it beneficial?
i.
Conservation of energy and resources
ii.
Minimises negative impacts of plastic (re: above)
iii.
Creation of new, usable and beneficial products from waste
iv.
Moral and ethical responsibility
How you can join the movement!
i.
How to properly recycle
ii.
Where to deposit plastic waste-- Plastikeep Operations and Locations
Closing remarks and Q&A
Plastikeep uses its Team of Project and Education Officers to keep updated, relevant information
on plastic consumption,
waste and recycling
initiatives ready to share
with the public. Using
high quality slide shows
that demonstrate both
the statistics and general
information of plastic
waste, they tailor each
presentation to maximise
its effects on each
targeted community, by
melding specific
information with general
trends.
Figure 2: Project Officer Nadia Rudder gives Presentation at the
Beetham Impact Center Launch
9
EXAMPLE: The small community of Point Cumana in Chaguaramas requests a presentation with the
Plastikeep team at their local church to launch their community’s recycling initiative. Point Cumana is
a community with a direct relationship to the sea, so the team will design the presentation to reflect
local issues such as Marine Life threats, the Health Risks of Toxic Bioaccumulation in Fish, etc.
Meanwhile, appealing to the congregation’s moral code of good, clean and harmonious living can aid in
connecting recycling to larger social concepts. Finally, knowing that the community is self-contained
and unlikely to utilise the entire network of Plastikeep collection points, the presentation will highlight
exact locations nearby where drop-off for plastic is available within their geographic area.
For low-lying neighbourhoods in Diego Martin or Maraval, the magnifying effect of plastic waste on
poor drainage that leads to flooding can be dealt with extensively. For East-Port-of-Spain; health risks
related to toxic fumes from landfill fires. And so on.
N.B. : It is crucial, while providing total knowledge of the all issues at hand, to remember that for each
community the response will be greater to distinct issues that affect them locally. No two communities
are the same, and so no two presentations are perfectly identical.
While the Team is trained to talk extensively and at depth on many important points
surrounding the concept of plastic recycling, brevity is also a key aspect. People’s attention wanes
quickly, especially when talking about trash, so presentations are designed to run no longer than
thirty (30) minutes to ensure maximum retention.
Subsequent to the presentation, the floor is opened up to questions by the participants. This is
the most crucial aspect of these
workshops. By allowing people
!KEY LEARNING!
to voice their concerns directly,
While it is important to produce and utilise a high quality slide
the team can answer questions,
show with vast visual and statistical resources, the most
provide more detailed
important component to a great presentation is to ensure that
information, and counter
presenters are properly trained to be highly knowledgeable and
residual doubts effectively. Also,
up to date on changing trends, and also very articulate in their
giving people the ability to
responses. In this regard, having a dedicated and confident Team
participate in the process
is an essential ingredient to educating the public effectively about
entrenches the notion of
environmental issues.
individual and community
responsibility with respect to
recycling.
The workshops are then closed with the distribution of promotional material to allow for
attendees to share this new knowledge with their community and spread best practices further.
10
3. Surveys and Feedback Loops
A project designed to educate communities is incomplete without having a relevant feedback
system in place to monitor and record the progress made by the implemented programme. Are people
engaged? Is the information percolating through, and is it creating positive changes in behaviour and
thinking? How many people are reached, and which methods are most successful? As part of the
Plastikeep Education Model, the team sought to answer these questions.
Surveys are an efficient method of obtaining this data, so the team crafted community
questionnaires that were administered before stakeholder engagement (i.e. flyer distribution and
workshops) and then re-employed 1 year later, to ascertain (i) the ratio of the Plastikeep Recovery
individuals using/will use the recycling services provided and (ii) what relevant information about
plastic and plastic recycling was known (at the beginning) and retained (upon subsequent testing).
Additionally, informal and regular feedback was conducted with various stakeholder groups
through the use of in-person conversations with community members, and phone call/email
correspondence throughout the course of the project.
Finally, through the monitoring of collection sites in terms of yield and condition of the bins,
inferences could be made as to how engaged a community was in the initiative, or what aspects of the
education programme needed to be reinforced.
EXAMPLE: A bin in upper Maraval continues to be filled with contaminated waste, plastic and
otherwise. The Team can call the neighbourhood representative to ask if they have any problems with
members of the community misunderstanding the criteria of disposal, or if they have a large amount of
pedestrian traffic through their neighbourhood adding non-plastic waste to their bin.
If it is a matter of absentmindedness on behalf of the community population, the Team can recommend
a new wave of flyer distribution to the residents; or alternatively creating special signage for the bin to
remind passersby that the bin is used solely for clean plastic waste.
By conducting these informal “surveys”, the Team is able to keep dynamic and flexible to the
needs of stakeholders with respect to information distribution.
!KEY LEARNING! : Information is not a one way street! Constant engagement
with stakeholders is vital not only to implementing a recycling programme,
but also maintaining best practices over time!
11
* Final chapter remarks *
Community programmes, whether they be run through a residential association, church,
temple, or community centre are logical and useful points where the public can be specifically
targeted for education on environmental concerns, specifically waste management. Waste is typically
a community concern and once a community recognises its need to consolidate and advance its waste
management practices, it can and will create a deeper sense of belonging and camaraderie within a
community; nothing like a common enemy to unite fractious neighbours. Plastic waste is that enemy,
and by banding together, the community as a whole thrives, and has a ripple effect across other
communities who can see the
positive impacts and will join
EDITOR’S NOTE: Several of the sections that follow will refer to
the movement.
these Community Programmes to various degrees since they
form the foundations of a larger field of use, and despite being
tweaked to reflect their unique needs, it is important to note that
Corporations and Schools are “communities” in their own right
and thus benefit from the similar elements of the above
programmes. Similarly several components of the following
programmes are implemented in our stakeholder ‘Communities’
(e.g. Knowledge fairs and events).
CORPORATE/BUSINESS PROGRAMMES
1. “Recycling in the Workplace”- Corporate Social Responsibility
You’ve left school, you’ve got a job and you’re hard at work. The last thing you expect is for a
‘teacher’ to enter your office and ask you to ‘learn’ something new. Education stops at graduation,
right? Incorrect!
It is a common fallacy that business interests and environmental initiatives are permanently and
irrevocably at odds. It’s also wrong to assume that the workplace is an inconvenient or inappropriate
place to learn. In fact, the opposite is true.
A core tenet of business is to minimise waste in order to create profits, and so the concept of
recycling is neither alien nor undesirable to them. Similarly, it is a highly sought after corporate
tactic to engage employees on improving their lifestyle habits. A happier, healthier workforce is more
productive and easier to manage. It’s a win-win!
Plastikeep set out to build relationships with several large, medium and small enterprises to foster
the 3 aspects outlined earlier: (i) manage office waste more efficiently, (ii) alter workplace habits and
by extension, lifestyle habits through a concerted education campaign, and (iii) affect the culture of
12
business in Trinidad and Tobago to reflect a growing demand for a greener, environmentally
conscious society as a whole.
The primary method of doing this was to create solid and lasting partnerships with these
companies by proving our own reliability as a community operated business ourselves. This took
place in two main phases:
1) The implementation of PRP collection services at their place of business (See Operations
Model for details on collection services)
2) The education of the office staff on plastic disposal, for both work and home
The typical method by which Plastikeep reached out to office workers was through companywide mandates for ‘Corporate Social Responsibility’ Workshops. The presentations outlined early (in
the Community Programmes section) were tweaked to reflect a more business-centered view of
Plastic Recycling, for example by using a cost-benefit analysis of recycling. Encouraging companies to
view their corporate waste as a socially useful by-product allowed them to think in economic terms
about their behaviours. Then, by extending that to individuals in their homes, employees were
encouraged to recycle at home, and bring their plastic household waste with them to work for
disposal through their company’s collection services.
EXAMPLE: The first company that signed onto Plastikeep during the Pilot Phase was Guardian
Life, a life insurance company whose tagline was ‘Looking after Life’. By vigorously promoting
healthier living through recycling, not only were they validating their core beliefs to their
employees, but their employees then felt greater sense of pride in the integrity of their employer.
Additionally the public image of a greener workplace was used positively as a selling point in their
own corporate advertising. An example of compounded gains! That’s good business!
2. Knowledge Fairs and Events
One of the key aspects of good business is good networking. It is quite common for various
industries to host ‘Knowledge Fairs’ or similar networking events to highlight their products and
services to potential clients and affiliated companies. Plastikeep was invited to several of these
Knowledge Fairs over the course of the project to share our potential to aid companies (and
communities) to manage their waste better.
Another common form of networking event are various sponsored ‘Beach Cleanups’, where
corporate groups and the general public band together to clean the beaches of Trinidad of litter. Since
plastic is one of the most common found types of litter, this also makes an ideal location for
information sharing.
These opportunities to both educate the public and obtain new business partnerships are ideal
venues for Plastikeep’s Education Model. The following are a list of items used to set up an
‘Information Booth’, from which we can educate attendees:
13








!KEY LEARNING!:
Sometimes an event is busy, and sometimes very
little interest appears to be shown. However the
desired goal of attendance at Knowledge Fairs is
to establish a presence in the minds of the
public. This will inevitably lead to questions,
either expressed directly at the event where a
representative can educate, or indirectly in the
individual/company seeking more information
through the website/phonecall/social media or
appointment for workshops. No opportunity to
educate the population should be missed!
Samples and giveaways (flyers, pencils,
posters, and other promotional material)
Signage/banners/backdrop (brand
recognition and identification)
Table to lay out information
Business cards
Sign in/Contact Sheet (to obtain new
stakeholders and mailing contacts)
Laptop running presentation slideshow
(see above “Community Programmes”)
Recycling bins/bags (learning by doing,
and reinforcing behaviour)
Well informed representatives of the organisation
Figure 3: Project Officer Sarah de Freitas teaches kids about plastic hazards during the annual Coastal Cleanup campaign
* Final Chapter Remarks*
Our Corporate Stakeholders rely on similar methods of education as do the majority of our
communities. i.e. tightly focused presentations and promotional material in concert with establishing
a “presence” through offering collection services directly to their offices. The only important
difference is in the attitude taken towards businesses; the team must maintain a different style of
professionalism that demonstrates the viability of our, or any, recycling campaign.
14
By attending networking events with other businesses, Plastikeep has managed to build a
‘brand’ and an image that gives support to our education goals in general, while interacting on a
personal level with corporate workers allowing us a forum in which to educate a cross section of the
pubic that may otherwise be inaccessible by other means.
SCHOOL PROGRAMMES
1. Student Workshops and Events
Of all the presentations and workshops conducted by the Plastikeep Team of Project Officers,
none are considered as vital as those held in schools. The importance of children in affecting social
change cannot be overstated, and so interactions with them are carefully crafted and implemented. In
addition to the two major elements of our school-based education efforts (see the Plastithon and
Curriculum below), the team works on several smaller projects meant to engage and sustain interest
in the recycling movement. These can be either one-time events or continuous contact over the
course of the academic year.
The following are examples of some of these projects:
A. Initiation of in-School recycling programme. This is the most basic of our interactions
with the schools and the foundation of our education programme.
i.
Firstly, the school administration is met with and agreements are signed detailing
the amount of interaction the team will have with the students and the method of
collection/information distribution/etc, the School itself will bear as a
‘Stakeholder’
ii.
Once agreements are made, the donation of ‘Blue Bins’ (30 Gallon plastic garbage
bins labelled with the Plastikeep logo and the universal recycling symbol) are
strategically placed around the school compound for use by the students.
iii.
A full load of promotional items is distributed throughout the school, including
specially designed Posters and signage.
iv.
An assembly is held with the student body and a short, condensed ‘Presentation’
(see above) is conducted, with any special provisions for that school being noted
in said presentation.
v.
A system is set in place for the school to re-engage its student body through the
selection of an ‘Environmental Club’, or rotating ‘Head Recycling Class’ which
will monitor and report on the use/condition of the bins, and dispense any
relevant information/material to the rest of the school body.
!KEY LEARNING! One of the best forms of education is ‘Learning by Doing’. The presence of
recycling facilities in the school compound is a constant visual stimuli that allows children to
form and practise proper waste management concepts through their actions.
15
B. The Recycling Tele-conference: For this, Plastikeep partnered with international
development organisation JICA (Japan International Cooperation Agency) and two of our
participating secondary schools to host an international learning event with high schools
in Japan. The intent was to share information on ‘The Recycling Culture of my Country’,
giving students time to research, plan and rehearse a presentation of their own to a school
on the opposite side of the world. By doing this project, the students were able to learn
not only about their own country’s initiatives, but also gain exposure to methods and
ideas.
C. Ambassadorship Programme: The Environmental Ambassador Programme (EAP) was
created to engage our young stakeholders in bringing further awareness about Plastikeep
to reduce waste in our existing communities. The programme was developed to give
youths a sense of pride and belonging to show the rest of their community, and
themselves that they are committed to educating people about the importance of their
environment and how to keep it clean. Plastikeep believes that this programme creates a
sense of environmental ownership among our ambassadors, while teaching them life skills
such as teamwork, discipline and empathy. At the end of the programme, the youth also
gain a sense of social belonging. Additionally there is new information transfer to the
communities in which they are participating.
The first of these tests was done in Maple Leaf High School, where the ‘Environmental
Ambassadors’ were asked to disseminate information on how to recycle plastics, what
types of plastics can be recycled, as well as where their bin locations are. This is done
through Plastikeep’s rolled flyers (see attached document), which comes with two plastic
bags to incentivise new participants to separate their plastic waste. Alongside the rolled
flyers, we had the ambassadors communicate with other community stakeholders
through face to face conversation. They were provided with a script sheet of information,
rolled flyers and a bag for this volunteer exercise.
A second pilot of this program took place in Queen’s Royal College and an additional
component that included a series of talks done by leaders of the environmental
community was added to bolster the youth into action, demonstrating the potential
applications of an environmentally minded people.
D. Student Mentorship Programme: The August vacation is a time in which high-school
students usually pursue summer jobs - to gain experience and earn their own spending
money. It is a valuable learning opportunity for students to have a summer job that
would expose them to a field of work in which they have a demonstrated interest - while
earning a bit of income. For this Plastikeep developed the Mentorship Programme which
placed several teens as interns within the Plastikeep Team to learn the ins and outs of the
project. This programme not only allows Plastikeep to spread its knowledge on the
deepest of levels with the chosen students, but also provides concurrent learning for the
students in the fields of leadership, activism, community outreach, public speaking,
digital media, etc. It also shows to young people interested in furthering their careers in
16
environmental stewardship the basic skills necessary, and invigorates them with the
desire to continue in this direction.
2. The PLASTI-THON
This is one of the earliest major education tools we at Plastikeep devised to engage children
across all ages, levels, socioeconomic and geographic areas, and abilities. It is our great equalizer. It is
the Plasti-thon!
The Plasti-thon is a competition held annually, hosted by Plastikeep and sponsored by various
corporate partners. It is inspired by the popular school fundraiser, the ‘walk-a-thon’, but in place of
getting money per mile walked by the students, it requires students to bring in bags of Plastic for
recycling in exchange for ‘Points’. Prizes are then awarded to (i) the individual, (ii) the class, and (iii)
the school with the most points at the culmination of the [3 week] competition.
The Rules and Structure of the Plasti-thon are as follows:









All proposed schools receive a letter inviting them to participate, from Plastikeep. The letter
outlines the competition objectives and rules and introduces the project coordinators,
inclusive of key contact information;
Students bring in a bag of plastics for recycling, which then entitles them to enter the
competition;
Each student receives a tally form, a leaflet with information about recycling, as well as a new
plastic bag.
Students are encouraged to continue to collect plastics, listing their quantity of bags and
locations collected from, on the tally form;
Students bring full bags of plastic to school and the appointed teacher will verify and
authorize receipt by signing the students’ tally forms and marking the class tally form with
the number of bags submitted;
All plastics must be cleaned, crushed and have covers removed, as per the instructions on the
collection bins and flyers, provided by Plastikeep;
The tallied bags are deposited into the Plastikeep bin located at the school, for collection;
Completed forms handed in to the school coordinator are returned to Plastikeep for final
tally;
Winning students and schools are announced through formal letter and prize giving.
EDITOR’S NOTE : In order to stimulate greater interest, the Plasti-thon operates as both an
intra- and inter-school competition. i.e. Grand Prize awards for the best performing individual,
class and school overall while also giving a Top Recycler award for best individual and class
within each school.
17
To facilitate the competition, all participating schools receive a Competition Packet consisting of:




A flyer giving details of the competition;
Clear plastic garbage bags for distribution to participating students;
A tally sheet — for students to complete — stating how many bags they have filled and
where they collected plastic from (eg: school, home, the beach etc.);
A master tally form for teachers to complete whenever a full bag of plastic for recycling is
brought in.
(See Samples of the above forms in Appendix 2-Plasti-thon)
The intent of the Plasti-thon is to excite children about their waste (a notoriously difficult
topic), and create a sustained high-energy focus on plastic over the period of the competition. After
three years of implementation, Plastikeep has found that the success of the Plasti-thon is not limited
to increases in the at-school recycling initiatives, but actually has a significant Spill-over Effect on the
communities touched by the programme.
Every year our Monitoring and Evaluation team sees a sharp increase in recycling rates
throughout the duration of the competition (as can be expected). This is referred to as the Plasti-thon
Bump (see Figure 3).
Figure 4: Results of 18 months collection showing Plasti-thon "Bump"
18
As students become avid recyclers during the competition, they encourage their communities
(most notably close family members) to recycle as well. Originally the intent is to increase their own
scores (if you can get your grandparents to give you THEIR plastic as well, that’s twice the plastic,
and twice the points!), but after 3 weeks of solid, grounded, habit-forming behaviour, both the
students and the grandparents (who may not have recycled previous to the competition) may
continue this trend, having learnt the value of it through their relatives.
For more detailed information on the demographics of participants, see Appendix 2 Plasti-Thon.
KEY LEARNING!
Education does not always have to be boring! By creating fun ways for students to learn
and apply their knowledge, the excitement can have Spillover Effects and educate others
far removed from the classroom.
Testimonial: “Sarah [daughter] was an absolute tyrant during this competition! Aunties,
Grannies and everyone got the ‘recycling talk’ and now the whole family is on board
with your programme. Amazing work Plastikeep. She is talking about next year’s strategy
already!” –Parent’s message on the Plastikeep Facebook Page.
3. Voluntary Primary School Environmental Curriculum
a) Introduction
This has been a significant focus of much of our personal research into trends within the
education field. It is through this that Plastikeep seeks to sow the seeds to creating a better, long-term
and sustainable overall understanding of best waste management practices.
The goal was to create a series of classes, workshops and activities that could be conducted
throughout the course of an academic year that would collectively work to engage students with
respect to environmental stewardship. Specifically, the intent was to create a generation of active
environmentally minded citizens focused on solutions, beginning with recycling.
EDITOR’S NOTE: What’s in a name?
 Voluntary: designed to run concurrently with the existing Ministry of Education programmes with
minimal disturbance or overlap, but undertaken only at the willingness of the school.
 Primary School: The locus of the earliest and most ideal period of habit-forming behaviour
 Environmental: the original long-term intent is to solidify a holistic knowledge of all environmental
concerns, beginning by highlighting recycling and plastic
 Curriculum: a series of classes and workshops to engage students over an extended period of time.
Multiple engagements can and will reinforce the knowledge and prevent memory atrophy.
19
Plastikeep does not believe in reinventing the wheel, but rather adapting it to suit our purposes.
In this respect the Curriculum was based on similar successful initiatives across the world1. From this
we made several strategic adjustments for implementation in the Local setting and came up with the
following Key Objectives:



Knowledge
o The Environment (holistic)
o Issue Awareness
o Solutions
Concepts
o Individual Responsibility
o Empowerment
o Respect for the Environment
o Sustainability
Skills
o Leadership
o Critical and Analytical
Reasoning
o Independent Thinking
o Information Transfer
b) Structure
Next the Team had to decide how best
to integrate this content with existing school
programmes, leaving minimal disturbance to
Figure 5 & 6: Structure of the Original Planned Programme
both teachers and students but maximising
retention and transfer. Several ideas were
debated, but in the end the structure of the
material was set to be introduced as a
Supplementary series of classes (taught by
trained teachers) that focused on
environmental concerns.
A large and ambitious project outline
was crafted, that entailed an increasing
complexity of tiered education that went all
through the 5 years of Primary School
beginning with understanding the individual’s
relationship to the environment and ending
with global concerns and solutions (Figs. 5&6)
1
Primary Research document: UNESCO-UNEP International Environmental Education Programme, Education Series
#22: “Procedures for Developing an Environmental Education Curriculum”
20
However, due to limited resources, in the end, the team focused on implementing a single
Tier: “Standard Two: Resource Management”, which focused all the information on resource
management into nine (9) key lesson plans that logically and creatively took the students through the
concepts, knowledge and skills required to become responsible recyclers.
The classes were broken into 3 main modules, which allowed the students to (i) understand the
Environment at harmony, (ii) assess the Issues, and finally (iii) to explore the Solutions. The
following is the 9 part summary of the Lessons (For Full Lesson Plans and more information
associated with the Curriculum, see Appendix 3)
Standard 2: Resource Management and the Community



Module 1- The Environment
o Introduction to “Ecosystems” and how they work
o Nutrient Cycle (living recycling)
o Water Cycle (non-living recycling)
Module 2- Issue Awareness
o Scarcity (limitations to consumption)
o Waste (pollution and its effects)
o Recycling (the overall human potential)
Module 3- Solutions
o Plastics (an overview of the material and its effects)
o Recycling Plastic
o Information Transfer (class project to take the programme’s information out to the
community)
Editor’s Note: Why not just teach about Plastic Recycling? Why all the other aspects? It is difficult
enough for an adult to understand how to get from A to Z, but for a child who is full of questions, it
is imperative to take them through the whole process. By understanding how nature recycles, and
then showing man’s relationship to this, a more holistic and comprehensive understanding is
achieved. It’s one thing to get people to recycle, but it’s another to educate them as to why they
should recycle.
c) Activities
While structure and content are vital to running a successful curriculum, it is equally
important to remember that at the end of the day, we are dealing with children. At 8 years old,
asking children to sit through 9 classes that talk about waste can be a heavy task for any school or
teacher. It is important to make the learning FUN!
21
Plastikeep’s programme, then, was devised to take advantage of modern techniques in
teaching by melding content in with a series of “Activities” that made learning into playing! Each
child learns differently and so when creating the programme it was important to look at all the ways
in which children learn (Visual, Auditory, Kinaesthetic, Logical and Empathetic), and create
activities that could stimulate all the parts of a child’s brain.
EXAMPLE: One of the activities chosen to introduce ecosystem functions was a charade game called
“Noah’s Ark”. In this example, the classroom consists of 20 children. 10 animals are chosen by the children
in discussions about various ecosystems (e.g. reef, forest, and swamp). The name of each animal is written
on a pair of flashcards, and the 20 cards are handed out, one per child.
Without speaking, the children must then act out their animal in chorus, and seek out their corresponding
‘mate’ (remember there will be 2 of each animal in the class). Once found, they must assemble in the zone
of the classroom allocated for their ‘ecosystem’ (i.e all dolphins and lobsters go to the ‘ocean’; all frogs and
caimans go to the ‘swamp’, etc).
The game solidifies in the minds of the child all the components of the lesson, while stimulating them (i)
Visually (they must identify their partners in the chaos), (ii) Kinaethetically (by engaging them in
charades), (iii) Logically (having to correctly match species and ecosystem) and (iv) Empathetically (by
learning in groups, children are able to create mental bonds to physical activities)
*More activities can be found with access to the online Plastikeep Learning Portal at www.plastikeep.com
d) Implementation
The piloting of the project was offered to several schools and in the end 4 were chosen, based
on their varying socioeconomic, religious affiliation and resource differences, allowing the Team to
fully test which aspects of the programme could and couldn’t work given varying institutional
limitations.
By the second year of the programme, the Plastikeep Education Officer began tweaking and
ironing out inconsistencies with the project and the completed version was successfully re-piloted in
11 schools. Each school is asked to register for the programme and fill in a form to request specialised
versions based on their needs and resources (e.g. less contact hours, etc). See the registration
documents in Appendix 4 for more information.
In addition to the personal teaching of the programme by the resident Education Officer, the
material was uploaded to the Plastikeep Web Portal, an online forum and meeting place for teachers,
students, educators and principals, which allowed interested schools/camps/programmes access to the
lesson plans and activities for their own use.
22
EDITOR’S NOTE: With an assortment of multimedia tools and full listing of content, the Portal is an ideal repository of
the entirety of the Voluntary Primary School Curriculum and so much more. A host of new information is frequently
added to cover realms of information dissemination including general environmental education videos, activities, power
point presentations on climate change, disaster management, ecosystems etc. As the world moves increasingly online, it is
important for education programmes to adapt and excel in this realm as well. If you, reader, are interested in using or
viewing the Portal, please contact Plastikeep for your own access codes and get ready to have fun learning!
*Final Chapter Remarks*
The concern of environmental stewardship is up to all of us, but the heaviest burden of
challenges and threats will be faced by the next generation. This is why Plastikeep has invested so
much of their Education resources towards students in both primary and secondary schools, but
especially in the youngest amoung them.
Teaching is a field that is constantly evolving, with teachers learning as often as their
students. It is important to learn and adapt as you build a consciousness in schools, and so Plastikeep
returns regularly to its base and re-analyses its methods to keep updated with the latest techniques
and technologies of education.
By running concurrent programmes such as the Plastithon and the Curriuclum, we can
maintain near-constant contact and engagement with the youth in our catchment area, with the goal
of deeply rooting the ideas of environmental stewardship until they can become fact.
Figure 7: Children at St. Bernadette’s Primary School finish a recycling poster for their classroom
23
GENERAL POPULATION PROGRAMMES
1. Print media and Advertising
Aside from the resources expended on specific school programmes, this element of the
Plastikeep Education Model is the most important, occupying roughly 25% of the total budget.
As mentioned in the Introduction this is where where the seeds Plastikeep plants are best
watered and tended. It is vital for the project to gain both brand recognition and significant presence
in the cacophony of information we as modern citizens are inundated with. Studies show that while
seemingly outdated, print media and conventional advertising can achieve that effect. Plastikeep uses
this method in the following key ways:




Branded Promotional Items
o Targeted Posters (Junior and Senior level)
o Flyers
o Giveaway items (Water bottles, tote bags, pencils for students, buttons)
Billboard Advertising
o Located in the centre of the Plastikeep Catchment Area of North-West Trinidad
in Cocorite, the billboard is designed to catch the eyes of commuting traffic.
Newspaper Advertising
o Using targeted ads in local newspapers such as the Westerly and Northerly,
Plastikeep is able to educate and remind specific populations (within its
catchment) about upcoming events, general information and new data.
Press Releases and Media Interviews
o Plastikeep is active in promoting
the project through regular press
releases, articles and interviews
with the Team that appear
throughout the mainstream media
(newspapers, radio and television
programmeming). Press releases
may be written by the Plastikeep
Team members, consultants or
journalists.
Figure 8: Example of Newspaper Article
Coverage
24
2. Online Outreach (Website and Social Media)
In addition to the above mainstream advertising avenues, Plastikeep maintains a significant
online presence as well for the easy access of information on the project.
The primary form of this is the Plastikeep Website (www.plastikeep.com), built on contract
by a web designer and managed by the Plastikeep Education Officer. This forum is a useful tool for
both disseminating information to the public and connecting ourselves to the online conversation.
Resources that can only be obtained online, such as interactive mapping software, video information
and online gaming activities can be found here. Since it can be also be linked to other environmental
pages, waste management companies websites, and student and education groups nationally (such as
NIHERST and NALIS) it allows us to spread our network over a larger virtual area, touching people
who would otherwise fall outside of the real-world aspects of our education programme.
Figure 9: Screenshot of the Plastikeep Website
The second major online presence is through the use of Facebook. As more and more people
utilise social media, it is seen as an ideal avenue for information sharing. In our efforts to continue to
inspire our target population and market our mission and objectives to the larger public, we utilized a
variety of approaches and formats with our Facebook page. Our posts range from pictures of our team
at work, local as well as global environmental issues, inspirational quotes as well as solid waste
management and recycling facts.
25
Both the website and Facebook have proven to be great methods for our intended audience to
reach out to us and to establish connections with other environmental organizations. The outreach
of a Facebook page takes time and repeated sharing, but the posting of relevant and compelling
articles, facts and even challenges to the captive audience are all effective in increasing the interest,
participation and advocacy of the cause.
Figure 10: Screenshot of the Plastikeep Facebook Page
!KEY LEARNING!: The internet is an exceptional
tool for data mining in addition to dispersing
information. Monitoring statistics such as traffic
through our pages, activity with our partners,
conversations channels with interested people, etc.
help us to keep updated on our impact and adjust
our own operations to suit changing trends; all just
with click a of the finger.
26
3. Partnerships and Information Sharing
Throughout the course of the Plastikeep Recovery Programme, the Team has sought out
advantageous synergies and potential partnerships with a host of NGO’s, governmental agencies,
consultancies, community groups and corporations in an attempt to deepen the network of
environmental awareness in the country.
It is thought that by creating an expansive network, overlap is diminished and work can be
shared easily. For example, SWMCOL (the Solid Waste Management Company Ltd.) runs education
programmes of their own with respect to littering, and appropriate waste management. By partnering
with them, Plastikeep is able to provide and disseminate informational material through their
networks, while we gain insights into local stats from their data collection team. Win-win.
The following is a partial list of agencies Plastikeep has partnered with in the past:








Ministry of Legal Affairs: “Go Green” Programme; One T&T Initiative
SWMCOL: National Solid Waste Management agency
JICA: the Japan International Cooperation Agency
Carib Glass: local glass manufacturer to share resources with respect to education of
recyclable materials.
Jtography: a local film company that partnered with Plastikeep to produce a documentary on
local Waste Management.
Heroes Foundation: A local NGO dedicated to building educational capacity in at-risk, low
income schools.
Ideas Infinite: community consultancy group who developed and implemented the
Ambassadorship Programme (see above)
UNDP: United Nations Development Programme; partnered to launch the 2012 Knowledge
Fair.
*Final Chapter remarks*
It is unadvisable, as the old maxim says, to put all your eggs in one basket. When it comes to
mass media and advertising, diversity is key. For this reason, Plastikeep has spread its resources across
several different advertising platforms, to ensure that the channels between the organisation and the
audience are never severed or disrupted. By doing this, we can maintain a constant background
presence in the minds of our audience, and keep our own organisation responsive and flexible.
27
BUDGET AND REQUIRED RESOURCES
1. Human Resources- The Education Officer
The Education Officer is the “face” of the education and awareness component. As the main
interface to schools, the Education Officer is responsible for the implementation of the school
programme and other education related activities and is a core member of Team Plastikeep.
TERMS OF REFERENCE
Job Purpose:

Manage and teach educational and marketing programmes in schools, businesses and the
wider community. Increase the number of schools involved in PRP (i.e., the Plastikeep
Education & Awareness school programme)
Job Task:












Create and develop educational material and presentations for Plastikeep’s school
curriculum as well as for private sector and other audiences.
Create an activity book for children to further educate on plastic recycling
Communicate verbally and in writing to answer inquiries and provide information
Electronic social media set up and management through the Plastikeep website, Facebook
etc, marketing, advertising and monitoring
Collaborate with the E&A and M&E consultants
Collaborate with school to implement a programme that best suits the needs of the target
school in terms of logistics i.e. scheduling, style of lesson plan/teaching;
recommendations/improvements; reporting
Conduct presentations in schools, stakeholder communities to include presentation
material, actual presentations and “rap-up”.
Monitor and report progress of the school programmes
Present result to schools and Plastikeep management
Liaise between PRP and schools
Team work with the Project Officer
Collaborate with Plasti-thon consultants on the implementation of the annual school
Plasti-thon
Job Skills:





Communication= Well represent PRP- Capabilities to inform effectively
Inter-personal relations= Ease to create contact and relationships with stakeholders
Organisational =Planning and Follow up
Creativity = Able to generate original and attractive material
Action oriented
28

Result oriented
Job Demand: This is a full time position. Travel (A Plastikeep vehicle will be available upon
scheduling. The user has to be holding a driver’s licence for more than 2 years). If the person is not
able to use the company vehicle travelling will be at their own expense. Company cell phone and
computer will be assigned.
2. Financial Resources and Budgetary Requirements
The Education budget will be dependent on resources available, priority areas for action and scope of
works. There will be monthly and recurring expenses such as staff salaries and subscriptions.
Marketing efforts and expenses may vary from month to month depending on activities undertaken.
As an illustration only, the budget line items related to the PRP is outlined below. This will vary
according to each organisation’s own projects and requirements:
Budget Component
3 year Budget
Budget Allocation
Education Officer
$
436,920.00
21.5%
Market Campain Managament
$
90,000.00
4.4%
Newspaper and Magazine Print Ads
$
537,848.00
26.5%
Print Advertising (Stickers, Posters)
$
68,204.00
3.4%
Project Launch
$
19,600.00
0.5%
Outdoor Advertising (Billboards, wraps)
$
357,524.00
17.6%
Temporary Recruitment
$
7,500.00
0.4%
Promotional Items (T shirts, badges)
$
18,000.00
0.9%
Promotional Items (copybooks)
$
108,000.00
5.3%
Social Media (launch and monitoring)
$
150,300.00
7.4%
Plastithon
$
202,100.00
10.0%
Closing Event
$
31,934.00
1.6%
TOTALS
$ 2,027,930.00
100.0%
Figure 10: Table of Available Resources for Education and Awareness
29
3. Technological Resources
In order for effective education and outreach, there needs to be adequate technological resources
available to the Plastikeep team as well as the stakeholders. Stakeholders will have varying technical
equipment and capabilities and the Plastikeep team needs to be flexible and innovative to provide
their information in an effective manner. At the very least, from the project side, the immediate
technological requirements for the education and awareness component are:
Electronics and Equipment:







Phone line and number for the organisation
Office landline telephone units
Fax Machine/Copier/Printer/Scanner all in one machine
Laptop computers/tablets for all full time team members
Laptop bags for travelling team members
Cell phones, synced to a corporate plan for all full time team members
Projector and screen for external presentations
30
FINAL ANALYSIS
In the end Plastikeep’s Education and Awareness Programme proved to be a great success in
growing the knowledge of both the harms of plastic, and the solution: plastic recycling. In all
communities, schools, and corporations surveyed, the feedback was unanimous in improving this
metric.
While the majority of the Plastikeep Learning Objectives outlined in the Introduction were
satisfied by the array of programmes, the team did, however, face several significant challenges and
limitations in several key areas across the scope of the project; some anticipated, others not. The
following is a short list of some of these challenges the Team faced in the Implementation of the
Education Model and how they were overcome:




Education cannot be a ONE SHOT: Changing habits is a real struggle in the beginning phase
of an education campaign. Habits are deeply ingrained and to alter them is to hurdle a
significant threshold. To overcome this, the Team needed to approach stakeholders in a
strong, sustained manner, regularly checking on progress and adaptations until habits were
shifted and the information absorbed.
Education does NOT always lead to behaviour change: Telling someone to stay away from
fatty foods, listing the extensive ways in which it is harmful, will not stop them from eating
fast food. Ultimately it is a choice. So too with recycling. A prolonged and sustained
awareness campaign is not guaranteed to alter behaviour and it is important to acknowledge
this difference. For this, Plastikeep acknowledged that not every seed planted will germinate,
so we made a concerted effort to reach the largest possible target audience to ensure the
greatest opportunity for triggering social change.
Lack of Capacity: Plasitkeep’s Operations call for a strong leader in each stakeholder
community/school/business to aid in the constant engagement of nascent programmes. This is
referred to in the jargon as a ‘Champion’ who serve as the link between then Plastikeep Team
and its target audience. The role of the champion is to advocate the message and aid in the
delivery of materials and programs. Because this role is entirely voluntary, and Plastikeep
cannot count on the presence of a viable champion in every community, in many cases the
capacity of this central figure was inconsistent, inadequate or ineffective for the role at hand.
For example, in underfunded and low-performing schools, the teachers are overwhelmed
with existing challenges and unable to be efficient champions despite their willingness and
desire to be so. This was made especially clear as a key challenge in the delivery of the
Voluntary Primary School Curriculum. The original intent was to train teachers to teach the
material, but in the end the burden was too much for most teachers, with the end result being
that the Plastikeep Team needed to step in and teach the program using its own capacity,
restricting its total reach due to limitations in our own staff structure.
Lack of an enabling environment: Another key learning throughout the process of the
Education and Awareness campaign was the need for good soil in which to grow our seeds of
knowledge. In many cases the environment was not conducive or receptive to this
information creating the need to ‘till the soil’ extensively before concerted attempts were
made, or similarly, trying a programme several times. An early example was the partnership
with Heroes Foundation, a group that worked in schools that were characterised by the
31


existence of several risk factors. Several of the bins began with very little positive feedback,
even destruction, and it was up to the joint efforts of the PRP and the school administration
to turn this trend around, which turned out to be a very resource intensive process.
Lack of positive inter-governmental and legislative aid: Another key element to the success of
the program was a sound working relationship with the Ministry of Education, Green Fund,
Ministry of the Environment, SWMCOL, etc. It is often difficult to coordinate across several
agencies simultaneously, and this proved to be a major challenge in maintaining flexibility
within the Education Programme. It is important for groups to remember this limitation and
act accordingly, by striving to maintain strong and clear channels of communication.
Lack of interest: This was easily the most consistent challenge to face when talking about
waste management. To most people, it’s TRASH! It is difficult to alter the perception of the
population from viewing waste plastic as trash, to becoming a resource. Once that hurdle is
overcome, a secondary challenge is maintaining enthusiasm over time; a key element in
fostering permanent behaviour change, especially in children (our key demographic). To
overcome this challenge the Team worked hard to make garbage fun and engaging, using
several methods from interactive activities, to giveaway promotional items.
Despite these obstacles, the Team can unanimously declare the Education and Awareness
Campaign to be a success. The hard work and meticulous research that went into the development
and implementation of the extensive array of programs has made significant progress in not only
changing behaviour, but on a whole has made significant gains in changing the attitudes of the
population with respect to waste and its management.
We hope that you, too, have been affected (even by reading this document), and we thank
you for coming along with us on this journey. If you haven’t started recycling, we hope now you
might consider doing so, and if you have been with us from the start, then we, and the planet, thank
you! Together we CAN create positive change in Trinidad and Tobago!
32
APPENDICES
Appendix 1- Sample of Promotional Items
33
Appendix 2- Plastithon
Plastithon Tally Sheet
Flyer of Information for the 2014 Plastithon
34
Appendix 3- Curriculum Lesson Plans
Name of Lesson: The Environment and Eco-systems.
Grade/Standard: Two
Module: One
Lesson No.: One
Previous Learning
Learning Objectives

NONE


To introduce the concept of a Balanced Environment
To develop an understanding of the terms, ‘Ecology’ and ‘Ecosystem’

Warm up: Teachers could begin by introducing themselves and
the Plastikeep program in brief.
Bridge into discussions about nature: possible questions as to
whether the students have ever gone hiking, or walking along
trails in the forest before. Did they like it? What sorts of things
did they see?
Point out that the forest is a very balanced eco-system: does
anyone know the meaning of the term? Define it as “the system
of interactions between the living and non-living parts of a
specific environment”
o Note the use of the prefix ‘Eco’ as it is applied to other
forms: Eco-System, Eco-friendly, Ecology, etc.
Using the rain-forest as the template, explore, via discussion,
some of the possible systems and interactions in that particular
Eco-System: i.e. food chains; water movement from rain through
trees (hence Rain-Forest); etc.
Use one of the suggested activities to reinforce concepts.
(SUGGESTED: Noah’s Ark to expand from rainforests to other
types of ecosystems)

Lesson Outline




Activities

Necessary Materials


Option 1. Draw/colour a picture of the rainforest, making sure to
include several different animals discussed as being part of the
eco-system.
Option 2: Noah’s Ark
For Option 1: Printed Pictures of the Rainforest, available on the
Portal.
For Option 2: Printed instructions on the Portal, scissors, and
paper/pen.
35
Name of Lesson: Nutrient Cycles
Grade/Standard: Two
Module: One-The Environment
Lesson No.: Two

Understanding of the term ‘Eco-System’ and the variety of systems that
make up the larger environment.

To understand one of the ‘systems’ involved in the term Eco-System:
the Nutrient Cycle.
Students will begin to understand the concept of the ‘Cyclical’ or
‘Closed Loop’ element of Nature.
Define the term- BIODEGRADEABLE
Warm-up: Students are asked what their favourite foods are, and what
valuable nutrients exist in them.
o The idea of nutrients as minerals and compounds that are good
for their health is explained.
Recapping previous lesson (Noah’s Ark), what animals ate which
animals?
Taking one animal as reference, a food chain is drawn on the board,
linking the Sun->Plant->Animal 1->Animal 2, etc, BACK to the plant.
Emphasise the RETURN of nutrients to the soil after the top predator
dies. Repeat with a different eco-system until the concept is
understood.
o OPTIONAL: Use Activity 1: Clip of the Circle of Life from Lion
King, to explain this
Students are supplied with Activity 2: word search. Define the terms
(playing close attention to the fungi, bacteria, biodegradeable (i.e. the
recycling mechanisms of nature)
Option 1: Video Clip of Lion King explaining to Simba the Circle of Life
Option 2: Word Search
**Option 3: (Long term): Set up “Compost Corner” for use in Lesson
5**
Previous
Learning
Learning
Objectives



Lesson
Outline




Activities



36
Name of Lesson: Water Cycle
Grade/Standard: Two
Module: One

The LIVING system of the Nutrient Cycle is explored



To understand one of the ‘systems’ involved in the term Eco-System: the Water Cycle.
Students will understand the concept of the ‘Cyclical’ or ‘Closed Loop’ element of Nature
Define the term: RENEWABLE




An idea of the concept of “using again”, or “Making New” through the cyclical processes of
nature (recap of Lesson 2). Define the term RENEWABLE
Students will be told that there are many NON-Living systems in place within the
environment, an example being THE WATER CYCLE, that are renewable.
o If a full computer room can be made available, an interactive game can be played
using Option 1: Water Cycle learning Game, used to teach the whole cycle. (This can
also be used in other classes as a tool for something more in depth)
o Option 2: a short video played on a laptop in front of class, can be used to
demonstrate the main elements of the cycle.
o Kids can be taught the major points also using Option 3: Water Cycle colour diagram.
At the end of class, link all 4 major elements: Evaporation, Condensation, Precipitation and
Runoff into a simple cycle. (also look at the use of water by plants and infiltration into soil)
Point out that the options exist for Air, Soil (minerals), Sunlight, Wind, etc are also
RENEWABLE.
Option 1: Water Cycle Game
Option 2: Water cycle Cartoon
Option 3: Water Cycle printable Image



For Option 1: Multimedia room with stable internet connection
For Option 2: Single Computer with speakers
For Option 3: Printed pictures of the Water Table to colour.
Previous
Learning
Learning
Objectives
Lesson
Outline



Activities
Necessary
Material
37
Name of Lesson: Scarcity
Grade/Standard: Two
Module: Two
Lesson No.: Four
Previous Learning

The Environmental ‘Cycles’ (Water and Nutrient) were explored.
Biodegradeable/Renewable concepts were understood.
Learning Objectives



To understand to idea of SCARCITY
What is limited, i.e. NON-Renewable
How does this affect our resource extraction.


A gentle recap of Module 1 would be conducted.
Warm-up: Ask the kids what their favourite things are… on the whole
planet! What do they like to consume (eat, drink)
Watch ‘Nguyamyam’ video. (Or read story)
Ask questions (see questionnaire) to ensure comprehension
Explain how consumption and scarcity work in the real world by
comparing with the cartoon.
o E.g. Trees for paper; Oil for plastic; fish/animals for food
Enforce the idea of CONSERVATION, and REDUCTION
Nguyamyam Video.
(Low tech is to print out transcripts of the story and have the kids read
it aloud- alongside screenshots of the film)
Lesson Outline



Activities
Necessary Material





Multimedia room with stable internet connection
Screen/Projector
38
Name of Lesson: Waste
Grade/Standard: Two
Module: Two
Lesson No.: Five
Previous Learning

The concept of scarcity of resources.

Learning Objectives
Lesson Outline
Activities
Necessary
Materials
Define the term Pollution as contaminating or dirtying of the
environment by unwanted substances
o Consequences of bad waste disposal including; litter, waste build
up in landfills and harmful effects on humans and animals from
burned or buried waste.
 Mention types of Pollution; Air, Water and Land, caused by human
activities.
o Define Litter as waste material carelessly dropped, especially in
public places.
 Waste build-up at landfills and overloading.
o Materials that are non-biodegradable accumulate and last for
many years and can’t be returned to the environment.
o Burned and buried garbage is harmful to humans through
contaminated underground water or toxic chemicals released
into the air. Example: Beetham Dump.
 Solution: Three R’s; Reduce, Reuse and Recycle.
o By using activity 1 show that without the three R’s, all these
waste items will over flow the dump. Point out it is our
responsibility to properly dispose of garbage.
 Option 1: How long does it stick around? Students try to guess how
long it would take each piece of trash to completely decompose.
Identify which items could be reused or recycled and discuss why
this is a good idea.
 Option 2: Word Search.
 Option 3: Recycling Maze. Students will be asked to connect the
bottle to the recycling bin through the maze.

All Activities can be printed from the Plastikeep Learning Portal.
39
Name of Lesson: Recycling!
Grade/Standard: Two
Module: Two
Lesson No.: Six
Previous
Learning
Learning
Objectives
Lesson
Outline

The evils of Non-renewable (scarcity) and waste build-up
(dumps/environmental degradation)


To link the basics of how nature ‘RECYCLES’ with how humans can
Looking at a simple example: (1) organics/composting, OR (2) paper

Warm-up: Summarise the previous 2 lessons via questions
o Why is taking things out of the environment bad AND why is putting
pollution into it bad?
A review of Module 1 (how the environment uses cycles)
o Reference to the water cycle (if using paper as an example) or the
nutrient cycle (how leaves ‘biodegrade or compost’)
Now move from nature to the ‘Human World’. How can human beings be
more like nature and recycle our ‘Waste’
Activity 1: Compost Corner
Activity 2: Paper (or Tetrapak) Press
Compost Corner
Paper (or Tetrapak) Press


Activities





Necessary
Materials

For Compost Corner: a Large 2L plastic Bottle; soil; water; and some dead
organic material (leaves preferably, possibly banana peels, etc)
Used paper, Cheese cloth, Water, flat boards.
40
Name of Lesson: Plastic!
Grade/Standard: Two
Module: Three
Lesson No.: Seven
Previous Learning
Learning Objectives

How recycling works, in basic (paper/compost)

To familiarise students with “what is plastic”, “where does it come
from”
Important points: Non-renewable (scarcity) and NONBiodegradable
Warm-up: Summarise the previous 2 modules (Environment and
Problems of resource management)
o Basic questions will be asked to run through the important
points (definitions of
ecosystem/renewable/biodegradable)
o What is the concept of recycling?(breaking down to parts,
and building back up)
A look at “where plastic comes from”
o Watch ‘The Story of Plastic’: Even though it tells the whole
story, focus on the ‘Oil’ part. Where does oil come from?
Explain the origins of oil and its non-renewable component.
Plastic is limited.
How is plastic made? Oil is taken, solidified and turned into plastic.
What is plastic vs. paper vs. glass? (Play Recycle Game; Recycle
Michael)
Story of Plastic Video
Recycle Michael Flash Game
Recycling Game


Lesson Outline



Activities




Necessary Materials
Screen and projector; laptop (For all the above, some level of
multimedia is needed. If no facilities exist in the school, the class
can gather around a laptop and participate in sections)
41
Name of Lesson: Recycling Plastics
Grade/Standard: Two
Module: Three
Lesson No.: Eight
Previous
Learning
Learning
Objectives

The life of Plastics is explored.

To familiarise students with the 7 different types of recyclable
plastics.
To develop an understanding of the process of plastic recycling.


Lesson Outline
Activities
Necessary
Materials
With aid from Handout 1, discuss the 7 types o f recyclable plastics.
1. Polyethylene Terephthalate
5. Polypropylene
2. High Density Polyethylene
6. Polystyrene
3. Polyvinyl Chloride
7. Any Other
Plastics
4. Low Density Polyethylene
 With help from Activity 2, give examples of types of plastics
stressing on the most common ones.
 Explain the process of recycling plastic (with help from the video).
o Sorting, chipping, washing, melting, pelting.




Option 1: Recycling Handout.
Option 2: Recycle Sorting Game.
Option 3: How Plastic Bottles are Recycled Video.
Option 4: What happens to Recycled Plastic? Handout from Activity
Book.



For Option 1 & 4: Printed from the Plastikeep Learning Portal.
For Option 2: 6 bins/ bin covers, paper and bag of plastics.
For Option 3: Computer or projector with internet access. Video on
the Plastikeep Learning Portal.
42
Name of Lesson: Information Transfer
Grade/Standard: Two
Module: Three
Lesson No.: Nine
Previous
Learning

The whole curriculum!

To transfer all knowledge to at least one other person


A final class to summarise the whole of the curriculum.
Allow time for Q&A (testing the student’s uptake of info and also
allowing any additional questions to be asked)
Devise a project with the students to carry that information
outwards
o E.g. Design posters for the school; draft letters to take
home to parents/aunts/grandparents/neighbours to start
recycling at home; design a
presentation/slideshow/skit/etc. for School Assembly
Learning
Objectives
Lesson Outline

Activities

Infinite Options
Necessary
Materials

N/A
43
Appendix 4- Curriculum Forms
MODULE OUTLINE for ACADEMIC YEAR 2013-2014
TERM TWO
• Type of Program
School Term
Term 1 - Module 2-1
• Complete / Condensed / Custom
Term 2 - Module 2-2
• Complete / Condensed / Custom
Term 3 - Module 2-3
• Complete / Condensed / Custom
Module 2-1 – Title and Description
Module 2-1
Academic Year
Name of School
Academic Level
Term
Module
Instructor
Time Frame for Delivery
Period Length
Frequency of Delivery
Delivery Dates
2013-2014
Standard II
ONE
Complete
September – December
2013
30- 45 minutes
School Representative Name
School Representative
Contact Information
School Representative
Signature
44
Appendix 5- Sample Presentation
45
46
47