Promoting Zero Waste on Earth Day

7 June 2024

Earth Day is a more than just an annual awareness day. Celebrated globally on 22 April, Earth Day involves over one billion people of all ages in nearly 200 countries, and is a universal call to action. Earth Day encourages global citizens to come together and take action for a healthier planet to create a more sustainable world and a brighter future.

“Celebrating Earth Day is often the first environmental action for a lot of people,” Earthday.org president, Kathleen Rogers.

This year marks ACTAsia’s fourth year of Earth Day activities. We are thrilled that 196 schools joined in our Earth Day programme as part of ACTAsia’s Caring for Life (CFL) educational programme. Students were actively involved from kindergarten through to middle school.

Planet vs Plastics

The 2024 global Earth Day theme was Planet vs Plastics which aims to raise awareness of the harms of plastic pollution for human and planetary health. Previous Earth Day events have covered a range of environmental issues, from climate change and clean energy to protecting species and the benefits of tree planting.

This year’s focus comes ahead of an historic UN treaty on plastics, which is expected to be agreed by the end of 2024. More than 50 countries have called for an end to plastic pollution by 2040. However, the organisers of Earth Day want to go further, and are calling for a 60% reduction in the production of all plastics by 2040. 

Zero Waste Themed Activities

In response to the Chinese Ministry of Education’s recent call for “green and low-carbon education in primary and secondary schools” and to help build China’s ecological civilization, ACTAsia carried out “Zero Waste” activities in line with this year’s Earth Day theme.

This year saw a record number of schools, clubs and organisations taking part in activities between 22-26^th April. ACTAsia was also thrilled to extend its reach to two online school partners thereby reaching large numbers of rural children for greater impact. ACTAsia shared its Caring for Life (CFL) education resources – in the form of a toolkit – to schools and clubs across China. The lesson plans promoted activity-based learning to create opportunities for critical thinking and to enhance the quality of the learning experience. 

CFL is a unique six-year programme for all primary school years. It encompasses social welfare and civic responsibility, animal welfare, and environmental issues, and recognises the interdependence of all living things. CFL programme works closely with teachers and education authorities.

ACTAsia is working towards the goal of having the CFL education programme adopted into the national curriculum in China, for every child. The Earth Day event provides the opportunity for schools and clubs in China to join the teacher training and use ACTAsia’s toolkit, as a taster of the full course, thereby encouraging discussion, participation and promotion of the course. 

Engaging Activities to Highlight Zero Waste

The ’toolkit’ provided by ACTAsia’s CFL team provided fun, engaging and thought-provoking activities for all age groups. These included a treasure hunt whereby students were transformed into explorers, crossing the barriers of time and space, exploring the environmental wisdom of ancient civilizations, and experiencing the fun of utilising waste with the goal of achieving zero waste. During another activity students adopted a time-machine role play where they enjoyed the concept of traveling through different periods of history and witnessing the evolution of waste disposal and environmental awareness.

Another activity asked the students to become ‘Eco-Detectives’ uncovering the secrets behind waste with the help of questionnaires and fun facts. There were also a range of practical activities with creative recycling for fashion catwalk events and hands-on composting.

Teacher Feedback following the activities

We were delighted to hear this feedback from one of the teachers:

As a Chinese teacher in a primary school, I was introduced to this Thematic Class. It was my first-time teaching students this type of class. Initially, I was apprehensive about the children’s understanding, as terms such as ‘greenhouse effect’ or ‘low carbon life’ rarely appeared in their daily lives. However, to my delight, the children’s curiosity and engagement grew as the class progressed. They posed insightful questions, such as ‘What is the relation between climate and the Earth?’ ‘Is a greenhouse a big room?’ ‘What is low-carbon?’ Their enthusiasm and realisation that they could make a difference in protecting the Earth filled me with hope for the future.’

Students also commented on the incredible impact of the events

‘The Earth Day class taught me that human activities can significantly impact ecosystems. Plastic bags produce white pollution; deforestation reduces the number of plants. Hunting animals reduces the number of animals. All of the above have a significant impact on the food chain. As a fourth-grade student, I realised the power of individual actions in protecting and restoring the ecosystem, such as avoiding littering and reusing plastic bags.’

How Earth Day is Making a Global Difference

ACTAsia is delighted that this year’s theme of Zero Waste was so well received and that the lessons were engaging and thought provoking. From creating miniature ponds with the kindergarten children to developing waste strategies and critical thinking about the planet with the older years, ACTAsia’s CFL programme had an incredible impact across the region.

On a global level, Earth Day is truly making a difference. Within a few years of the first Earth Day in 1970, the US Environmental Protection Agency had been set up, and several environmental laws – such as the Clean Air Act – had been established or significantly strengthened. More recent events have included planting hundreds of millions of trees, supporting farmers with sustainable agriculture practices, and starting climate literacy projects around the world.

At ACTAsia we are honoured to be part of the Earth Day impact as we unite with the goal of raising awareness, inspiring change and fostering a deeper connection with nature.