Damaged CDs, fish bones, old clothes, dry leaves, banana peel, paint bucket, bits of paper and an old can. Sounds like a bunch of garbage, right?
But in fact, these are the titles of the eight groups, comprising participants of Haritha Nagarotsavam, the city Corporation’s green-themed summer camp, at Government Higher Secondary School for Girls, Cotton Hill. The camp was inaugurated by Mayor V.K. Prasanth on Wednesday.
The titles, a fun way of introducing the students to types of garbage that can turn out to be not wasteful at all, were just the beginning of their journey to a better understanding of the garbage and its relation to the environment.
Accompanied by camp’s mascot Binku, over 70 students spent the day learning about nature conservation and waste management, through talks and activities.
Nature walk
A nature walk, where they explored the school campus to discover little-known natural wonders that populate it, was followed by a trash walk to examine and scientifically learn about the waste generated on campus.
This was topped off by a trash hunt, where they competed to identify and collect the garbage on campus.
They also learnt to properly get rid of the waste generated at the camp, with each group being given an aerobic kitchen bin to compost the leftovers.
Over the next few days, the children will build a ‘waste corner’ and try their hands at systematically segregating the waste.
Toys from trash
Training will be given to the children in making toys and other products from things considered waste. They will also visit nearby residents’ associations to make the people aware of waste management. The camps, also being held at Government Model Boys Higher Secondary School, Thycaud; Government Higher Secondary School, Kulathoor; and Government Girls Higher Secondary School, Peroorkada; will conclude on Sunday.
With a ‘trashion’ show
On the final day, participants of all the four camps will come together at the Museum auditorium. An exhibition of the products made by them, cultural programmes, including a ‘trashion show,’ will be held.
The students will be declared the Corporation’s green army.
