Zoomkids make beautiful products from waste materials
Zoomkids Club members from 10 selected schools in the Tema metropolis have benefited from a two-day intensive recycling training session to educate them on the judicious use of waste materials.
Share Foundation, a non-profit organisation in Tema, with the support of Zoom Foundation, trained the members on how to transform used materials people usually discarded into beautiful artefacts to be used in homes, offices and schools.
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The training sessions which were held at the Republic Basic School in Tema had the theme: “Upcycling:Turning waste into arts”.
During the first session the children learnt how to make desk organisers using waste cartons, tissue and plastic straws.
At the second session, Zoomkids transformed waste glass and bottles into beautiful flower vases, candle holders, desk organisers known as waste glass/plastic bottle craft. Beautiful necklaces, earrings and bracelets were also made from waste paper, broom sticks and crystal beads.
During one of the sessions, the National Programme Officer for Zoomlion Foundation, Mr Thomas Narh Korley, indicated that with the Zoomkids upcycling challenge children could now use waste to make artefacts to be shown to Zoomlion Ghana and receive awards.
That, he said, would sensitise children to recycling, waste segregation and environmental education.
He further called on all organisations and institutions which were into either plastic/glass bottle production to join the campaign to train children on environmental protection so as to make our surroundings clean.
For her part, the Founder of Share foundation, Miss Lily Akua Mintah, who mobilised the schoolchildren for the project, emphasised that environmental education was a lifelong affair and should be started very early in children.
“Environmental education should be started from kindergarten. When children are aware of their environment, it is easier for them to imbibe the good habits unlike adults who have already formed their habits”, she said.
At the end of the training sessions, there was an exhibition of the necklaces, earrings, hairbands, ribbons, flower vases and jeans bags made from the waste materials.
Three pupils, Odelia Tenkorang of SDA Basic School, Whitney Turkson of Rising Soul School and Emmanuel Sowah of Dolsons Complex School, who emerged winners in the challenge for producing the most beautiful artefacts, received souvenirs from Zoomlion Ghana.
Mr Thomas Narh Korley (, National Programme Officer of Zoom Foundation, Miss Rita Oppong, Resource Person and Miss Lily Akua Mintah (middle), Founder of Share Foundation with with Zoomkids. They also exhibited their beautifully made artefacts.
• Some of the Zoomkids busily cutting their paper cartons for the desk organisers.
• Miss Rita Oppong, a resource person teaching some zoomkids how to make flower vases.
