Meet the kids of St. Louis Earth Day.
Kids Love Recycling
Kids love recycling. In addition to many parents telling us this at events where our Recycling On the Go crew works, we get to see it in action. It always begins with a bobbing head approaching our Waste Station with hands outstretched, a young girl or boy waiting anxiously to find out if what s/he holds is recyclable.
Many kids become familiar faces. Once they get a good look at what’s what in our different containers, they’ll silently turn and walk (or run) away, only to return again, and again, and again….
Sometimes they’ll search the ground for any morsel of litter (an event organizer’s dream), or they’ll ask their parents and friends, “Are you done with that?”
Adam
At LouFest in 2012, Adam became a star volunteer! Helping to keep the Nosh Pit area tidy, he was soon outfitted with an official volunteer name tag, gloves and a t-shirt. At four years old, he could not have been more thrilled by this opportunity, and soon adults were helping him – inspired by his actions!
In addition to helping keep over 50 tons of recyclables and compostables out of area landfills in 2013, we get to introduce kids and adults to recycling or composting for the first time through Recycling On the Go. They might find out something new, like that caps can stay on plastic bottles, or come to realize that it can be easy to live a more sustainable lifestyle, starting with recycling.
Bella & Solomon
Bella and Solomon volunteered this year at Food Truck Friday in Tower Grove Park with Recycling On the Go. Seen here with ROG staff Jenny, the two helped kept the energy high in their Waste Station — and it was contagious! You could feel the good vibes floating out into the crowd. Not only did they learn a lot, totally rock out as outstanding volunteers, but they got to meet tons of new people. And, perhaps, inspiring them to recycle too.
Kids are also volunteers with St. Louis Earth Day. In addition to supporting a non-profit organization and engaging in environmental actions, volunteers often get to learn new skills. Young volunteers are always a welcome addition to our programs, as they bring a fresh energy to whatever task they are working on.
Gabe & Indigo
Gabe and Indigo have volunteered at the St. Louis Earth Day Festival for at least four years. In recent years, they have taken on the important role as “Neighborhood Captain” – helping vendors/exhibitors find their spaces and get their booths set up.
“I volunteer with my boys because I want them to see first hand the impact they can make, all the while getting exposure to all the different ways they can make choices that better the environment. I don’t want them learning to just give money, which is always important, of course, but I want them to give of themselves.” – Jen (Mom of Gabe & Indigo)
Support Recycling Education
You can support future opportunities for kids to engage with environmental stewardship in a fun and rewarding way by joining the Friends of St. Louis Earth Day. Your donation goes directly to running our programs, and is completely tax deductible.
