Waste Reduction, Recycling, and Composting Activities

Striving for Zero Waste significantly reduces our impact on natural systems by decreasing natural resource extraction, energy and water consumption, transportation emissions, and greenhouse gas emissions. Through local Zero Waste actions, we can have a direct and positive impact on some of the biggest global challenges of our time—resource depletion, air and water pollution, human health risks, and the loss of wildlife and ecosystems.

There is no better way to change society’s wasteful habits than by educating and engaging children and their families, and there is no better time than now. Our Zero Waste Schools Activity Guide for schools, camps, and other settings that serve preschool through high school youth will bring your group closer and closer to Zero Waste in creative and low-cost ways, diverting more and more of our planet’s precious natural resources from the landfill.

The guide is arranged in four sections: Waste-Reduction Activities, Recycling Activities, Composting Activities, and Motivators and Rewards. You can download and print the full guide, each section, or individual chapters that can stand on their own (accessed by clicking into the pop-out accordions below)!