Zero Waste project in İzmir instills recycling habit in students

İZMİR

A new pilot project launched in the western province of İzmir is encouraging students to collect and sort household waste by offering them digital credit for use in their school canteens.

Initiated in April with the support of the İzmir Governor’s Office, alongside several private sector sponsors, the initiative aims to instill environmental awareness at an early age, linking recycling with everyday habits like spending and saving through a reward system.

Implemented in two high schools and one primary school in the Bornova district, the project provides students with the opportunity to deliver recyclable waste to a designated weighing station set up in the schoolyard. After the waste is sorted into six categories — plastic, metal, glass, paper, cardboard packaging and used cooking oil — it is weighed, and the students are credited with a corresponding amount of money on their digital school ID cards. The balances can then be used to purchase food and drinks from the school canteen.

Under the scheme, Bornova Zero Waste Project, students earn 10 Turkish Liras ($0.25) per kilogram of plastic, 20 liras for metal, 5 liras for glass, 2 liras for paper, 4 liras for cardboard packaging and 20 liras per liter of used oil.

According to Oktay Taşdemir, principal of Fatih Sultan Mehmet Primary School, one of the participating schools, the initiative has already had a noticeable impact on student behavior and awareness.

“Our aim was to help children understand that the waste they see around them can be reused through recycling,” he said. “Before we began, we organized training sessions for students, teachers and parents on waste management and how the system works. Once everyone was informed, participation became easier.”

Taşdemir noted that the project not only supports environmental goals but also contributes to household and national economies. In partnership with several recycling firms, the schools have arranged for collected waste to be picked up weekly, sometimes at rates above market value.

The project’s coordinators say they hope to expand it to more schools across the district in the coming months.