Return and Earn was proud to support the 34th NSW Environmental Education Conference held in Kirrawee, Sydney from 3-5 October 2019.
The ‘ActiveNature’ conference saw almost 200 delegates gathered to promote citizenship, advocacy and learning pathways for environmental education for future generations.
The Return and Earn presentation examined how the scheme is providing a platform to champion environmental changes, and its uptake by schools across NSW.
Return and Earn has enjoyed strong interest from the school community in its potential for litter reduction and community benefits. Conference attendees also heard from young scheme advocate Jack Berne from St Augustine’s College, who spoke about how schools can incorporate Return and Earn into their sustainability programs.
Jack Berne, ‘A Fiver for a Farmer’, and St Augustine’s College’s sustainability journey with Return and Earn
With the simple idea to dress up like a farmer and make a $5 donation to support drought-affected farmers, Jack and his school mates started the hugely successful ‘A Fiver for a Farmer’ campaign in 2018. Since launching, the initiative has raised $1.7million dollars in donations for Rural Aid and Drought Angels.
Jack’s school, St Augustine’s College in Brookvale, is highly community focused and students are involved in a variety of sustainability projects. The school was keen to get behind Jack and support farmers in need.
The school set up red and yellow Return and Earn bins around the grounds to collect eligible cans and bottles. The bins were decorated with the ‘A Fiver For a Farmer’ logo, and the funds raised from the 10 cent refund per container go to supporting the charities. The introduction of these bins has helped promote recycling in the school and has encouraged Jack’s peers to support his fundraising initiative.
To donate to ‘A Fiver for a Farmer’ please visit https://afiverforafarmer.com.au/
Check out Jack at the ActiveNature Conference
Download the presentation slides
Return and Earn partnership with the Australian Association of Environment Education NSW Chapter
In August, Return and Earn and the Australian Association for Environment Education NSW Chapter announced an exciting partnership to support schools and community groups in their sustainability journey. The partnership aims to enable Sustainable Schools NSW members and Take Me Outside NSW participants to make use of the Return and Earn program to their full advantage.
Find out more:
Return and Earn – https://returnandearn.org.au/fundraising/
