Stockland is taking charge on battery recycling
Stockland is partnering with the National Theatre for Children (NTC) on the Big Battery Challenge, working with 23 schools on the environmental impact of battery recycling.
This year’s Big Battery Challenge will run from March to December at schools in Stockland’s masterplanned communities across Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, and Western Australia.
The Big Battery Challenge started in 2020 and was developed by NTC to educate on the importance of battery recycling through a series of interactive, in-person performances and online events, alongside digital activities, printed workbooks and teacher resources.
Last year, Stockland and the NTC worked with more than 12,000 students and 500 teachers across 24 Stockland communities and diverted nearly 7,500 kilograms of batteries from landfill.
Participants can recycle all types and sizes of single use and rechargeable batteries, button cell and mobile phone batteries, as well as learn about their impact on the environment and how they can be used again.
Stockland Sustainability Manager, Penny Austin said it was exciting to see the Big Battery Challenge kick off again for 2023.
“Most households have old batteries, chargers, and mobile phones that they’re not sure what to do with. These types of initiatives help to build sustainable practices for communities now and into the future. The results we achieved last year were impressive and it’s great to be able to build on that again,” Ms Austin said.
“We look forward to working with NTC on this school-based education program, and believe the Big Battery Challenge has already made a real difference in our communities, reaching nearly 50,000 students and recycling over 10,000kgs of batteries.”
An online portal tracks the data on batteries recycled and their environmental impact. It also includes a range of educational images and videos to promote the program in the community, encouraging residents to drop off their batteries to nearby participating schools.
Since 2016, Stockland and NTC have been working together to deliver environmental and conservation educational outreach across a number of programs.
Tobias Benn from NTC explains “Education using live theatre, exciting characters and storytelling combined with interactive games, helps kids to model their world in a way that makes sense to them and inspires them to take positive actions for the community, such as collecting batteries around recycling.”
For more information, visit: www.BigBatteryRescue.com