Waste Savvy Staffs
About 🔗
Garden Organic recruited, trained, and coordinated volunteers to raise awareness of this topic throughout the county.
The Waste Savvy Staffs campaign aimed to reduce food waste, increase composting and recycling, and promote other sustainable waste schemes, such as real nappies and Repair Cafes. We also supported the Council in setting up community fridges in the county to encourage the sharing of unwanted or surplus food and drink.
Volunteering 🔗
Our volunteers raised awareness of ways to waste less through stands at events, talks, workshops, home visits, and supporting schools, colleges, and universities.
Most of the volunteer activity involved engaging with the public at events across Staffordshire, such as countryside shows, garden/flower festivals, sustainability events and fun days. Our volunteers also delivered talks and workshops to schools and community groups.
While coronavirus restrictions were in place, much of this work was successfully directed towards engagement via social media and talks to groups using Zoom, highlighting the flexibility of our volunteer programmes.
The volunteer could decide which of these events they wished to undertake, as well as finding their own local events or projects.
I've learnt more about composting in this short while than I ever could have elsewhere. What’s more, you’ve given me the confidence to go ahead and start composting myself. The Zoom format worked perfectly. Thank you.
Benefits 🔗
As well as additional in-service training, the coordinator arranged social meetings to build relationships and maintain volunteer engagement.
We also provided resources for volunteers to use, from leaflets, games and activities to tables, chairs, tablecloths and gazebos if required.
