This weee2tree project was started in O’Connell’s Primary School, Richmond St, Dublin 1 in June 2023. The project has been directly funded by Electronic Recycling as part of their commitment to weee2tree.
The project consists of converting four small sections in the schoolyard into biodiversity corners.
The first task was to prepare the soil for planting, which will take place in early winter, when the trees are dormant. To prepare the soil, children from 1st and 2nd Class were enthusiastically involved with Catherine, Ashe and Amy from Pocket Forests as they cleared the ground to prepare it for planting in Winter. This included burying a ”Worm Hotel” in the soil before covering the ground with well-watered, recycled cardboard and woodchips.
Over the summer the worms will multiply and spread through the prepared soil, enriching it with the nutrients needed to ensure a perfect growing space for the trees and the shrubs that will grow there over the coming years.
Pocket Forests will return to the school in early winter for the planting and the children will have another opportunity to learn more about biodiversity.
Once the site preparation was finished in June, the children returned to their classrooms for a creative writing workshop organised by Fighting Words, to write stories about the experience. One of these stories, incorporating the ”Worm Hotel” is available to read on the Fighting Words website HERE
The beauty of this project is that it will facilitate the education of the children in O’Connell’s Primary School on biodiversity for many years to come.
When the planting is being carried out in early winter, Brendan Palmer from Electronic Recycling will give a talk to the children on the impact of e-waste on the environment and importance of recycling it properly. especially those small items that can end up in the Black Bin