No Waste Ukraine releases board game to teach waste sorting

On November 25, the waste sorting station in Kyiv hosted a presentation of the board game "Sorting Against Garbage Trucks." 

The presentation took place as a panel discussion led by the chief of the Ukrainian environmental organization No Waste Ukraine chief, Yevheniia Aratovska, and host/journalist Tetiana Honcharova, who shares the values and aspirations of the NGO since the project's inception, Rubryka reports.

What's the problem?

A few years ago, No Waste Ukraine challenged the government discourse that Ukrainians would never engage in sorting due to a "non-European mentality." The opening of a public sorting station, where there were lines of people eager to dispose of recyclables, debunked this notion. Now, the NGO is tackling the stereotype that "I don't sort because garbage trucks will mix everything anyway."

The organization wants to stop normalizing the damaging behavior of garbage truckers and continue advocating for separate waste collection, as seen in Europe. "We need to overcome this barrier now so that our children don't repeat such excuses and boldly assert their right to a clean and sustainable future," the NGO said. 

What's the solution?

To address this issue, the No Waste Ukraine team has developed a board game that teaches children and adults to sort waste and fight against stereotypes.

It's a high-quality card game that trains attention and memory while helping to memorize popular types of sorted waste. The game is based on the legendary card game Concentration, which stimulates memory and logic.

How does it work?

In the game, garbage trucks act as anti-heroes (they are "Joker" cards), unexpectedly appearing and attempting to stop sorting and change the game's rules. The player's task is to defeat the garbage trucks and, using their natural wit, overcome the obstacles created by the anti-heroes.

The board game "Sorting Against Garbage Trucks" is not just entertainment; it's an opportunity to learn how to sort different types of waste and not accept the problem of garbage trucks as a given.

The game can be a developmental gift for children (and not only) on holidays, a corporate gift from socially responsible companies, or a chance to play with family at friendly gatherings, on trains, or in bomb shelters.

A game was developed by the No Waste Ukraine team and Klepka with the goal of producing 5,000 (or more) games to gift to schools and expand the collection of engaging board games that enhance a child's logical abilities.

Rubryka reported that No WasterUkraine opened the first waste sorting cafe in the country at a sorting station in Kyiv. The NGO also started to accept plastic by mail.