Eco-solutions: Lviv unveils unique eco-toy for preschoolers and new eco-space for waste sorting education
Photo: Anastasiia Smolenko / Lviv City Council
In Lviv, a new eco-space has been established at the site of the municipal carrier Lvivspetskomuntrans. This facility will host training sessions, roundtables, and coworking activities and educate preschoolers on waste sorting. To engage and educate young children, Lvivspetskomuntrans, in collaboration with Ihroteko LLC, has developed an eco-toy designed to teach the principles of waste sorting through interactive play.
The Lviv City Council reports this.
What is the problem?
Taras Stefanyshyn, director of the Lviv Communal Enterprise Lvivspetskomuntrans, highlighted that the company has been handling waste since 1909. Removing waste is just one aspect of their operations; they are also committed to educating people on waste sorting through various initiatives and supporting social efforts in this area. Drawing from international experience and observing European waste management practices, it is evident that education in municipal solid waste (MSW) management is widespread. Teaching waste sorting is considered a crucial responsibility.
Photo: Anastasiia Smolenko / Lviv City Council
What is the solution?
"As a result, we conceived the idea to create our own educational space. We repurposed abandoned premises, ensuring they were cleared and renovated to meet accessibility standards. The concept for this space was beautifully brought to life by the talented artists from the Lviv Professional College of Applied Arts and Design, to whom we extend our heartfelt gratitude," Taras Stefanyshyn says.
Special emphasis is now placed on teaching the youngest children—preschoolers—to sort waste. Therefore, even the design of the space itself is made interesting for children.
Photo: Anastasiia Smolenko / Lviv City Council
Also, in parallel, the idea of making an educational ecological toy arose.
"To bring this idea to life, we collaborated with our local Lviv manufacturer, Ihroteko. They successfully implemented our concept, designing the toy based on our real garbage truck," Taras Stefanyshyn emphasized.
The unique eco-toy is a garbage truck with containers for collecting all waste fractions and small chips depicting types of waste. The toy is wooden, made of beech,, and painted with environmentally friendly paints. As Iryna Pika, commercial director of Ihroteko LLC, notes, the toy will be interesting for children aged 3 to 9.
Photo: Anastasiia Smolenko / Lviv City Council
"Children discover the world through toys, using them to practically apply what they've learned. When a child engages with a toy using their hands and senses, that knowledge sticks with them for life," Iryna Pika said.
The toy garbage truck comes with color-coded bins for different types of waste: mixed, biowaste, plastic, glass, and paper. Each bin opens up, allowing kids to sort and place chips with images of various waste items into the correct bins. There are 30 chips in total, each colored for easy identification. The toy also includes a driver figure who can exit the cabin, help with unloading and sorting, and then transport the bins.
Photo: Anastasiia Smolenko / Lviv City Council
How does it work?
According to Roman Yatsykovych, the project manager at the Lviv Communal Enterprise Lvivspetskomuntrans, the first batch of these eco-friendly toys will be bought and distributed to preschools across Lviv. This way, kindergarten teachers can easily show children the different types of waste and which bins they belong in. Future batches of these toys will be available in children's stores partnered with Ihroteko LLC or can be bought directly from the manufacturer's website. The toy is expected to cost up to a thousand hryvnias.
Photo: Anastasiia Smolenko / Lviv City Council
However, the space itself will not only work for children. Seminars and trainings are planned for everyone interested in environmental topics and waste issues. A schedule of events in the space will be formed. All events will be covered on the social media pages of the Lviv Communal Enterprise Lvivspetskomuntrans.
Photo: Anastasiia Smolenko / Lviv City Council
"We are aware of the great need for everyone to sort waste to reduce its amount. Therefore, first of all, we are integrating our legislation with international waste requirements and thinking through various educational and training things to form and consolidate this habit. Now, our residents will understand the essence of sorting processes from an early age. I thank our carrier Lvivspetskomuntrans, which came up with the idea of developing such a toy, which will become a kind of educational tool for our preschoolers," Orest Tymchyshyn, director of the Department of Housing and Infrastructure of the Lviv City Council, noted.
