Pupils donate no-throw straws
A group of 12-year-olds have had made it their mission to change the world – one reusable straw at a time.
The New Plymouth students have donated 10 packs of stainless steel straws to their local cafe in a bid to help reduce the number of plastic straws in use after noticing hundreds on local beaches during their many class clean-ups.
‘‘At every shop there are always plastic straws everywhere,’’ Puketapu School student, Millah West said.
‘‘There’s is way too many,’’ classmate Kyra-Jae Paki added.
Wanting to make a difference, they discussed with Daniel Ryan, the owner of Bell Block’s White Pear Cafe, about what to use instead of plastic straws.
But he explained to them biodegradable straws were costly and could impact the business.
So the students worked with Norwex, a business providing sustainable products, to arrange reusable stainless steel straws they could donate to the cafe.
‘‘They’re not plastic so they won’t wash away,’’ Paki said.
‘‘And people can reuse them over and over again,’’ West added.
The group spoke at a school assembly and raised money for the straws through a wacky hair day. Paki and West said it felt great to be able to help make a difference to the community’s environment.
‘‘You know that you’re not helping just the Earth, but the animals,’’ West said.
‘‘It’s just the right thing to do,’’ Paki said.
Puketapu School teacher Kim Sowman said although she was leading the programme the kids were the driving force of the outcome, and was proud the students had wanted to make a change.
‘‘There’s a few real ecowarriors in the group,’’ she said. ‘‘They want to look after their environment. The biggest thing is even if you’re only 11 you can make a difference.’’