IS THIS THE WORLD'S FIRST CARBON NEUTRAL TOY FAIR?

THE second annual Whanganui Toy Fair, on the 14th May 2023, to be held at Springvale Stadium is set to be the world's first carbon neutral toy fair. It all came about when applying for a seeding or start up grant through Whanganui and Partners. The idea of the grant is to help new events to get established by providing funds for promoting the event outside of the local area. Nationally and, or internationally, bringing visitors to Whanganui and stimulating the local economy.

One of the strict criteria for grant approval is for the event to be environmentally friendly. But, how do you make a toy fair environmentally friendly? Just by the nature of the event and the criteria of the grant, promotion of the event, encouraging people to attend from outside of the local area leaves a carbon footprint itself. In the Whanganui Toy Fair's first year, environmentally friendly lines had been taken. The paper that the promotional flyers and posters had been printed on was made from wheat straw and recycled wood. Old and broken toys had been encouraged to be brought along and placed in a free bin, if not wanted rather than taken to landfill. Attendees could then take them home and repair the toys, use parts off them for modelling projects. They were therefore recycled, reused and repurposed.

Organiser Steve Brown, came up with the idea of giving everyone attending the Whanganui Toy Fair a free tree to take home and plant. Granted in the first year the tree may not absorb enough carbon to cover the footprint left by attending the second annual Whanganui Toy Fair on the 14th May 2023. However, in future years, it should more than adequately do the job.

The Whanganui Toy Fair acts as a platform for raising money for local charities, raising over $5,000 in its first year. This year it hopes to do even better through various streams of funding. Entrance fees, local business sponsorship. A free table for charities with the idea being that they encourage their supporters to donate old toys to sell at the Whanganui Toy Fair with all the money generated from the sales going to the charity. For further information, contact whanganuitoyfair@gmail.com.■